


Soul Mates

by andrhars



Series: Souls Trilogy [1]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Genre: Blast from the past!, F/F, F/M, M/M, No graphic rape/Non-con, Reposted here to get away from ff.net, baby's first fic, lots of blood though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:41:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 10
Words: 514,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22228069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/andrhars/pseuds/andrhars
Summary: Navi is killed by Link's shadow inside the Water Temple, leaving the Hero of Time gravely injured, and Sheik is forced to accompany him more thoroughly on his quest. But the shadow is not satisfied. Yaoi/shounen-ai is contained herein
Relationships: Link/Sheik, Sheik/Dark Link (one-sided), Zelda/Aveil
Series: Souls Trilogy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1599988
Comments: 24
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> **I'm sick and tired of FF.net, and I'm considering just moving everything over here. Since I'm too lazy to start re-uploading 147(!) separate chapters, I've decided to upload this fic in several batches of many chapters. Also, this is the first fic I ever wrote over 10 years ago, and it's rough and very much something I made up as I went along instead of planning ahead, which explains its stupid length and some, frankly, weird turns the plot takes. It's still important to me, though, so I wanted it up on my AO3 account as well.**
> 
> **So please, don't judge me too hard. I like to think I've come a long way since writing this!  
> **  
> 

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 1  
**

* * *

The moon rose above Lake Hylia, casting its pale light over the land. The water splashed against the shore, a whole little symphony in itself. Crickets joined in, and the stage was set for the night's concert.

On a small island, upon which a large, naked tree stood proud and tall, a small fire was crackling merrily, providing warmth and light for the figures around it. One of them, a young man who could not have been more than seventeen or eighteen, lay shivering under a blanket, his skin flushed and sweaty. A large cut across his forehead marred the otherwise perfection of his face. He was breathing heavily, his injuries taking their toll upon his body.

The other figure, a masked warrior, was eyeing the first figure wearily with his crimson eyes. He was wearing a dark blue exoskeleton, a type of garment made of cloth that was strong and durable. It stretched tight over his body, showing a lean and slender figure with muscles honed by years of training. A tabard displaying a red, bleeding eye covered his chest. Bandages covered his lower arms, hiding several knives. The cowl of the tabard covered the lower half of his face, and a fringe of blond hair fell down to cover one of his eyes. The Sheikah warrior was worried.

It had all gone wrong after the Hero of Time had entered the temple beneath the lake. He had been in there for far too long. After a whole day had passed and still no sign of the Hero, the Sheikah had been planning to enter the temple to search for him, even though this would break the tradition. Truth to be told, the Sheikah had been ready to forsake everything he had been taught since he was old enough to stand on his own. Traditions and culture meant very little if there was no world in which to honour them. He had been relieved when he saw the lake fill up with water again and a blue light descended from the sky, forming a pillar on the platform on which the temple's symbol was proudly carved. A dark figure had come down the shaft of light, forming a very familiar silhouette.

Panic had made itself known, however, when the Hero had collapsed on the platform, his form bleeding and his clothes ripped to shreds. The Sheikah had rushed to the fallen Hero, immediately going to work on healing him, stripping him of his ruined tunic and leggings. When he was sure he had bandaged every single wound on his body, he had wrapped the Hero in a blanket and laid him down, starting a fire to warm his shivering form. There was little the Sheikah could do after apart from waiting for the Hero to wake up so he could be given a red potion that would speed up the healing.

 _What happened to you?_ The Sheikah thought. _Surely the monster inside could not have done this?_ Fair enough, the Hero had emerged from both the Forest and Fire temples a bit worse for the wear, but always with a smile on his face and smug air of satisfaction around him. The Sheikah was embarrassed to think about this since he was not supposed to have any contact with the Hero apart from when he taught him the teleportation songs for the temples, but it was hard to leave after the Hero had entered them. There was just something about the golden-haired youth that was so alluring… therefore, the Sheikah had made a compromise. He did not reveal himself to the Hero when he finished the temples, he merely…observed him. His ancestors would probably disapprove, but his habit had truly meant something good this time. What could have happened if the Sheikah had not been there when the Hero emerged from the lake? Some of the wounds were quite serious, and the Hero would have died of blood loss if he had not stopped the bleeding and bandaged them up.

The Hero coughed, making the Sheikah leap to attention. It was a pained cough, one that spoke of agony beyond words. Within seconds, the Sheikah was crouched by the Hero's side, listening carefully for obstructed airways or worse.

"Are you awake, Hero?" he asked quietly, not wanting to disturb him if he hadn't awoken. Sleep is the best way to heal, he had been taught. He was about to sit back again, but a weak voice froze him.

"Hurts…" whispered the Hero, his voice a croak from sleep and injuries.

"I know, Hero," said the Sheikah gently. He picked up the backpack which lay forgotten by the fire and rummaged around inside until he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a bottle filled with a red liquid. He almost shuddered when he remembered what it tasted like. But if the Hero was to heal, then this was what would make it happen. He uncorked it, lifted the Hero's head carefully and put the bottle gently to his lips. "Drink this, Hero; it will make the pain go away faster."

Whimpering, the hero drank greedily of the bottle, wincing at the taste. It was at times like these that the Sheikah was reminded that the Great Hero of Time was really nothing more than a boy in an adult's body, his mind having been sealed away for seven long years until the Goddesses saw him fit to start his quest to rid the land of evil. It was at times like these that the Sheikah warrior realised he truly hated the Goddesses for what they had done to an innocent boy like this.

He had seen the Hero once when they were both young boys. The green-clad boy with the fairy had carefully entered the courtyard where the princess had been spying on the utterly evil man visiting the castle. The Sheikah had been watching from the roof. He may have been young, but had still been charged with protecting the princess.

Speaking of which, where was the Hero's fairy now? The little, glowing, blue creature had been missing when the Hero had arrived.

"Hero," the Sheikah said softly. "Where is your fairy?"

The Hero's eyes, which had been closed until now, shot open. "Navi!" the Hero exclaimed, and immediately began to cough, aggravating his wounds. The Sheikah waited until the fit calmed down, holding the Hero down gently but firmly with a hand on his chest. "She…she protected me from…my…my shadow."

"Shadow?" asked the Sheikah, raising a delicate eyebrow. He had heard of the Evil King creating duplicates of people and sending them to terrorise the countryside, but had he truly created one of the Hero himself? _He could have,_ he reminded himself, _he did create a copy of himself in the Forest Temple._

"Yes…shadow…" The Hero coughed again. "He…attacked me…in a room…filled with haze…I defeated him the first time, but he came back after…after I killed the monster…Navi saw him first…she protected me from his attack…but…she was so small…"

The Sheikah silenced him with a finger to his lips. The Sheikah understood. The fairy had sacrificed herself to save the Hero. The Sheikah thanked the fairy in his mind, praying that her spirit had gone to a better place. "And then you fought your shadow again?" he asked.

The Hero didn't answer, but nodded weakly. "He was so…strong."

"Just as strong as you, I expect," said the Sheikah. He saw that the Hero was nodding off to sleep again. "Rest, Hero. I will keep watch."

The Hero was gone almost immediately, but not before whispering: "Thank…you…Sheik."

Sheik smiled softly under his cowl. "You're welcome, Hero." He stood up and looked around. Now that the monster in the temple had been destroyed, the dark influence surrounding the lake was gone. Surely the Hero would be safe now? Just for a little while? He pulled out his lyre and plucked a small tune that the Hero did not know, one that would teleport Sheik inside the Water Temple. He closed his eyes as the coloured lights surrounded him, lifted him, took him inside the temple…

* * *

When he opened his eyes, he was aware he was neck-deep in water. The light from the lit torches bounced off the calm water and created beautiful patterns on the walls of the central chamber.

He swam to the pillar-like structure in the middle of the chamber and climbed onto the small walkway. He huffed, annoyed that he had gotten wet. The whole point of teleporting inside was to prevent himself getting wet. He shook his head and spied the raised platform on the other side of the room. A dragon's head with a familiar surface stared back at him. The Hero had to use a Longshot to get over there, but Sheik merely jumped over to it.

A gigantic door stood before him, next to which lay a large padlock and a pair of chains. A discarded key with a blue gem set inside lay next to it. Behind the door, a sharp incline with several bladed traps moving side to side presented a challenge…had they actually been moving. It seemed that with the evil inside gone, all the traps and creatures had either vanished or just…died.

The door at the top of the incline opened into a large room. It was square in shape, and spikes lined the walls. In the middle, a rectangular pool with four pillars jutting from the floor stood empty. Sheik nodded, content that the amoeba that had inhabited the pool was dead and gone. But this was not why he was there. He looked around more carefully, and saw something shining in the corner of the empty pool. He lowered himself to the floor inside and walked over. It was the fairy. Her little body shone brightly even in death. Her wings were torn apart, and an ugly cut went across her stomach. Sheik carefully picked hero body up in his hand, ready to teleport out of the temple when a hoarse snicker caught his attention.

Across from where the fairy had been, a formless mass of pure darkness was shifting and moving, two red eyes similar to his own staring at him. It snickered again. _"So, the hero sent his slave to get his fairy…"_ it stated with a voice that was both far away and very close at the same time.

"Be silent, Shadow," said Sheik firmly and drew out a dagger. "Or I shall end you."

The mass snickered again. _"Now I'm scared…if My Light could not kill me, then how can you?"_

Sheik replaced the dagger again, knowing it was true. The Hero wielded The Master Sword, and only _he_ could vanquish his own shadow. Ignoring the now laughing shadow, Sheik pulled out his lyre and played the Serenade of Water, which would bring him back to the sleeping Hero.

" _I know what hurts My Light, Sheikah!"_ shouted the shadow as Sheik was swept away. _"Next time, I'll be coming for you!"_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 2**

* * *

The Hero's condition had not changed when Sheik arrived on the little island. His skin colour _had_ darkened a bit, signifying that the potion was doing its job by replacing the lost blood. It would take some time, however, for the biggest wounds to close and heal. The Hero could expect some nasty scars as well. Sheik carefully wrapped Navi's body in a blanket and put it next to the fire. The Hero would probably want to see her when he woke up, if not to confirm that she was actually gone then at least to say his final goodbyes.

Having done this, Sheik once again sat down by the fire, staring into the dancing flames. It was something he could do for hours upon hours. If he looked close enough, the darkness between the flames would sometimes assume humanoid forms, dancing gracefully in the inferno surrounding them. Sheik's aunt had called them fire spirits, or fire pixies. Sheik loved them. It was so peaceful, and it gave him time to think about everything and nothing.

 _What did he mean, come after me? He's defeated, he has no form anymore…and no one will enter that temple again, so he won't be able to kill anyone and nurture himself…_ The shadow's threat hadn't rattled him at all. Sheik was a warrior; he could take care of himself. No, what made him think about over and over again was the part about the shadow knowing what hurt the Hero. Surely the Hero did not like Sheik enough that it would cripple him if the Sheikah got hurt.

Another whimper made Sheik look at the sleeping form. The Hero's entire body was shivering, and he was mumbling.

"No…please don't…don't kill her…Navi…"

Sheik shook his head sympathetically. He was dreaming of his fairy's death, a nightmare that most likely would haunt him for years onwards. Sheik gritted his teeth, clenching his jaws for fear of voicing his thoughts about the unfairness of legends and the will of gods. The Hero continued mumbling. Sheik could not stand it anymore. He rose and walked to the Hero, crouching down. The Hero was sweating heavily, and his breath came out laboured, like he was running. Sheik tugged at the bandages on his right hand and, upon freeing the limb, laid it upon the Hero's brow. The Hero sighed in relief. He was burning up. Infection had set in his wounds. Sheik observed the sky, and saw that it was starting to lighten. Dawn was approaching fast.

He decided that upon first light, the Hero was going to Lon Lon Ranch. There, Sheik could leave the Hero in safety and travel faster to Kakariko Village, fetch more medicine and return to heal him. As it was, there was little Sheik could do but wait. It would be far too dangerous to travel across the plains in the dark, where the Evil King's men would be waiting and ambushing unwary travellers.

 _Hold on, Hero,_ he thought. At that moment, Sheik noticed he was shivering too. The exoskeleton had absorbed quite a bit of water, and had soaked Sheik to the bone. Leaning against the tree, close to the fire, he waited for his body to warm and his clothes to dry. The sun was rising painfully slow. By his calculations, it would be at least a couple of hours until it would creep over the mountains and cast its light on Hyrule. As he sat there, a thought struck him. _How did he gain an infection so fast? I cleaned and bandaged the wounds right after he showed up._ Without noticing, he began to nod off. The warmth from the fire was so comforting…

* * *

_Oh gods, I fell asleep!_

He woke with a start and looked around wildly. No one had attacked them in their sleep, thankfully, but Sheik's face burned with shame as he packed up the little campsite. He stepped on the glowing embers of the fire and came face to face with a conundrum. How was he going to get the Hero to Lon Lon? Sheik usually relied on either playing teleporting songs or his deku nuts to travel, and neither of them could be used by two people at the same time. He was thinking about this when he spotted the Hero's ocarina, the Ocarina of Time. He always played the blue flute-like instrument when he was bored or distressed, Sheik knew. He had observed the Hero many nights where the green-clad teen had picked it up and just started playing anything. And he was good at it. Sheik had never heard so many beautiful melodies played by the same person on the same instrument.

There was one song he always favoured when he had his horse around, though… Sheik remembered. _His horse!_ He carefully picked up the ocarina, holding it reverently in his hands. _Can I do this?_ he asked himself. He already knew the answer. He had no choice. He lowered his cowl, put the mouthpiece to his lips, and blew. It was a strange feeling that came over him. It felt like the whole world was listening to the notes issuing forth from the instrument. Was this how the Hero felt all the time when he played it? Sheik stopped blowing and looked at the instrument. He had to shake his head to clear the feeling from it.

He tried to remember how the song went. It was a fairly simple one, he remembered, consisting of eleven notes. He experimented until he found the right combination. Strange, notes and scales on his lyre were imprinted in his mind, but he felt clumsy when trying to play this simple ocarina. Suddenly, the notes appeared in his mind, and Sheik played the song known as Epona's song.

Sheik waited. Nothing happened. When the Hero played it, the horse had always showed up within seconds. How the horse always knew where he was, was a mystery which Sheik attributed to the magic in the ocarina…and it seemed the horse was able to sense who was playing and decided not to come. Which was why he was surprised when the sound of hooves clacking on wood approached him from behind. He turned around and spotted the brown horse with the white mane cautiously approaching the campsite. Sheik noticed she was staring at her unconscious owner…and eyeing Sheik with suspicion.

He sighed quietly and slowly walked to her. She backed away. Sheik stopped.

"Listen to me," he said, hoping she understood. "He is very badly hurt, and must go to Lon Lon Ranch. Please, let me ride you so I can take him there."

Epona seemed to study Sheik carefully, her eyes roaming all over him, perhaps to identify any body language that proved threatening to both her master and herself. She snorted and came over to the extinguished fire, throwing her head around as if impatient.

Sheik wasted no time in bundling up the hero and placing him in the saddle. Afterwards, he gathered his pack and carefully put Navi's body inside. He swung the pack on his shoulder, and, light as a feather, sprang up in Epona's saddle. He made sure the Hero was comfortable, and made him lean against Sheik's chest so he wouldn't slide off. Sheik put his arms under the Hero's and grabbed the reins. He leant forward. "To Lon Lon Ranch," he said, and Epona immediately took off.

* * *

To say the residents of the ranch were surprised when Sheik came riding up on Epona, a horse that only tolerated two people in all of Hyrule to even be near her, would be an understatement. The surprise quickly turned to shock and panic when it became apparent who was sitting in front of the masked Sheikah. Talon was the first to react and, without uttering a single word, caught the unconscious hero and took him inside, leaving Sheik and the red-haired girl, Malon, alone outside. Sheik slid off Epona who, as if she owned the place, walked off to the big horse pen and started eating. Sheik made a note to give her an extra large helping of carrots when this was done and the Hero was okay.

"What happened?" asked Malon suddenly, worry all over her face. "And who are you?"

"He…was ambushed," Sheik answered. That was the best way he could describe it. "His wounds are infected; I am going to Kakariko to find better medicine. Is there a doctor on the ranch?"

Malon shook her head. "No, but I know a bit about redressing and cleaning wounds…"

"Good," said Sheik. "Do what you can for him. I will be back as soon as I can." Sheik didn't even give her time to respond as he pulled out a deku nut, threw it to the ground and teleported away. None of them saw the farmhand, Ingo, spying on them from around the corner, rubbing his hands together and grinning evilly.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 3**

* * *

Every second felt like an eternity as Sheik waited for the old woman behind the counter to mix a potion that would kill off the Hero's infection. The woman, who had known Sheik since he was young, knew not to ask questions when the young man, who had always acted in a calm and dignified manner, looked close to panic.

 _If the hero dies…_ The consequences were unthinkable. Perhaps the Evil King would be satisfied with what he had when he only possessed one piece of the triforce…or maybe he would destroy the entire world because he could. Sheik started tapping his finger on the counter unconsciously.

"I am making it as fast as I can, lad," said the old crone in an annoyed huff.

Sheik ceased the tapping, embarrassed that he had even started doing it. Sheikah were _not_ impatient, and they most _certainly_ did not start fidgeting when they were waiting for something. That's what he kept repeating in his mind. But he soon found his thoughts surrendering to speculation about what the Hero's shadow had said.

_Perhaps he meant that it would hurt Hero since he is, essentially, clueless without me? Yes, that must be it…_

Truly, the Hero could not be hurt enough by Sheik's death to start mourning him. He had barely spoken to the Hero, and when he did, it was only to teach him a new song or tell him where to go next. Of course, the Hero wasn't satisfied by the purely necessary contact with Sheik and kept trying getting Sheik to stay and talk. Sheik had always found a deku nut handy at those moments, though, and had disappeared in a flash every time.

It was…touching, he supposed, that the Hero of Time wanted to get better acquainted with a lowly Sheikah guide, but Sheik needed to make sure the Hero continued his quest instead of getting sidetracked by things such as friendships…

It was harsh, he knew, but the Evil King did not stop his search for the princess, and every day that passed was a day closer to his success. It was unfair. It was truly unfair.

A light cough from behind the counter shook him from his thoughts. The old woman was holding out a package to him. "There's a bottle he needs to drink and ointment that must be spread on his wounds," she said tersely. She may have known the masked warrior since he was a small child, but she did not appreciate almost having her door knocked down by him.

"Thank you," Sheik said earnestly and teleported back to Lon Lon Ranch.

* * *

Appearing outside the main building on the ranch, Sheik raced inside, dodging rabid cuccoos that tried to peck his eyes out, jumping over the sleeping Talon, all the while wondering how the man could possibly sleep when the one who had saved his ranch was dying in the next room. He burst through the door at the top of the stairs, making Malon jump in shock.

"Thank the goddesses you're here," she said and pointed at the form lying in the bed. "He's getting worse." She carried a bowl filled with cold water over to the bed and dabbed at his forehead with a soaked cloth. "His fever's rising."

Sheik had to take a second to compose himself. He quickly moved over to the bed, opening the old woman's package. Inside were a bottle filled with a garish blue-green liquid and a small capsule filled with a pale grey cream with green bits of plants in it. Sheik sniffed at it, wincing from the strong smell.

"Did you redress his wounds?" Sheik asked as he uncorked the bottle.

"Not all of them," she admitted, sounding ashamed. Sheik gazed at her curiously, to which she started blushing deeply. "There were some bandages…down there…"

 _Embarrassed? At a time like this? Good grief!_ Sheik had to fight down an urge to roll his eyes and shake his head. He focused on the Hero and felt his forehead. It was boiling hot. The Hero's body was fighting back the infection with all its might, but even a strong body like Hero's had its breaking point.

"Hero?" he asked loudly. "Can you hear me?" The Hero didn't respond, causing a pang of worry in Sheik's head. He couldn't have slipped off into an eternal sleep already? Clenching his jaw, Sheik delivered a resounding slap to the Hero's cheek.

"Wha…what's hap…happening?" asked the Hero, half of his words never making it out of his mouth.

Sheik wasted no time in cupping the bottle to his lips for the second time in what felt like too few hours. "Drink it, Hero." The Hero seemed to remember his voice and carefully sipped at the bottle, his face twisting when the revolting taste made itself evident. The Hero started to pull away from the bottle, but Sheik's hand held his head in place. "You need to drink it, no matter how disgusting it is," Sheik told the Hero firmly, who complied.

The Hero shuddered after every single drop in the bottle was gone, and Sheik really couldn't blame him. Potions or any other type of medicine that was supposedly good for you was never appealing to the taste buds.

After putting away the bottle, Sheik took out the ointment capsule. He turned to Malon. "I need to apply this to his wounds. I suggest you step outside, if only to preserve his dignity."

She blushed again and left, leaving Sheik to his work. Peeling of the bandages, he grimaced at the ugly colour the wounds had turned. They had not been this bad at the lake. He first turned to a shallow cut he had received to the Hero's thigh, close to…certain anatomical parts. Smearing the ointment in and around the cut, he felt the Hero wince. Sheik ignored him and continued, spreading the lotion over the numerous cuts and bruises he had suffered in his fight against his own shadow.

_These wounds haven't all been caused by his shadow, surely?_

When he was done with the ointment, he called on Malon to bring him a needle and some thread. Some of the wounds and opened wider when they had ridden to the ranch and needed to be sewn closed lest more dirt and filth getting into them and infecting the Hero anew.

* * *

He looked the Hero over. All the major wounds were sewn shut, and the medicine seemed to be working. His temperature was already dropping, and his skin was losing its pallor. Sheik sighed with relief and sank into the chair next to the bed. The Hero would live, it seemed. He grabbed the blanket and covered the Hero up again. Sheik felt his forehead again and nodded in satisfaction. He paused his hand over the Hero's cheek, however, and gently stroked his knuckles on the silky skin.

Sheik recoiled when he realised what he was doing. This was _not_ appropriate behaviour for a Sheikah guide. He had to admit, the Hero was a truly handsome man and, had it not been for the terrible war, would probably have been the heartthrob wherever he went. Sheik shook his head. _What am I thinking? I must be tired…_ He opened a window and saw that it was dark outside. He had been attending to the Hero the whole day.

A tentative series of knocks came upon the door, and Malon entered slowly, afraid of disturbing them. "Am I bothering you?" she asked.

Sheik shook his head. "No, it's fine. He is healing now, thank you for your help."

Now it was her turn to shake her head. "It's nothing really, this is the least we could do for the one who saved the ranch."

Sheik nodded. He had been quite amazed when the Hero had not only won Epona fair and square in a race with the shifty-looking, so-called "owner" of the ranch, but even managed to escape with the horse when the owner tried to lock him in. The former farmhand, Ingo, had quickly been overcome by fear of the Evil King and given the ranch back to Talon, and life continued like it had before the takeover.

* * *

It was decided that Sheik was to sleep in the other bed inside the main house while Malon and Talon slept downstairs in the guest room. There was no question of moving the Hero now that he was getting better, and both father and daughter wouldn't hear of anything else. Sheik, wary of falling asleep again after the fiasco at the lake, sat on a chair in the corner, observing the dark room. The Hero was sleeping peacefully now, no whimpers or murmurs coming from him. A faint glow from his backpack reminded Sheik of the dreadful reality he had to slap the Hero in the face with when he woke up.

Several hours passed by in silence. Somewhere in the next room, a cuccoo was clucking excitedly about something or other. A cow mooed in its sleep from the stables. A horse snickered from the large pen outside. Something crackled, like a merry fire.

… _merry fire?_ Sheik asked himself and opened the window shutters. The storage room at the other end of the ranch property was on fire, a bright red flame jutting from one of the windows. Already, Talon was moving his considerable bulk over to the burning building, two heavy buckets of water swinging in his hands. Sheik was already on his way to the door when Malon knocked, asking for assistance in putting the blaze out.

Smoke was filling the air, and the horses in the pen had all moved to the other side, as far away from the flames as possible. The grass next to the storage room had also caught fire, and the blaze was steadily moving towards the pen.

Luckily, the storage room wasn't very large, so the fire was quickly put out, but the wares and stored goods inside were all burnt beyond recognition. As Talon wiped his brow and thanked Sheik, the Sheikah noticed that someone was missing.

"Where is your farmhand?" he asked Talon, who looked confused for a second before looking around.

"I don't know," he said. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen him all day."

"He's probably sulking in the stables," said Malon. "He didn't like that you brought Link here, I think. He kept glaring at him when father brought him inside…" She trailed off as Sheik quickly ran back to the main building, his heart beating like a drum.

_How could I have been so foolish?_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 4**

* * *

In the darkness of the room, the Hero slept deeply, unaware of the events outside. The medicine had put him in such deep sleep that even dreams did not come to him.

Something glinted in the dark. The blade of a knife. A deep chuckle emanated from a dark corner.

"You'll pay for humiliating me like that, kid. Thanks to you, I have to work for that fool Talon again," Ingo whispered, letting the blade dance lightly across the Hero's face, as if unsure where to cut first. Ingo looked out the window and saw that the blaze had already been put out, but he was certain he had enough time. Just to be sure, however, he looked closer at the figures standing in front of the ruined storage room. One fat one, one slim one with long hair…and that was it. His eyes widened. "Oh, no…"

He raised the knife quickly, intending to plunge it deep into the Hero's throat, a wound no one could possibly survive from. He never had the time. The door slammed open, and something thudded into Ingo's side.

**Thud!**

**Thud!**

**Thud!**

It was like being hit by carrots, Ingo thought. Then he looked down to where the impacts had come from. Three daggers jutted out from his side, blood pouring down and staining his white trousers and forming little puddles on the floor. He looked back to the door. A foot collided with his face, knocking him away from the bed. He crashed into the dining table in the middle of the room, falling head over heels over on the other side.

Sheik was on him like a furious cat, pulling him up from the floor and giving him a vicious kick in the stomach and another in his chest, which sent him flying out the window. The only sound confirming what had just happened was the splintering of the crate that stood directly under the window.

Immediately, Sheik went to the Hero's side, checking him for wounds. There were none. Ingo hadn't made a single mark on him. Sheik sighed in relief and went over to the window, looking out. Ingo's body had completely annihilated the crate, his arms and legs sticking out at awkward angles. Talon and Malon had run over and were looking at the mangled mess that had once been a farmhand. Malon gasped and buried her face in Talon's shoulder. Her father patted her on the back and led her back into the main house. He settled her back in the guest room and then came up the stairs with a lantern in his hand.

"Is he okay?" asked the plump man, looking worried. "I'm so sorry; I should've known Ingo would try something like this." He spat the name out like it was poison, making his dislike of the gangly farmhand quite evident.

"The Hero is fine, Mr. Talon," said Sheik evenly. "I got to him before anything happened."

Talon looked down at the body in the crate. "I didn't want to take him back, you know, after what he did," he said. "I was going to throw him out on his ass like he did with me when Ganondorf gave him the ranch, but Malon…sweet, sweet Malon wanted me to give him another chance."

Sheik wasn't surprised. He would probably have done the same if he had been betrayed in the same manner.

"He never liked going back to being a farmhand, though," continued Talon. "He said he was grateful for being allowed to work here again, but I saw the looks he gave me when he thought I wasn't looking." He spat at the body. "Good riddance."

"I will get rid of the body," said Sheik and went to jump out the window, but Talon's hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"No, I will do it. He's caused you two enough trouble as it is, first the Epona business and now this…" Talon nodded again and went outside, his lantern bobbing as he started on his grim task.

Sheik went back to checking on the Hero. He was surprised at Talon's demeanour. All the times he had seen him previously, the ranch owner seemed to be an incredibly lazy man, sleeping day and night, leaving most of the work to his daughter and former worker apart from when deliveries had to be made. But after Sheik arrived with the wounded Hero, he had changed his personality completely.

 _He knows he owes everything he has today to L…the Hero,_ he thought, hearing faint shovelling sounds…and ignoring the slip-up. _And he's completely right._

He looked down at the oblivious Hero, who had no idea that his life had almost ended that night. "That's three times, Hero, that I have saved your life in the past two days. How many more will it be?" he whispered.

* * *

Talon had returned and went to bed at around four in the morning, first checking up on the Hero and Sheik and returning Sheik's daggers, which Sheik cleaned right away. Talon had buried Ingo in the far corner of the field, not even putting up a marker. "He didn't deserve one," he had gruffly told Sheik before retiring.

Sheik kept watch until the sun rose and the cucco signalled the beginning of the day. It was no wonder the Hero waited the animals, the way they made such a racked in the morning. Many were the times Sheik had watched in exasperation as the Hero picked a fight with one too many of the birds and had almost been eaten alive.

And the worst part of it all was that the Hero never learned from the small mistakes he did. It was the same with enemies he encountered. If he failed to kill it by a direct charge the first time, he wouldn't figure out how to kill it until his sixth try, at which point his fairy would shout for him to get his act together. The Hero was lucky his natural charisma and good looks covered him in social interaction, or he would never have been able to survive in Hyrule.

Malon had been quite shaken by the night's events and stayed in bed, and Talon checked up on them again before getting started on the things that needed to be done on the ranch, such as milking the cows and collecting the eggs from the cucco perches.

Sheik was prepared for a day of waiting and protecting the Hero until a sharp cry pierced the air. The Sheikah quickly ran to the window and looked up to the sky. A small dot was rapidly growing larger over the main building. Sheik jumped out, being careful to avoid the ruined crate. He barely had time to hold out his arm before Kaiza, the princess' personal messenger falcon perched on it. Her claws dug into Sheik's exoskeleton, nearly scratching his skin, although in Kaiza's case it would be more tearing than scratching. She expectantly held out her leg, on which a roll of paper was tied. Sheik took it off and, when Kaiza didn't move, realised this was a message that needed to be replied too.

He went inside, making sure that neither Talon nor Malon saw him. They were allies and loyal to the princess, but no one but Sheik was supposed to know about Kaiza. He could no longer rely on the gossip stones to deliver messages to the princess as Ganondorf had figured out how to use them to his own advantage. Sheik's standing orders at the moment were to destroy the stones wherever he found them.

He unrolled the paper on the dining table, immediately recognising the neat, curved handwriting as the princess'.

**_S,_ **

**_Three days have passed since you reported that L had gone inside the Water Temple, and not one word has arrived from you since. Write back as soon as this message finds you!_ **

**_P._ **

Sheik shook his head at the terse message. _Always straight to the point,_ he thought. _When she is worried, she writes even less than I do._

He found no paper to reply on, and used the back of the original message instead. He pulled out a piece of coal from the hearth and sharpened it with a knife. Then he wrote his reply.

**_P,_ **

**_L has been gravely injured, and their companion is dead. Condition is stable as of now, but I fear that L will need more time to recuperate. There is also the matter of L's companion. Without the companion, L has no one to guide him. I will stay and protect L until rejuvenation, awaiting your answer._ **

**_S._ **

It was hard to keep the individuals involved completely anonymous _and_ write cohesive sentences, but Sheik was satisfied with it and confident he had summed up the situation well enough. He tied the little roll of paper back on Kaiza's leg. She looked at him with what passed for a worried expression for a falcon. Sheik smiled under his cowl and gently stroked her head.

"I will be fine, do not worry," he said and carried her to the window. She took off and disappeared quickly. She was the fastest of the royal falcons, and it was for this precise reason she was used exclusively for flying messages between the princess and Sheik. She was smart too, as well as mischievous. Once, at one of the few occasions Sheik slept at the hideout, she had dropped a dead mouse on his chest just as he woke up. He had, of course, brushed it off calmly, but when he had seen the clearly amused look she gave him, he had glared at her. The mirth in her eyes had been close to insufferable.

* * *

The day passed endlessly slow. The Hero kept sleeping, and Sheik had little else to do but wait. After a couple of hours, he decided to bury the fairy, not knowing whether or not the body would start to decompose. He didn't want to take any chances, though, and having another possible source of infection so close to the Hero was not favourable.

He asked Talon where he could do so, and the corpulent man had pointed him to the solitary tree close to the house. Sheik buried Navi underneath it, cutting—with permission from Talon—her name into the trunk. At least the tree wouldn't forgot who was buried among its roots.

He regularly checked the Hero's wounds, daring any of them to get infected again. They didn't, and several of them had already closed thanks to the potion and ointment. The Hero's consciousness, however, did not return. Every now and then, he would mumble, which Sheik took as a good sign. His fever was almost gone as well.

The sun was setting again before the familiar cry pierced the air again, and Kaiza flew in the window, settling on the table. Sheik unrolled the paper and stroked her head while he read.

**_S,_ **

**_It's good to know that L is okay. I'm sorry for the loss of their companion, please inform them of this when they wake up._ **

**_This loss sets us back somewhat. Without a companion and guide, L will struggle with their tasks. S, I need you to back them up when in trouble. You are hereby ordered to assist L in whatever way you can._ **

**_Also, I has informed me of an old enemy in Kakariko that has woken up due to Ganondorf's evil influence. They have gone there to seal it up, but has left a package for you in their old house in case they are unsuccessful. There is something in it L needs if they are to challenge the house of the dead._ **

**_Good luck, to both of you._ **

**_P._ **

Sheik nodded to himself. _Just as I suspected._ He was now to assume the role of the fairy, albeit in a bigger scale, he supposed.

He frowned. _The monster beneath the well has awoken? Impa was barely able to seal up the first time, and now she's older, weaker…_ He had to mentally slap himself for what he had just thought about his aunt. _She could break me in half if she wished…and she would if she heard me implying she's aging._

But still…he was worried. He felt that he should be in Kakariko, assisting his only living relative. She may have been strict and harsh with him, but only because it was necessary so he would be capable of protecting the princess and helping the Hero in the coming years. She was his aunt…

Sheik looked at the sleeping form in the bed. _Please wake up soon, Hero. Your presence is needed!_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 5**

* * *

Sheik had taken to sitting on the roof of the house when he was sure the Hero didn't need him for a while. From there, he got an amazing view of Hyrule, almost being able to see from one end of the plains to the other. At the moment, he was staring at the mountain pass where Kakariko village lay nestled among the peaks, the most notable being the circular caldera of Death Mountain. The perpetual smoke ring had finally lost its evil taint and returned to the normal grey colour. Sheik remembered how the Hero had looked when he emerged from the Fire Temple, blisters, burns and bruises everywhere. Even his blisters had blisters on them. And Sheik hadn't even done anything when the Hero collapsed halfway down the mountain trail. He felt…guilty. But what other choice did he have? His orders had been clear: do not interact with the Hero apart from teaching him the songs. The Hero was lucky that a Goron had found him.

Impa was somewhere in Kakariko right now, most likely in the Shadow Temple to fight the monster inside. Sheik knew little of it except that it had once been a Sheikah, corrupted by the influence of darkness. He looked at the sun. Judging by its position, three hours had passed since he had checked on the Hero last. He swung himself through the window, landing lightly on the floor. No change in the Hero. It both comforted and bothered Sheik. Comforted because the infection had not come back, and bothered because he still hadn't woken up. He was about to return to the roof when stirring sounds from the bed made him look back sharply.

"Hm…phr…sh…" said the Hero.

Sheik walked back to the bed and seated himself on the chair. "Are you awake?" he asked.

The Hero's eyes did not open, but his movements clearly indicated that he was coming around. "Whe…where am I?" he asked, voice cracking and hoarse from disuse.

Anticipating this, Sheik had already fished out a bottle of water. "You are at Lon Lon Ranch, Hero. You've been sick. Would you like some water?" At the Hero's nod, Sheik slowly poured the water into his mouth, careful so he wouldn't choke on it. When the bottle was half-empty, Sheik removed it. The Hero groaned in protest. "Your body needs to adjust," he said sternly. "You can have some more later."

"S…Sheik?" asked the Hero. "Is that…you?"

"Who else would it be?" asked Sheik.

To his surprise, the Hero smiled weakly, his eyes opening slowly. Sheik found himself momentarily entranced by the aqua-coloured pools behind his eyelids, a deeper blue than the water in Lake Hylia. "What…happened?" the Hero asked.

 _Focus!_ Sheik mentally shouted at himself. He avoided looking into the other's eyes and instead kept his attention on a wound on the Hero's shoulder. "You don't remember?" The Hero shook his head. "You were ambushed after defeating the monster in the Water Temple."

Now it seemed the Hero remembered. His eyes widened slightly, and his gaze darted around the room. "Navi!" he exclaimed. "I left her there!" Tears were gathering in the corners of the Hero's eyes, and they soon started sliding down his cheeks.

Sheik put a hand on his shoulder in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. "Calm down, Hero. I recovered her body."

"Then where is she?"

Sheik jerked his head to the window. "I put her to rest under the big tree outside." He looked down, realising how stupid it was now. "I suppose she would have preferred to be buried in Kokiri Forest, but—"

"No," the Hero interrupted him. "She…she would've wanted to be buried out here, in Hyrule. She loved it out here, you know." He trailed off, seemingly lost in a fond memory, probably about the fairy. He snapped out of it soon enough. "My Shadow," he growled. "Is it still alive?"

Sheik was suddenly struck by a dilemma. If he told the Hero that his Shadow was still…conscious, if not incorporeal, in the Water Temple, he would surely return there to finish it off. But that could have negative consequences. If Sheik understood the nature of shadow creatures correctly, then they fed off the negative feelings of the ones they had been created from. Sheik was not sure whether or not the Hero would be able to keep his emotions at bay if he met the creature that had killed his fairy again. If he didn't, then the Shadow could regain its strength, and another fight would occur…and this time, the Hero might not make it.

On the other hand, if Sheik said it was no longer existent, and it _did_ regain its strength, then it could ambush them at a later date—if it managed to escape the Water Temple, of course, something he found highly unlikely considering its weakened form when Sheik had gone inside the temple. He came to a decision.

"No, Hero. It was dead when I when I found it," Sheik said, hoping it was true.

The Hero seemed to relax now, sighing and letting his head fall back on the pillow, something he regretted, it seemed, since he gasped and clenched his eyes shut. "At least I…avenged Navi," he whispered.

"Yes…" said Sheik, hoping the Hero didn't notice the doubt in his voice.

For the second time in five minutes, Hero's eyes widened and looked at Sheik. "You're…still here?"

 _What the blazes is he talking abou…oh,_ Sheik thought. He nodded. "Yes, I'm still here."

"Why? All the other times I've seen you, you disappeared as soon as you taught me the teleport song." There was a slight hint of…hurt in his voice. And anger and bitterness, Sheik noted.

"Because I've been charged to protect you until you've fully recovered, Hero." _And because I worried,_ he admitted to himself.

"Why?"

"Because you are the Hero of Time."

"I see…" The Hero didn't like the answer, Sheik knew. But it was the truth. He was the lost hope of Hyrule, and Sheik was his…guardian, and now companion. He noticed the Hero was dozing off again and quietly left the room, returning to the roof…and his thoughts.

* * *

Two days passed, and the Hero was now fully awake, though he still needed to stay in bed. Most of his wounds were firmly closed now, and Sheik could soon remove the stitches. _The wonders of the red potion,_ he thought. He was avoiding the Hero. Both because he didn't wish to be the focus of the Hero's anger at the loss of companion—something he clearly thought could have been prevented if Sheik had been there as well—, and because he felt ashamed by the answer he had given him.

He had realised after the second time the Hero woke up that he could not think clearly whenever the Hero looked at him. There was just something about the way his gaze locked with Sheik's and kept it there. The Sheikah found himself unable and…unwilling, to break it. This was something he needed to overcome if he was to be of any help to the Hero.

A door opening and shuffling footsteps caught his attention, and Sheik leant over the edge of the roof and looked down. The Hero had adorned his green tunic and cap again—the blue ones he was given by King Zora having been torn to pieces—and was, with the help of Malon, limping across the yard, towards the tree where the fairy lay buried.

The Hero lowered himself to his knees in front of it while Malon went back inside to give him his peace. Sheik observed him. He wasn't crying. In fact, he was smiling at the little mound of disturbed earth, and it grew a bit when he saw her name carved into the tree. His gaze found Sheik's quickly, the Hero knowing where he liked to sit and think by himself. He smiled at the Sheikah and signalled for him to come down.

Wary, Sheik did so and slowly approached the grave. Was the Hero going to lash out now?

"I'm sorry…for being mean to you," the Hero said unexpectedly, causing Sheik to pause slightly in his step. Once again, the Sheikah was reminded that this was still an eleven-year-old boy in an eighteen-year-old body.

He shook his head. "It was nothing, Hero. You were angry, frustrated and filled with grief."

"No, it's not 'nothing', Sheik," said the green-clad teen. "You've saved my life three times now, and all I do in return is to yell at you. How can you possibly just accept that? If I were you, I would have punched me or something."

Sheik had to work that sentence out in his head for a second. "Because..." He really couldn't figure out anything to say. _Because you are the Hero of Time, and I am merely a guide, easily replaceable. I am of no importance in the bigger picture._ That's what he wanted to say, but his lips refused to utter the words. Rustling made him look up. The Hero had stood up and was shakily making his way to him. Sheik automatically stepped over to catch him when his right leg gave out.

"Sorry," said the Hero.

"It's nothing," said Sheik and assisted the Hero back inside. "You need more rest," he said matter-of-factly.

"I guess you're right," replied the Hero, yawning. He had argued himself to be relocated to the guest room downstairs, both because it was easier for him to reach the bathroom and such without having to go down stairs in his condition, but also because he was sick of depriving Talon and Malon of their beds. Sheik helped the Hero into the bed, and went to the door, back to his musings. A whisper caught his attention before the door fully closed.

"I'll make it up to you, Sheik…"

Unknowingly, a smile found its way to Sheik's lips.

* * *

"Something's going on in Kakariko," said Talon suddenly the next day. He had been packing crates filled with bottles of Lon Lon Milk close to where Sheik was meditating. The Sheikah looked up at the man and then to where he was pointing. Smoke was rising over the mountains. Sheik quickly climbed to the roof of the main house and saw that the smoke was indeed coming from the village under the volcano. "Think it's an eruption?" shouted Talon.

Sheik didn't answer and immediately took out a deku nut, worry filling his very being. _Has Impa failed? Is the village burning to the ground as we speak?_ The village was the last refuge of the civilians of Hyrule, the only place Ganondorf had yet to strike. His heart was beating furiously. He was about to slam the nut into the ground and teleport when he suddenly remembered something Impa had told him many years.

" _Never use a deku nut if you cannot concentrate enough to get a clear picture of where you want to go in your mind. Terrible things can happen if you this…"_

He put the nut away, not willing to take the chance. His mind was racing with possible scenarios that were happening. He ran inside to the guest room where he had left his lyre and backpack. The Hero watched him curiously as he flew in and out of the room fast as lightning.

"What's going on?" he shouted after the Sheikah, but received no answer.

Sheik was halfway through playing the Nocturne of Shadow before he even emerged back into the setting sun. His fingers were shaking, causing him to miss the strings and play the wrong notes. After five failed attempts, he gave up and shoved the instrument back into his backpack. He was about to find Talon when the man approached with a saddled horse, apparently knowing what Sheik was about to ask.

"Maladict is the fastest horse on the ranch beside Epona," explained the man as he handed the reigns of the midnight black horse to Sheik. "He'll get you to Kakariko."

Sheik nodded his thanks and swung himself up in the saddle, taking a moment to get accustomed to sitting on a horse again. He had relied on the deku nuts and teleport songs for so long it felt alien to sit in a saddle. Maladict's head swung around to regard him with eyes blacker than the darkness between the stars. Sheik stared back, wondering if the horse was going to accept him riding it. It did, apparently, as the head swung back and nothing else happened. Sheik was about to dig his heels into Maladict's sides to get him moving when the door to the farmhouse swung open, revealing the Hero followed closely by a worried Malon. He looked at Sheik in surprise.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

Sheik kept his gaze on the wall behind the Hero. "Something is happening in Kakariko Village. I'm going to check it out." He hoped the Hero didn't notice his shaking.

If he did, the Hero didn't say anything. All he did was regard Sheik with a thoughtful stare before turning back inside. "Let me get the Master Sword and my other stuff and I'll go with you."

"No!" Sheik exclaimed louder than he had meant to. The Hero turned back, surprised. "You are still injured, Hero," he explained. "You need to stay in bed. I will handle this." Without another word, he spurred on Maladict. The horse galloped away. As the sounds of his hooves slowly disappeared, the Hero looked down at the ground and thought.

"Screw this," he said quietly and looked at Malon. "Saddle up Epona, I'm going after him."

Malon was about to protest, agreeing wholeheartedly with the Sheikah that he should be in bed, but his commanding glare froze her.

"Please?" said the Hero pleadingly.

She nodded and went to the pen with Epona's saddle while the Hero went back inside for his things.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 6**

* * *

The cold wind swept his bangs aside and made his eyes water. Talon had not been lying. Maladict tore through the countryside, ignoring the monsters and other distractions, his sole target being the smoking village approaching rapidly. Sheik could see the stairs to the gate in the distance. The sun was nearly setting, casting long shadows. Sheik hoped he'd be able to reach Kakariko before dark, or the stalfos could slow him down. Dark clouds were coming down from the mountains, promising an impressive shower soon. Hopefully, it would deal with what was burning.

There was another issue that kept recurring, disturbing his concentration. After he'd left the ranch, he found himself missing the Hero. It troubled him. He hadn't been gone for more than an hour, and suddenly needed to check on him, to see if he was still alive. Fair enough, there were few things that could kill him on that ranch, but still…

It was something he needed to figure out later as Maladict jumped across the river coming from Zora's Domain. Briefly wondering if he should leave Maladict by the stairs, he was surprised when the horse took to the steps almost as fast as he galloped. It was uncomfortable, but better than climbing the endless stairs.

Leaving Maladict at the top of the stairs, Sheik ran through the village gate. The air was thick with smoke, and he could see that several buildings were on fire. There was no one there. No guards, no civilians, no one. _Maybe they've been evacuated…maybe Impa told them to go to the Gorons while she dealt with the monster…_

But where was she? Sheik walked among the burning structures, keeping a close eye on his surroundings. He realised he was near the well and went over to it. The only structure not to have caught fire was the windmill, which turned slowly but surely. Sheik peered down into the now empty well, looking and listening for anything out of the ordinary. _If the monster was sealed down there…where is it now?_ He dropped a small rock down, just to be sure. It clacked as it came into contact with the stone down there. Sheik nodded and made to continue toward the graveyard when _something_ made a noise. He turned back to the well. Something was growling down there, and shuffling, like something was stuck and trying to get loose.

Footsteps approached from behind. The familiar clinking from the Hero's equipment gave him away. _When will he learn?_ he thought. Whatever was down in the well was coming up now. He narrowed his eyes. Something…what was it? It gradually became clearer and clearer, its colour a dead grey. Sheik's eyes widened. He held out an arm to warn the Hero.

"Get back, Link!" he shouted. The Hero didn't stop, but it was already too late.

A hand! It was a gigantic, misshapen hand. It stopped ascending just as the wrist appeared over the lip of the well. Sheik froze. What was he supposed to do now? His answer was clear when the fat fingers wrapped around him in a crushing grip and started throwing him around in the air. He couldn't breath, his ribs were being crushed. His vision was growing darker. He could hear faint shouts of "Sheik!" and "Let him go!" And then the air came rushing by, the pressure gone. He was falling. He opened his eyes and saw the ground fast approaching. He landed face first, scraping a little along the grass.

He felt someone—the Hero, most likely—running over to him and shake his shoulder.

"Sheik! Are you okay?" Indeed, it was the hero.

 _No, I'm not okay,_ he thought, annoyed. _I was just hurled through the air by a big hand._ _And there's a blade of grass poking my eye._ Then he heard the tell-tale sounds of a blade being pulled out of its sheath and a shield being pulled from its hook. Something was coming; Sheik could both feel and hear it. The ground shook, the…thing whistled.

Then he heard the Hero's battle cries as he tried to attack the thing. It did not go well, Sheik knew. He could hear the blows coming down on the Hero's body, and his pained grunts. Then he too was apparently sent flying considering the Hero's sudden shriek and the feel of a body hitting the ground next to Sheik.

Just as Sheik rolled over, he could see the back of a meaty hand disappearing behind the cliff wall, into the graveyard. He looked at the Hero. He was lying on his back, Master Sword still held fast in his left hand, but his Hylian shield was over at the well. Sheik painfully got up, making sure that nothing was broken. It was a little painful to breathe, but none of the ribs seemed to be damaged. He went over to the Hero, intent on checking on the wounds he had removed the stitches from last night.

It had been an embarrassing affair, especially when it came to removing the ones from the wound close to his…private parts. The Hero had gracefully suggested that he would do it himself, and Sheik had thankfully given the scissors to the Hero. Cleaning and stitching the wound had not been a problem when the Hero was unconscious and close to death, but when awake and fully focused on the hands that were carefully trying to get rid of the thread without ripping the tender wounds. None of the wounds had opened again, Sheik realised.

 _Maybe all isn't_ that _bad yet…_

He regretted thinking it. A mighty explosion shook the heavens, and the downpour could have rivalled the ones that filled the ocean, Sheik was sure. The only thing even remotely 'good' about the rain that soaked them both right now was that it put out the burning houses, including Impa's, which seemed to only have suffered minor and superficial damage to the roof.

With a grunt, he pulled the Hero's arm over his shoulder and hoisted him up, slowly moving inside the house. He unceremoniously dumped Hero on the bed and lit a couple candles with some matches that lay on the table. The cage with the cow that Sheik had never been able to figure out why was there was empty, its occupant probably escaped when the fire started. The flames hadn't eaten through the roof, so Impa's house was dry.

A wave of pain from his ribs made him wince and crouch over, holding his arm protectively over the fragile bones. It still hurt if he took too deep breaths. He made sure the Hero was still unconscious before lighting another candle which he put on a small table by a dresser with a mirror on it. He slowly pulled down his cowl, removing it and then the tabard, leaving him in the blue exoskeleton. He had a discolouration around his right eye, he noticed.

 _I probably landed on it,_ he thought and continued undressing, and removed his arms from the sleeves and rolling down the exoskeleton, revealing a slim and lightly muscled figure until it reached his hips. His entire stomach region and chest were covered in deep blue and black bruises. He almost gasped. No wonder it hurt to breathe or even move!

A groan from the Hero caused him to panic. He quickly tried to pull the exoskeleton back up, causing his bruises to flare up in protest, which he tried to ignore the best he could. When he was finally able to replace his arms in the sleeves, he noticed the Hero was stirring. He turned his back to the bed and put on the tabard, finally covering his face with the cowl. It was good to have it back on. He felt naked without it.

He turned around and saw the Hero sitting up, rubbing his head. He noticed Sheik and gave him a confused look.

"Wha…?" he asked.

"Hero, A terrible thing has happened. The evil shadow spirit has been released! Impa, the leader of Kakariko Village and the princess' attendant, had sealed the spirit in the bottom of the well...but it got so strong, the seal of the well broke, and it escaped into Hyrule," said Sheik.

"I couldn't even see it," said the Hero, cracking his neck.

 _As I suspected,_ thought Sheik. The Hero's eyes were not trained to spot that which did not wish to be spotted. Sheik had been trained to do so since childhood. He also now had a good idea as to what Impa could have left behind for them in her house, and so went to look for the package.

"What are you doing?" asked the Hero, looking at the Sheikah with a curious look.

"Impa has gone inside the temple to seal the spirit back up," answered Sheik without looking up. He was knocking on the wall that went along the stone wall behind the house, looking for the secret compartment he knew she had built in there many years ago. "She left behind something you are going to need if you wish to see the monster." A stretch of wall did not match the sound the rest of it made when he knocked on it, and he felt around for the hidden edges, his fingernails caught it, and he pulled the brick out. What he had expected to be a small package turned out to be…somewhat bigger, about the same size as the Master Sword, to be exact. Sheik started to unroll it on the table, the Hero also moving over to see what it was.

Sheik gasped. It was a sword, but not just any old sword. It was _Impa's_ sword, the one she had carried on her back, the sword she had used to kill many a royal would-be assassin. The sheath was full of carved Sheikah symbols, the most prominent being the bleeding Sheikah eye on the grip. He lifted it reverently and put it aside, seeing that there was another, smaller package in the wrapper. This was more like what he had expected. He unpacked it, and nodded. Inside laid the Lens of Truth, a piece of glass magically treated to let the user see the things that Sheik could see. There was also a letter.

_**Sheik,** _

_**The monster beneath the well has broken free. I will be going inside the temple to vanquish it once and for all. In case I don't succeed, I leave my sword to you. Take good care of it; it has been in our family for centuries. I have also recovered the Lens of Truth from its resting place beneath the well. Link will need it if you two are to defeat the monster.** _ _**Good luck.** _

_**Impa.** _

Sheik lowered the paper and blinked. _In case she doesn't succeed…_ The sentence puzzled him. Impa never dealt with ifs and buts, but only certainties. _She knew she wouldn't walk out of that temple alive…_

He handed the Lens of Truth to the Hero, who studied it. "What is it?" he asked.

"It will allow you to see what I can," replied Sheik, strapping Impa's sword to his back, reminding himself that he was only borrowing it so he could give it back when they found her. "Don't use it too much, though, it will drain your strength." He studied the Hero. "You look better," he stated.

Hero shrugged and grinned. "Malon gave me a bottle of their super-special milk, it made me feel great. And I lost my limp too."

"I see…" The rain was letting up now, and night had settled over Hyrule. "There isn't a moment to loose, Hero. We must go into the temple immediately."

"Wait, we?" asked Hero, surprised. "Does that mean…?"

"Yes, I will be your partner from now on," said Sheik and pulled out his lyre. "Repeat after me…" He started plucking the strings, barely giving the Hero the time to take out the ocarina.

"Wait, aren't you gonna give me a speech?" asked the Hero.

Sheik shook his head. "What does it matter now?"

Link looked at the floor, scraping his boot against the wooden floor. "I like your speeches…" he mumbled.

"Is that so?" _Is that why you always looked positively absent whenever I recite them for you, Hero? I thought you were just bored._ It had always felt somewhat insulting to Sheik that the Hero hadn't paid attention to his speeches, which he had been required to memorise…and that had been bloody hard too!

"Please?" asked Link, giving Sheik his best smile. The Sheikah had a good mind to deny the request, wishing to convey to the Hero that time was of the essence, but the face was not something easily said no to.

Sheik rolled his eyes and nodded. The speech for the Shadow Temple was not long. "Very well, Hero. Please pay attention."

_This is the melody that will draw_

_you into the infinite darkness_

_that absorbs even time... Listen to_

_this, the Nocturne of Shadow_

The words flowed like a river from Sheik's mouth, the magical melody issuing forth from the lyre. Link closed his eyes and slowly started playing along to the sombre tune, a coldness creeping down both their backs. The hairs on their necks stood to attention as the spirits of the Shadow Temple slowly came to guide them to the entrance…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 7**

* * *

"So this is where the entrance is," said Link after opening his eyes. "Right above the graveyard…seems fitting."

"Indeed," said Sheik and looked down the dark stairway that led into the temple. Light flickered further down. Impa had already opened the gate. "We must move, Hero." Something held him back. He turned around and found the green-clad one holding his shoulder.

"Okay," he said calmly. "There are a couple of things I need to make clear if you and I are going to be partners."

Sheik huffed in annoyance. Every second up here was a second wasted. Impa could be in trouble, why wouldn't the Hero see that? But hearing him out would get them going quicker, than so be it. "Speak."

"First of all, my name is Link, okay? Not 'Hero of Time', not 'Hero', so why can't you call me that? You managed just fine back at the well, as well as the first time we met in the Temple of Time." He looked down at Sheik. The Sheikah hadn't noticed the height difference before.

"That is hardly proper, Hero—"

"Stop it!" Link exclaimed "I am so sick of that damn title! Everywhere I go, it's 'Hero this' and 'Hero of Time that'. Just for once, I want someone to call me by my given name." He turned back and looked at the graveyard. "I'm just…sick and tired of being everyone's hero…"

Sheik was surprised. _He hates his destiny? Some would gladly lay their lives on the line just to have a chance at saving the world…but, I suppose destiny chooses the least likely…or willing._

"Very well, H—Link, I shall try to address you by your name." It went against every fibre of his being to disrespect the He—Link like that.

When Link turned back to him, a broad smile was on his face. "Knew I'd get you to do it sooner or later." He smirked.

Sheik glared at him. "You were…joking?"

"Not in the least," said Link. "I merely…overplayed it a bit."

"Just when I was starting to feel sympathy for you," mumbled Sheik. "What was the other thing you wished to 'make clear'?"

"I want to know what happened while I was unconscious at the ranch," replied Link. "Malon kept giving you frightened looks, their storage room was burnt down, and Ingo was gone."

 _This had to come up sooner or later, I guess…_ "Ingo tried to murder you in your sleep," Sheik said bluntly and started walking down the stairway, making the Hero hurry after.

"What? How?"

"He set fire to the storage room and went into your room in the confusion. I realised what he was trying to do and stopped him, simple as that."

Their voices echoed, betraying the presence of a large room at the bottom of the stairs.

"And what happened after that?" asked Link.

"I killed him," replied Sheik as they emerged from the dark staircase. Inside was a large, room filled with burning torches arranged in circles around a slightly raised pillar in the centre of the room. Scorch marks covered the surface of the platform.

"Impa?" asked Link quietly, suddenly aware of the eerie silence that covered the room, dampening even the sounds of the torches.

Sheik nodded and continued through the large doorway in front of them. "Welcome to the House of the Dead," he whispered.

* * *

"What is this place, really?" asked Link. The corridor they were moving down seemed to stretch on forever. The smiling skulls in the walls were unnerving, even more so when sudden breaths of wind flew down the corridor.

Sheik found this an appropriate moment to recite the three verses he had been taught by Impa about the temple.

_Shadow Temple..._

_Here is gathered Hyrule's bloody_

_history of greed and hatred..._

_What is hidden in the darkness..._

_Tricks full of ill will..._

_You can't see the way forward..._

_One who gains the eye of truth_

_will be able to see what is hidden_

_in the darkness._

Link regarded him with curiosity. "What's the 'eye of truth'?" he asked.

Sheik pointed at the coloured glass Link was holding. "That," he said, "is the Lens of Truth. I have already explained what it does."

"So I guess I've got to use this extensively in this temple, then?" asked Link as they continued. At Sheik's nod, he hummed satisfied. "You still didn't tell me clearly what this place is."

 _How can someone possibly be so clueless? If the name doesn't tell him…_ "It's a tomb, Hero," he answered. "All the countless casualties of the countless wars the Kingdom of Hyrule has been involved lie buried here along with the Sheikah, who watch over their spirits."

"This is the gravesite of your people?" asked Link quietly, suddenly aware of the tense air that had developed around them. Sheik didn't enjoy speaking about the temple…in fact; he hated just being inside it. The stories Impa had told him when he was a child…all the rage, suffering and hatred that had been buried in this place...it lingered in the air. He could feel the malevolent spirits, desperately trying to hurt them in any way they could, only held back by the guardians of the royal family, the sprits of the Sheikah. He was glad he could not see them.

"Yes, this is my people's tomb, along with every enemy of Hyrule" said Sheik. They arrived at a door. The true entrance. Behind this door, the first challenge awaited.

"I'm sorry," said Link quietly, afraid he had offended his partner by asking too much.

"Don't be, Hero," said Sheik as the door slid open. "This place puts me on edge…there is much anger here."

"I know what you're talking about, I can feel it too," said Link, unconsciously moving a bit closer to the Sheikah as they stepped through the door. "And it's Link, by the way."

"…let me get used to it, Link."

* * *

_At least he picked up on the puzzle quickly enough,_ thought Sheik, watching as Link grunted and strained to align the…bird? Bat bird? Align the _thing's_ beak with the correct skull. The correct skull for Link, anyhow, for Sheik did not see the fake ones the Hero claimed were there.

"You could be a little help, you know," said Link with clenched teeth.

"This is your quest, Link," said Sheik. He looked down into the abyss, on the other side of which a statue of a monster's mouth hid the entrance to the next area. Sheik wondered how the Hero planned on getting to the other side. Sheik could jump, but the Hero could not. _Interesting._ "I'm not allowed to help you with the puzzles. I can only guide you."

"You haven't even been in here before!"

"Not personally, but Impa has told me all I need to know." He kicked a pebble, never hearing it hit the bottom of the abyss. He turned around to see how far along the Hero was, and gaped. Link was slowing down, and the… _thing's_ beak would be pointing at one of the empty pikes. The warning had been clear enough. If it stopped… He raced over to the hideous statue and pushed with all he had, as Link was nearly dropping over. The rotating statue slipped over an invisible groove and continued turning, coming to a stop with the thing's beak pointing to the only skull that was visible to Sheik.

The sound of a rusted gate opening on the other side of the room told them that they had completed the puzzle right.

Link was panting heavily and supporting himself against the statue now. "Thanks…for…the…help," he said slowly, putting his hand over Sheik's in gratitude. It lingered there for a few seconds longer than it needed to. Sheik put it down to Hero's condition, hoping the cowl was covering his blush. It had…tingled, when Link had touched his hand.

"You're already exhausted," he said to distract himself from what his mind was trying to think. "You should have stayed at the ranch."

Link shook his head as he slid down to the floor, leaning against the horrible sculpture. "It's not that…there's…something about…the…air in here…"

Sheik sniffed the air and took a few deep breaths—which he regretted right away as the bruises from the encounter with the giant hand flared up again. He held in a gasp and concentrated on the air. "You're right, Link…the air is dead in here…not very healthy to breathe too much of it in. You need to control your breathing when doing something extraneous."

"I'll keep that in mind," said Link, his breath evening out. He pointed at Sheik and smiled brightly. "You helped me."

Sheik scoffed. "If I hadn't, you would have gotten us both killed…or worse."

"Which is why I think you should volunteer a bit faster next time."

"I'll consider it."

They both stood at the edge, looking at the entrance that was so near yet so far away.

"This could be a problem," said Link.

"Indeed."

"I guess we'll have to jump."

_Good luck with that, Hero. Your equipment is weighing you down; you won't even make it halfway over…_

"We could try that…" said Sheik. "Or we could try going through the door you have been overlooking ever since we entered this room."

"What room?"

Sheik pointed.

"Oh."

"Yes."

* * *

The maze beyond the door made Sheik feel confident they were on the right way. What _didn't_ make him feel confident, on the other hand, were the whispers of the dead. He could hear them, a low murmuring deep inside his ears. It was making him nervous. Sheik had dealt with spirits before…in the form of poes, but these were _true_ spirits, beings who wielded no physical powers other than the power of suggestion and whispers.

Link could hear them too, it seemed. Or heard _something,_ at least. Both he and Sheik were walking close together, partly for comfort and part to avoid stepping on the bones of the long dead littering the floor. The walls consisted of shelves filled with mortal remains, and… _parts_ , had shifted over the centuries.

Sheik briefly wondered why Link didn't show any sign of fear other than his occasional worried look around. Had it been any other eleven-year-old, they would have run screaming out of the temple before they even entered the main section…

 _But he has faced worse, hasn't he? He was exposed to these things right at the beginning of his long quest…inside the Great Deku Tree._ He looked down and saw that the Hero had intertwined the fingers on his left hand with Sheik's right. Sheik looked at the Hero for answers, to which he only answered with another of his pleading looks, which Sheik found harder and harder to resist.

"Please?" whispered Link. "It's…scary in here."

Wordlessly, Sheik nodded. And so they continued…

* * *

It didn't take long to find the end of the maze. Sheik saw it right away, and he nudged the Hero to take out the lens. Beyond the door there was…nothing. They shared a look before they stepped inside; both knowing what was going to happen in there. Link, because of experience, and Sheik because it was just too obvious.

As they expected, the door slammed shut behind them, steel bars emerging from the floor to prevent them from even touching it. They both turned around when a loud, wet thump came from the middle of the room. Six…fleshy tendrils had erupted from the dirt floor, stretching upwards. They wobbled slightly, and the grey surface was covered in wounds, dripping blood.

Before Sheik could warn him, the Hero pulled out the Master Sword and prodded at one of them.

"Hero, don't—"was all he had time to say before the knob at the top of the tendril opened, revealing a disgusting hand with long fingers. Link had time to look up at the rapidly descending hand before it covered his face, fingers holding tightly around his head and preventing the captured teen from breaking free.

Now Sheik remembered what kind of creature it was, and his fears were confirmed when a large form suddenly exploded out of the floor in the middle of the room. A long neck with an impossibly ugly head pointed upwards, much like the hideous creature's arms did. Its body was a formless mass, a blob which wriggled towards its captured prey.

_Impa said that Dead Hands are blind and use their arms to see…_

He drew his aunt's sword, marvelling at the lightness of the long, straight blade. Then he was with Link, using an overhead swing to sever the hand holding him from the arm it was attached to. Not a drop of blood was spilled as the hand fell to the floor, the arm retreating back into the floor. The wobbling mass shrieked in pain, already starting to retreat.

"Don't let it escape," Sheik said. Link was already on his towards it, apparently not very happy with being facehugged by something that had been dead for centuries. But the dead hand was fast, avoiding the Hero's strikes and swings, its neck darting here and there, dodging every single attack. Sheik looked at the other arms. Several of them were already in the process of disappearing into the ground again. He ran to the closest arm and cut it in half, hoping his plan would work.

The dead hand shrieked again, freezing. Link wasted no time in decapitating the vile thing. It collapsed to the floor, one final breath escaping the body before it stilled. The arms flopped around lifelessly. The Hero gave the body a final kick and sheathed his sword.

"Thanks," he said, shuddering as he stepped over one of the arms. "That was the most horrible thing I've ever experienced."

Sheik put away Impa's sword and nodded. "This was always the enemy I hoped I would never face…Impa used it to scare me when I had been naughty as a child."

 _And now he is imagining me as a child…nice going, Sheik,_ he thought. He tapped Link on the shoulder and pointed to the large chest that was materialising at the wall, their reward for killing the Dead Hand. Link opened it, and gawped at the contents. He pulled them out and held them out to Sheik.

"What the hell are these?"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 8**

* * *

Sheik struggled with keeping his laughter in as the Hero of Time slipped and fell on his bottom for the umpteenth time. It was the Ice Cavern all over again. The enchantment in the feathers he had clipped on to his boots would allow him to hover in the air for a short time, but they also, unfortunately for the Hero's rump, suspended all friction, making him skid around as if he walked on ice.

"I hate these things," Link muttered as he picked himself up from the floor.

They were back in the room with the horrible sculpture, having decided that the Hero needed time to get accustomed to the feathers before attempting the big jump across the abyss. Needless to say, he was not making much progress.

"You know," said Sheik, "for a master swordsman, you struggle a lot with keeping your balance."

"Thank you for making that observation," said Link as he made his wobbling way to where the Sheikah stood leaning against the wall. "Let's see you put them on and how long you will remain standing."

"I would if I had any need of them, Hero," answered Sheik. "But I can make that jump without any aids, you cannot." He smirked under his mask. It was hard not to smile around the Hero.

Link grumbled and grabbed a hold of the wall Sheik leant against. "So, think I'm ready?"

Sheik looked pointedly down at Link's shaking knees and shook his head. "Not in the slightest…but we can't waste any more time. Come." Without thinking, Sheik grabbed Link's forearm and started to drag him over to the edge. It was like he was wearing ice skates, the way he slid after the Sheikah. "Can you run with those things?" asked Sheik.

Link shrugged. "Don't know, haven't tried. I struggle enough with standing, thank you very much." He looked at the crumbling edge. "I don't like standing so close to the edge when I'm about to fall."

"Alright, then we will do it this way," said Sheik and continued dragging Link over the sculpture. He made the Hero face the doorway on the other side of the abyss and positioned himself behind him. "I will push; you will float over to the other side."

Astonishingly fast, Link spun around and grabbed Sheik by the shoulders. "Are you insane? What if you don't push fast enough? What if I'm a feet few short when the enchantment wears up?"

Sheik brushed Link's hands off his shoulders and spun the Hero around again. "Do you have any better suggestions, Hero? Waiting for you to suddenly develop a balance nerve is not something we have time for. Ready? Here we go." He pushed, quickly getting up to running speed. Link twisted his head around to give him a final doubtful look…and then he was halfway over the abyss. The feathered boots touched down on the monster's tongue, Link immediately grabbing on to whatever he could.

"Alright!" he shouted in triumph. "We did it!"

Sheik nodded. "Good, now stand aside, I'm coming over." He took a few steps back and concentrated, picturing himself crossing the gap. He opened his eyes and started running, his feet barely making any sounds when they came into contact with the stone floor. He bent his knee when his right foot hit the edge, preparing to kick off and leap gracefully through the air. He didn't except the cracking sound and part of the edge breaking off. His jump came at least a foot short of what he had planned, and he saw the monster's tongue disappear over his head. In a final gamble, his hand shot up…and found the edge. He dangled over the abyss, holding on for dear life.

"Sheik!" shouted the Hero and bent down. "Give me your hand!"

Sheik carefully swung his free arm upwards, his bandaged hand coming into contact with Link's. With almost no effort, he pulled Sheik up, backing away to give his partner room. Sheik had to sit still for a moment, leaning against one of the monster's incisors, his heart beating like a bongo drum.

"Thank…you…" he breathed.

"No problem," said Link kindly and offered his hand to help Sheik up. He hauled him up to his feet and patted him on the shoulder. "You didn't need any aids to make the jump, huh?" he said and laughed.

Blushing, Sheik walked ahead. "Shut up, Hero."

* * *

Behind the monster's face, a pathway leading downwards greeted them. Further down, a circular room with a Beamos lazily spinning about opened up. Link wasted no time in throwing a bomb at it, blowing the creature up, sending the eye flying into a corner, where it exploded.

"Now what?" asked the Hero, looking at the dirt piled high in the doorways around them.

Judging by the stone fragments in the dir, it was evident that the roof above the doorways had collapsed…except the one Sheik was staring at. "There, Hero," he said and started walking to it.

"What? It's just more dirt, Sheik, and I don't think…oh." Link watched incredulously as the Sheikah stepped through the dirt, disappearing beyond.

"Use the Lens, Link," Sheik called.

Stepping through the veil, Link smiled sheepishly at Sheik and held the Lens in front of his eye. "I forgot."

"You're the one who came to the conclusion that you would need to use it extensively in here, Hero. Why don't you heed your own advice," said Sheik and rolled his eyes. His gaze locked onto something shining next to the steel door. He bent down and picked up a large padlock and a pair of chains. "Impa has already been here," he stated.

"No time to lose, then," said Link and opened the door, stopping abruptly as something rusty and sharp swung in the air in front of him. Sheik grabbed his collar and pulled him back.

"You've yet to learn not to just barge into rooms like that," said Sheik. He stared at the contraption inside. It was…horrid. Two statues of hooded figures spun around in the middle of the room, their scythes threatening to slice anyone unfortunate enough to walk into them in half. On the other side of the statues, a door seemed to be mocking them. "There," he said and pointed at it. "We need to get over there."

"Fair enough," said Link, putting away the feathers…somewhere in his tunic.

Whoever had thought that a simple trap as this would stop any intruders was probably feeling foolish as the two warriors ducked and rolled their way underneath the spinning blades. The only thing that happened was that one of the scythes nicked Link's cap and took it with it, prompting the Hero of Time to curse loudly and attempt to get it back. Upon his fifth failed try, Sheik pulled him through the door, much to Link's protest.

"It's a hat, Hero. I'm sure you can get a replacement," Sheik huffed as they continued through the hallway behind the door. Chains were rattling somewhere ahead, and something metallic hit the floor every three seconds.

 _Besides, why would you want to cover that gorgeous hair up…what did I just think?_ Sheik fought down the heat rising to his cheeks.

"Yeah, but…I haven't…it just feels weird without it," the Hero muttered. He kept looking behind them, pining for his hat, it seemed.

Sheik turned around and was about to lecture the Hero of the ratio of importance between ridiculously long, green caps and the safety of Hyrule when Link suddenly grabbed him by the cowl, pulling him towards him. The Sheikah tried to voice his outrage, but found himself muffled by Link's chest. Looking up, Sheik saw that the Hero was staring hard at something behind him. Turning around, he saw that where he had stood a bare second before, a giant Skulltula was hanging down from the ceiling, grinning evilly at them. Link looked down at him and grinned.

"You almost walked right into it," he said. Then he froze, looking closely at Sheik's face…which was not covered by his cowl. Link had yanked it down. There was no hiding it this time.

Sheik pushed away from the Hero and pulled the cowl back up, thankful for the weak light the flickering torches barely provided. He drew Impa's sword, sliced through the Skulltula and continued walking, unable to think of anything to say.

 _Did he see my face?_ he thought, blushing. It wasn't his seeing Sheik's face that bothered the Sheikah, but the way his hands had gripped the Hero's tunic. He heard Link's slow, hesitant footsteps behind him.

What he didn't see, however, was that the green-clad teen was blushing as well.

* * *

_He's distracting me…that's what's going on…_

The series of falling guillotines had been easy enough to navigate, even the ones with the moving platforms. They hadn't talked after that the cowl incident, though. When the solitary Stalfos had attacked them on the last platform, Link had stepped forward, holding Sheik back as he took care of it.

Its fading cry as it fell apart signalled that the fight was over, and Link replaced the Master Sword on his back. Sheik was about to motion to the large platform that was rising and falling next to them, but Link held up a hand.

"I need a break," the Hero said and plopped down on the ground, leaning against the cliff wall. Sheik felt foolish for forgetting Link's condition and nodded wordlessly and sat down as well, a little away from the Hero.

Silence enveloped them, and the air seemed to press down on them. There was a certain tinge of death in their mouths, and the whispers of the dead seemed to be more persistent in the large room.

_Face it, Sheik…you can't stand being close to him without touching him…shut up!_

It seemed that his thoughts had split into two; one part which wanted him to loosen up, be more…intimate and friendly with the Hero, and the one that kept screaming that he had duties to perform.

"I'm sorry about the cowl," said the Hero suddenly, looking at apologetically at Sheik. "I know you don't like showing your face…"

"My face is hardly relevant, Hero…" said Sheik. "It was…I was surprised, that is all."

"Why do you wear it anyway?"

"This is the traditional uniform of Sheikah warriors," he said and gestured to his outfit. "The cowl is to remind us that we do not represent ourselves as individuals, but our people as a whole."

"So you're not really allowed to be seen without it," said Link, beginning to understand.

"It is not forbidden to show our faces," said Sheik. "Impa does it, but it is frowned upon…but then again, she and I are the ones left…" His eyes widened. He hadn't meant to add the last part.

"So it's true, then?" asked Link. "You truly are the survivor of the Sheikah…the last of your race."

Sheik had been asked this before, but it had usually been to ridicule and insult him. The people of Hyrule had never trusted the shadow warriors protecting their royal family, despite the fact that the Sheikah always threw themselves into battle to defend the people whenever an enemy had invaded. Sheik didn't really blame them, though. It was natural to be wary of the unknown, and goddesses knew that the Sheikah had done everything to be unknown.

"Yes, it's true, Hero," he answered.

"And when you die…"

"Then the Sheikah will die."

"I'm sorry…"

Sheik looked at Link. "Why? It's not your fault. I am probably angering my ancestors when I say this, but it is really our own fault."

Link looked surprised. "How?"

"Because we focused too much on fighting the war twenty years ago," said Sheik, remembering how bitterly Impa had told him why she and Sheik were the only ones left. "Too many Sheikah fell in the battles, and too few were left to procreate…my mother died giving birth to me, and my father died protecting the king from an assassin a year later. It fell to Impa to raise me…"

"But couldn't you…you know, resurrect the race…" The Hero's cheeks burned as he struggled to get his meaning across. "With someone?"

_He's really cute when he's embarrassed…didn't I tell you to shut up?_

"Not really," said Sheik. "If I were to have a child, it would have to be with a Hylian…and the Sheikah blood would become diluted within a few generations. No, Link, the Sheikah are a doomed race…and I think that my ancestors would want us to disappear abruptly rather than slowly fade away."

Link nodded in understanding. "I see…"

Sheik stood up. "Shall we get going?"

Link smiled and joined him. "Yes."

* * *

"I'm stumped, got any ideas?" asked Link as he and Sheik looked at the series of fans that blew powerful gusts of wind between each other. A long walkway over another dark abyss stretched across the room. They had tried to walk across, but, after Sheik had almost been blown off it, decided to go back and rethink their strategy.

"I will repeat myself, Hero," said Sheik, still a bit shaken from the near-death experience. "This is obviously a challenge which will involve those feathers you found."

"I don't like them," said Link scornfully and glared at the feathers. They fluttered slightly in the strong breeze from the fans. "And my name is still Link."

"And I am still not used to it, Link."

"So, I'm supposed to get over there," he said and pointed to an alcove with a doorway neatly hidden inside, "while being careful not to get blown away by the fans?"

"Yes, I believe that is what the challenge is about," Sheik said. "And it seems that I cannot accompany you any further if the incident a couple of minutes ago was a sign."

"More a sign that you need to eat more," mumbled Link.

"Pardon?"

"Nothing." As he mounted the feathers to his boots, an idea formed in his head. "I think I know how we can get across."

"Capital," said Sheik without enthusiasm.

Link crouched down with his back to Sheik, who blinked in confusion. "Get on."

"What?"

"I said get on," repeated Link. "You can't jump across the gaps, you'll be blown away. If you get on my back, we can both hover and let the fans do the work."

 _That_ is _logical,_ Sheik admitted, but he wasn't about to say it out loud. "There is no guarantee the boots will accept the weight of two. I will find a way around and meet you—"

"Sheik," said Link slowly. "Get. On. My. Back."

Realising there was no use in arguing, Sheik climbed onto the Hero's back, putting his arms around his neck. Link put his hands under Sheik's knees, securing his hold and stood up.

Ignoring the position he was in, Sheik concentrated on the fans. "The fans are activating and deactivating at regular intervals…there seems to be a pattern to it."

Link wobbled a bit and leaned against the wall so he would fall over and crush Sheik underneath him. "Alright, just say when to jump."

Sheik observed the pattern, letting it run through itself four times just so he could be sure. "Three…two…one…now!"

Link jumped. Much of the trip through the air was spent in confusion as they were blown up, down, left, right and all manner of directions. It wasn't until they landed in a heap in the alcove that they realised that they had made it.

"That was brilliant," said Link laughing. "Can we go again?"

Sheik struggled to disentangle himself from the Hero's limbs. "No," he said firmly.

"Hey, Sheik?"

"Yes?"

"Could you get your foot out of my nose?"

"…that's _your_ foot, Hero."

"…So it is. Wow, I didn't know I could bend that way."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 9**

* * *

"It's a ship."

"Yes, Hero."

"It's a ship…underground."

"So it is."

"It's…floating in the air."

"That it does."

"And we have to get on it."

"That we do."

Link cocked his head to look at the Sheikah. "You like talking like that, don't you?"

Sheik raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I do."

He really couldn't blame Link's apprehension at the idea of getting on a ship that seemed to be oozing evil and had another of those…things as a figurehead. The boat rocked slightly as they stepped on board, making them both wonder what exactly it had to rock in. Link played Zelda's Lullaby while standing inside the monogram of the triforce.

For a moment, it seemed that nothing was going to happen, and Link looked ready to start a tirade. His mouth snapped shut when one of the bells at the bow of the ship suddenly started playing, the sharp sound echoing down the passage they needed to go.

Unexpectedly, the ship suddenly dipped down before rising up, like it was sailing in rough seas, trying to throw its crew overboard. Grabbing on to whatever they could—Link the slightly raised edge in the port and Sheik the figurehead—they endured the ride. There were no torches along the wall here, only darkness, and the only thing that had them aware that they were moving was the slight scraping sounds as the wooden boat scratched against the canal's sides.

Sheik sensed movement behind him and tensed up, only to relax when Link's hand clomped down on his shoulder, the Hero using him to guide himself to the grip the figurehead.

"Got lonely in the back," whispered the Hero. It hadn't been intentional, as he cleared his throat afterwards.

"Port," said Sheik, also surprised at the volume of his voice. "You got lonely in the port."

"Port, back, whatever," snorted Link. "How come I can't raise my voice any higher than this?"

"I am not sure," replied Sheik. It was a lie. They were standing on the Ferry of the Dead, the boat fallen Sheikah were placed on to transport the body to the inner sanctum where it would be buried. An honour guard of six Sheikah usually accompanied the body to the burial site, all silent for the duration of the trip in respect for the dead. The reason for them not being able to raise their voices was…a compulsion from the many spirits accompanying them. Sheik could not see them, but he could feel them.

There was a light at the end of the tunnel, which opened into a large, cavernous room where hundreds of torches flickered happily. Behind the torches, Sheik knew, little wooden signs with names hung. It was hard to see from the boat, but hundreds of small alcoves were carved into the rock underneath the markers, all of which housed a deceased Sheikah's remains.

Something skittered along stone, causing them both to look around nervously.

 _Nothing is supposed to move in this chamber,_ thought Sheik. _Everything here is supposed to be dead._

"Probably a rat," whispered Link. His hold on the figurehead tightened, the skin around his knuckles paling.

_If only things were so easy, Link…_

Sheik saw them before Link did, but they both landed on the boat before he could issue any warning. Stalfos, two of them, grinned at the two partners, laughing that hideous laugh of theirs. Their eyes glowed red, and their crude swords—soaked with blood, Sheik noted with worry—flashed in the light.

Then chaos erupted. Link, having no patience with the skeletons, threw himself at the closest one, sword and shield clashing, echoing in the vast cavern. Sheik drew his own sword and advanced slowly on the second undead soldier. It had been some time since he last fought a skilled opponent with a sword, having preferred his daggers and throwing knives for years now, but it all came back soon enough.

 _It's a skill that always stays with you,_ he thought as he dodged an overhead swing from the skeleton and countered with a slash to the head, taking its helmet off. It growled at him and attempted a jumping strike, its sword digging into the planks as Sheik dodged it yet again. Whirling around, Sheik attempted to execute it by separating its head from the body, but it was faster on the uptake this time and jumped to the side, freeing its sword from the boat. It laughed again, mocking him. Sheik gritted his teeth and freed a dagger from his bandages. He held it with a reverse grip in his left hand. He couldn't match the skeleton in strength, but agility on the other hand…

Had Link looked up from his own fight, he would have seen Sheik turn into a flurry of blades, poking and slashing the slow skeleton before it had time to raise its shield, his tornado of movement culminating in Sheik ramming his dagger into one of its eye sockets. Blood poured from the empty hole, its owner shrieking in pain and dropping its sword to cradle the damaged ocular cavity. Sheik finished it off with a powerful roundhouse kick to its jaw, sending the skeleton flying into the darkness, its screams slowly fading.

The second Stalfos fell soon after, cut in half by the Master Sword. The bones dissolved into dust, carried away by the wind, spreading over the Sheikah graves.

They said no more to each other for the remainder of the trip out of respect. Link had spotted what the little signs behind the torches were now, and wisely kept his mouth shut. Sheik appreciated his silence. Respect for the dead was one of the cornerstones of the Sheikah culture, and he was afraid he had already betrayed it by speaking in the first place.

They entered another darkened tunnel, the air gradually becoming lighter, easier to breathe in. Soon enough, they emerged on the other side of the tunnel, arriving at a small dock. On the other side of yet another abyss, they could see a large, reinforced door. The boat came to an abrupt stop at the dock, almost knocking Link off balance. They prepared to climb down from when it suddenly started shaking, sinking down into the blackness.

Link froze, wondering what to do. It was too far to jump, and—

Sheik took the initiative and tackled the Hero off the boat, both landing painfully on the stone dock. Just in time too, as the boat disappeared into the abyss.

"You could give me a warning next time, you know," groaned Link as they picked themselves up. "I think one of my wounds reopened," he said and lifted his tunic, revealing a finely muscled torso. Several fresh scars marred the otherwise perfection.

Sheik gave him a quick look-over, trying not to focus too much on the abdominal muscles that were just begging to be stroked and… He stopped himself right there and shook his head. "Looks fine, Hero."

_And I'm not talking about your wounds_ _…shut up!_

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" asked Link. "Remember what happened last time?"

Sheik rolled his eyes, something he seemed to be doing quite often these days. "I'll be fine, Hero."

Getting across to the reinforced door had proven to be a conundrum. There was no bridge, it was too far for Link's feathers to hover over there, and the door to their right on the dock simply led to another labyrinth with invisible walls full of dead Floormasters. It had been a comfort to see the dead creatures, though, since it proved that Impa had not fallen to the Stalfos in the grave cavern.

In the end, there was only option. Sheik had to jump across with one of Link's bombs to destroy the big statue on the other side. There was a small field of Bomb Flowers in front of, which was surely an afterthought by the designer of the temple.

"If you say so," said Link and gave him a smile. "Just remember that I won't be able to pull you up this time."

"That won't be necessary," said Sheik. He checked that the bomb was carefully strapped to his back, having used the bandages on his left hand to do so. Remembering what had happened last time he attempted such a jump, he stomped on the edge of the dock, making sure it would handle his weight without crumbling this time. Satisfied, he stepped back, ran to the edge and sailed over the darkness below, landing in a crouch on the other side, inches away from the edge. It had been a gamble, he knew. He had never jumped that far before.

He walked over to the small group of exploding flowers, lighting the fuse of Link's bomb by scraping a dagger against the wall, creating a shower of sparks which lit the fuse. Noting it was burning fast, Sheik placed the bomb in the middle of the flowers and ran away, taking cover behind a broken plinth of some kind.

The bomb detonated the flowers, sending debris all over the room. A significant portion of the lower part of the statue was blown away, causing it to tip forward, creaking all the while. The statue's head, another one of the horrible sculptures, came to rest on the side of the dock, close to where Link stood. The statue was sliding, however, and Link quickly ran, barely making it across before the statue broke in half, the pieces falling into the abyss. They heard the massive booms as the pieces collide with the walls on the way down.

"Close call," said Sheik as he rewrapped his hand.

Link nodded and opened the door. "Crap," he said loudly when he saw what awaited.

"What?" asked Sheik and stood on his toes to peek over Link's shoulder. "Hero, the Lens," he said in a deadpan.

Embarrassed, Link held the lens in front of his eye. "I see. Wait, this means that—"

"Feathers on, Link."

"Damn."

* * *

It was simple push-and-jump operation they developed. It was a repeat of the first room in the temple, where Sheik pushed Link over to the invisible platforms and jumped after. It worked quite well, and within minutes, they stood in front of the massive door which housed the chamber in which the monster dwelled. The spiky padlock and chains lay bundled in front of the door, another sign that Impa was ahead of them.

Link walked quickly inside and Sheik made to follow, but a sound caught his attention. It was a snicker. He turned around, but Link kept walking, leaving Sheik alone on the ledge, staring at the platforms with narrowed eyes. A flash of red at the far end of the chamber. Someone was standing in the shadows, watching him. Twin red orbs regarded him. At first, Sheik thought it was another Stalfos, but suddenly remembered another creature that had such eyes. But then they were gone, the echo of a suppressed laughter remaining in their wake.

Sheik stayed for a few moments, wary of an attack. He didn't move until Link's call from the room behind the door compelled him to enter. He kept an eye out for movements in the chamber before the massive door closed.

 _It's not possible…_ he thought.

The room was empty save for a well-like hole in the middle. They could not see what was down there, but a sinking feeling in both their stomachs could not be avoided as they came to the conclusion that they needed to jump down. Sheik volunteered to jump down first so he could make sure it wasn't dangerous for Link, but the green-clad one shook his head.

"Who's the Hero here?" he asked and jumped. At Link's call, Sheik followed.

The surface he landed on was…springy? They were standing on an island in the middle of a green-black ocean, the water certainly poisonous. Link bent down to touch the ground. He knocked on it a couple of times.

"Feels almost like we're standing on a big…"

"Drum," finished Sheik.

"Yeah."

Unlike the rest of the temple, Sheik could not hear the whispers of the dead down here. It was both relieving and troubling at the same time. The spirits did not dare to go down here. Of course, with the monster's sudden appearance, this was understandable…but if even the spirits of fallen warriors feared it…

It came out of nowhere. Something hard hit Sheik in the side, sending him flying across the island, almost skidding into the water. He heard Link's surprised yell.

"What the—"was all he could say before he too was sent flying. He landed next to Sheik.

Agony was all he knew. The marks from his previous encounter with the monster screamed as Sheik's breaths came out in short gasps, unable to take in more air. He could see the hands, hovering at the other end of the island.

"Lens, Hero," he gasped. Link's hand went to his tunic to take out the Lens of Truth, but his panicked expression told Sheik what had happened. "You've lost it." It wasn't a question.

"I had it just now," said Link and kept searching, but Sheik's cough and pointed finger made him look up. Out in the water, the Lens bobbed along the waves for a few seconds before sinking, lost forever.

_Great…how are we going to defeat the monster when the one with the only weapon that can kill it is practically blind?_

Link was on his feet in an instant, helping his partner up. "I guess you'll have to be my eyes, Sheik. Tell me what to do."

Sheik said nothing; he was too busy staring at the giant lump of flesh that was slowly rising from the water. It looked vaguely like a misshapen neck. Then the giant eye opened and regarded them with pure, unadulterated hatred. Bongo-Bongo screamed in anger.

It was a chaotic battle. After several failed attempts at dodging and damaging the hands with their blades, they found themselves gradually pushed closer and closer to the edge. It was lucky Link decided to try his bow, which seemed to stun the hands for a few seconds.

Sheik dodged another blow from a hand, getting back on his legs just in time to pull Link away from the path of the other. Wasting no time in telling him where the hands were, Sheik merely guided Link's hands, telling him when to shoot. Both arrows found their targets, and the hands hung limply in the air, Bongo-Bongo's eye widening in panic. Sheik guided another of the Hero's arrows into the pulsating organ, smirking when the fleshy form crumpled at the end of the platform.

He was just about to tell Link to hit it with the Master Sword when one of the hands twitched and slammed violently into the Sheikah, he skidded along the floor, stopping just before Bongo-Bongo's quivering form.

"Link!" he shouted. "Above me, his eye! Stab the eye!"

The Hero stood still for a second, trying to process what he had just said before nodding and charging at the—to him—empty air above Sheik. A strange sensation passed over him as his sword sunk to the hilt in something he couldn't see.

Something splashed in their faces. Link couldn't see, but Sheik knew it was the creature's blood. Bongo-Bongo screamed again, his body pulsating wildly, hands flying in every direction before he slowly started to dissolve.

"What's happening?" asked Link. "Did we win?" He helped Sheik up.

The Sheikah held an arm to his side. Something had cracked when the hand had hit him, and breathing was even worse than before now. "Yeah," he said, suppressing the moan that threatened to come from his lips. "It's dying…" The last bit of Bongo-Bongo's body slipped underneath the waves.

" _ **Thank you…noble Sheikah…"**_

Sheik looked up sharply. "Who said that?"

"Said what?" asked Link, regarding him with a raised eyebrow.

Sheik shook his head. "Nothing…" As he moved, the moan broke out.

Link looked down at him, worried. "Are you okay?"

"I believe I have broken a rib," said Sheik, prodding experimentally at his chest, wincing when he hit the fracture. "Yes, definitely broken."

"Come on," said Link and started leading him over to the ring of blue light that had materialised on the floor.

Sheik pushed away from the Hero, shaking his head. "No…I am not allowed to enter the Chamber of the Sages…you go, I'll find another way out."

Link thought about it for a second, then grabbed Sheik's arm and dragged him into the light. "Nope, you're coming with me," he said simply, smiling when the Sheikah gratefully slumped into him, supporting himself with Link's frame.

 _Thank the goddesses he is stubborn as a mule,_ Sheik thought. _But what will the sage say?_

* * *

The sage simply smiled as Sheik and Link appeared on the triforce symbol.

"Impa!" exclaimed Link. "You're the sage?"

Impa nodded, still smiling. "Indeed I am, Hero of Time."

Sheik smiled too. "I…I was worried that…"

"You were worried about me, Sheik? Judging by the way you are standing, you should have been more worried about yourself." Her eyes focused on the hilt of her sword. "Did Kazuya serve you well?"

"Yes, it did," said Sheik and started to loosen the strap.

"Keep it," said Impa, holding out a hand. "You know as well as I that I will not have any use for it…Sheik, Kazuya belongs to you now, as the last of the Sheikah."

Sheik bowed as deep as he could without causing too much pain to his chest. "Thank you, Impa."

His aunt smiled and looked back at Link. "You have done well, young man. I and Bongo-Bongo thank you." Sensing his confusion, Impa elaborated. "Many years ago, before you were born, a Sheikah man was corrupted by darkness and turned on his people." She looked at Sheik, who knew this story from before. "He slew many of us, until only I, my sister and her husband remained. We fought him, and defeated him, but not before he turned into the hideous monster that came to be known as Bongo-Bongo. We were unable to put him out of his misery, but we could not let him go either, for we feared he would return. Instead, I sealed him beneath the well in our village, trapping him in eternal sleep."

"Unfortunately, Ganondorf's evil presence woke him up, and he escaped from his prison. I tried to put him back to sleep…but he did it to me instead. And then you defeated him, and I awoke as the Sage of the Shadow Temple. We are eternally thankful, Hero. Here, take this medallion." She held her arms wide, and a large, purple medallion bearing the symbol of the shadow temple fell from above, landing in Link's hand. She turned her attention back to Sheik. "Sheik, come closer."

He did so, stepping into the water that slowly flowed off the altar. Impa bent down and embraced him, mindful of his injuries. "This is goodbye, nephew," she whispered. "Before you go, there is one thing I must tell you…"

"What is it?" whispered Sheik back.

"You and the Hero? You have my blessing." She released him and lightly pushed the flustered teen backwards to the triforce symbol. "You have a long way before you, boys. Remember, the fate of Hyrule is in your hands."

A blinding, white light enveloped them, transporting them away from the Chamber. They both heard her last request.

**_"Please, look out for the princess…"_ **

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 10**

* * *

It was daylight, meaning they had spent the entire night inside the Shadow Temple. The clean, fresh air in the graveyard greeted them as they touched down on the temple's dais, and it felt like something heavy was lifted off their shoulders. Sheik surveyed the area and saw a friend sitting perched on the fence next to them.

"Kaiza," he said happily and walked to the falcon, letting her perch on his arm as he untied the message on her leg.

"What's that?" asked Link, referring both to the bird and the roll of paper.

"Her majesty's personal messenger," answered Sheik and started reading the message.

_**S,** _

_**If you read this message, then I will assume that you have successfully navigated the House of the Dead, and I congratulate you. I also know that your relative has ascended to their role. This is good news.** _

_**However, a matter has come up, and I must speak with you in person. Please come home as soon as possible.** _

_**P.** _

Sheik wondered what it could be. Usually, the princess informed him of the new trouble right away in the message rather than calling him back to the hideout. Had Ganondorf discovered one of the rebel cells? Seeing Link's questioning look, he rolled the paper together and nodded to Kaiza, who took off with a cry and disappeared among the clouds above.

"What's wrong?" asked Link.

"Why would you assume that anything is wrong?" countered Sheik and put the scroll away in a hidden pocked in his tabard.

"You're looking worried," said Link. He ran a hand through his hair, relishing in the feeling of the open air. It was strange seeing him without his signature cap.

"It's nothing, Hero," said Sheik and started climbing over the fence, wincing when the broken rib protested against the action. He ignored it and dropped down behind the ruined grave that Link had destroyed as a child. "Her highness has simply asked me to report in, and that is exactly what I am going to do."

Link hit the ground behind him, running to catch up. "Nothing my ass," he said loudly. "Your eyes went all wide and funny when you read the letter…besides, you can't go yet, you're hurt!"

Sheik stopped, looking suspiciously at the lantern resting against a gravestone. "It really is nothing, Link. And I feel fine," he lied. It didn't feel good. A thought had struck him as he had walked past the graves. The snicker inside the temple, the red eyes…

 _It's impossible…_ he told himself. _The Shadow had no way of regaining its power. Besides, if it had been the Shadow, surely it would have attacked us in order to kill Link…_ Had the princess discovered the Shadow's existence and wished to order an assassination? There could be a million reasons for her to call him back, but he hoped to the goddesses that it was not that one.

"Feel fine, huh?" asked the Hero and spun the Sheikah around. "Then how come you're holding your side and can walking while favouring one side?"

Sheik scoffed and tried to continue on his way, but the Hero insistently held him back. Without warning, Link's finger prodded Sheik's rib, causing the masked youth to hiss and recoil away.

"Yeah, really convincing," said Link.

"Just leave it, Hero. It'll heal as soon as I drink a red potion."

"Potions can reset broken bones? That's the first time I've ever heard of it…"

Unwilling to continue the conversation, Sheik marched off, gingerly holding the broken rib. He hadn't even noticed he was walking like that until now. The Hero was getting far too observant for his own good, and—

"Put me down, Hero," Sheik said slowly, staring into Link's electric blue eyes as he lifted him bridal style.

"Nope," said Link, heading to Impa's house. "You're hurt, and you're not going anywhere, just like you told me back at Lon Lon yesterday."

"And if I disobeyed, like you did?"

"Then I'd be forced to tie you down to the bed," replied Link happily, immediately blushing when he realised what he had just said. "Uh, not like that, ehehehe…"

* * *

Sheik was glad no one was in the village as the Hero carried him to his aunt's house. How would the population feel about their defender, carried by the Hero of Time like some damsel in distress? Struggling against the Hero's hold had proved futile as Link's gentle but firm grip held him in place. Although, he had to admit, being carried like this felt…nice. His rib didn't ache as much either, which surely was a good sign.

Opening the door for the Hero, Sheik was carried to the bed. Link gently put him down on it, smiling all the while. "See?" he asked. "Isn't that better?"

"It's a bed, Link," Sheik reminded him. "It's not going to heal me by its own."

"Right," said Link. "Are there any potions in here?"

"Check in the cupboard," said Sheik and pointed. His eyelids were getting heavy. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't slept for at least two days, having been keeping steady guard over the sleeping Hero in case of any other assassination attempts. The bed was truly soft, probably stuffed with cucco feathers (he knew Link would not approve if he knew), quite unlike the rough ones filled with hay at the ranch.

Link's voice sounded distant, like he was far away. "There's enough potion to feed an army in there…Sheik? Hey!"

Sheik opened his eyes, realising just now how tired he was. Adrenaline had probably kept him going through the temple, but now that they were out his body was finally claiming the sleep it had demanded for the past few days. "What?"

Link snickered, a familiar sound. But unlike the evil snicker he had heard inside the temple, this one was comforting, relieving. "You'll be fine, huh? Here, drink this."

Sheik tried glaring at Link as he took the bottle and drank the vile concoction. He felt warmth spreading from the pit of his stomach to the very tips of his fingers and toes, the potion already starting to heal the bruises on his body. He felt a finger prodding his rib again, but was too tired to react.

"Doesn't feel like it's been misplaced," the Hero murmured. "Probably just a fracture."

Sheik fell asleep to Link's voice, smiling beneath his cowl.

* * *

_There was…darkness. And there was…light. In a strange way, the two combined into a grey, drab environment. There was nothing there, only a vast, grey plain that stretched off into infinity._

_Sheik wondered what kind of strange dream he was having when a low snicker echoed around him. He swiftly whirled around, trying to gauge where the sound was coming from. Not behind him, not in front of him and not from either side of him. The only way was…up. He craned his head upwards. Nothing there either._

" _Looking for someone?" a voice whispered in his ear, causing the Sheikah to jump slightly. He tried to move away, but a strong arm wrapped around his chest, another encircling his waist. "Don't run away…there is no escape from me."_

_He recognised the voice, and shuddered. "So it is true…you were the one inside the temple."_

_Shadow chuckled, the vibrations causing Sheik to shiver. "Indeed, it was me…" His warm breath flowed over Sheik's cheek, making the Sheikah blush at the proximity of the Hero's Shadow's mouth._

" _What do you want?" asked Sheik. "Kill me? That's what you said beneath the lake…"_

_The Shadow chuckled again. "That's what I said…but I changed my mind when I saw how you and the Hero kept looking at and touching each other in the House of the Dead…then I decided not to."_

_The hand at his waist was gently rubbing at his bruised rib, almost making Sheik moan. It was gentle, barely touching. "What…do you want, then?" he asked, suppressing a shiver._

" _I…want…you," said the Shadow slowly. "Body and soul…the Hero truly adores you, and I wish to hurt him like no other before I kill him…and the fastest way to break him is making you mine…you're my possession."_

" _No!" Sheik said sharply and pulled away from the slackening embrace. He glared at the Shadow. His hand went for the handle of his sword, but it was not there. He then tried to grab a dagger from his wrist, but the concealing bandages were gone._

" _Looking for these?" asked the Shadow mockingly as he held opened his hand to reveal the small daggers. They disappeared, fading away as the Shadow laughed softly. In an instant, he was in front of Sheik, grabbing his cowl and pulling the Sheikah closer. "You're mine, there's no avoiding it."_

_Instead of answering, Sheik tried to break the grasp by giving the Shadow a swift kick in the stomach, but the Shadow simply grabbed his leg and flipped Sheik to the ground, holding the youth's arms above his head in a vice-like grip._

" _You cannot hurt me here, Sheikah," growled the Shadow. "This is_ my _realm, and there is nothing you can do to prevent me from doing this!" The Shadow ripped down his cowl, placing his lips to Sheik's in a searing kiss._

* * *

His eyes flew open, desperately looking around for the Hero's Shadow. But the only thing greeting his gaze was the inside of Impa's house. He was lying on his side, his vision blurry, and his body was heavy as lead. His heart was beating faster than Bongo-Bongo's drum, and he could still feel the Shadow's lips on his.

 _It was a dream…a nightmare,_ he told himself. _The Shadow Temple got to you, Sheik…there's nothing to fear._

He had felt so utterly helpless when the Shadow had pinned him to the ground…he shuddered and closed his eyes again, worried that he would dream it again. Then an arm gently fell over his side, dragging him closer to a warm chest.

_Oh great…the Hero and I are sharing the bed…_

It was impossible to resist sleep when held like this. It was so utterly comfortable, and the rib was healing nicely, it seemed, not a twinge of pain issuing from it. His heartbeats were slowing down, Link's presence calming him. Again, the two sides of mind clashed.

_You've truly fallen for him…this is not right! You have a duty to perform! …The only thing you want is for the Hero to kiss you, hold you…keep you safe…_

Ignoring them, Sheik fell asleep again, this time not dreaming at all.

* * *

The deku nut transported him to the small cottage in the middle of the great forest to the south, the princess' hideout. The sun had barely risen above the mountains to the east, and the morning dew glinted as the beams hit the grassy field. Sheik approached the door, knowing that behind the bushes and trees, the elite soldiers of Hyrule were keeping their monarch safe. They knew who he was, so they did not bother him. His rib was fine now, although some of the ugly bruises from the well encounter still blemished his skin.

He had woken up before the Hero, carefully extracting himself from his embrace. He felt guilty for the pleasure and comfort he had taken from the Hero's arms. He was supposed to be his guide and partner, only assisting and observing as the Hero saved Hyrule, but now…now he admitted to having fallen in love with the Hero. And if what the Shadow had said was true…then Link had fallen for Sheik as well.

He had quickly banished that train of thought into the back of his mind, however, seeing as the encounter with the Shadow had merely been a dream, a trick his mind played on him in his fatigue. But just to be sure, he intended to return to the Water Temple before heading to the next temple, just to confirm that the Shadow was still weak and powerless.

He knocked on the wooden door, hearing stirrings within. The door opened, revealing an armed soldier, looking suspiciously at him.

"Who wanders in the night, keeping the family safe?" he asked gruffly.

"The shadow warriors, the eternally sworn," replied Sheik, bowing. It was a silly little ceremony, he thought, but it made the soldiers feel safe and certain that the Sheikah was the real one.

"Good to see you again, Sheik," said the soldier, stepping aside and letting the youth enter the small living room. "Her highness has been worried about you ever since Kaiza returned."

"I was…distracted," replied Sheik.

"Nothing serious, I hope," said the soldier.

"It wasn't, Reuben," said Sheik. "Truth to be told…I fell asleep. I had been going on my third day without rest and my body would take no more."

Reuben guffawed with laughter. "Some protector you are," he laughed and disappeared into the kitchen area. "Her highness is upstairs."

Sheik nodded and climbed the stairs, the steps creaking. He liked the soldier. Fiercely loyal, yet not a mindless sheep like many soldiers tend to be. It was no wonder he was her personal bodyguard now that Impa had woken up as the Sage of the Shadow Temple. Reaching the door at the top, he knocked on it.

"Yes?" asked a feminine voice as the door opened. "Sheik? Goddesses, I was so worried about you!" said Princess Zelda and threw her arms around him, hugging him tight.

Sheik let her do so, waiting until she let go to answer. "I'm fine, your highness," he said. "I apologise for the delay, the Hero and I both needed rest."

"So Link is fine as well," said Zelda, ushering the Sheikah into her room. She was clad in simple farmer's clothes, not bothering with royal dresses and tiaras. She looked good in them, Sheik thought.

"Yes," he said and nodded. "He has fully recovered from his injuries and is currently waiting in Kakariko village."

"Good, good," she said and paced the room. "With the Shadow Temple awakened, there is only one left, the Spirit Temple…" She suddenly looked up. "That's what I wanted to speak with you about!"

Sheik nodded, remembering the message.

"Yesterday, my spies reported something troubling about the Gerudo," she said and picked up a piece of paper from the overflowing desk in front of a window. "They have sealed every mountain pass that leads to the desert, Sheik." She handed him the paper, which he read. "The only way to the desert now is past their fortress…"

"This could prove a challenge," said Sheik and gave her the message back. "But I am sure the Hero is up to the task. We just need to sneak past them."

Zelda smiled. "I know…but I still worried. And I could not figure out how to say this in a message without revealing too much."

Sheik smiled at her. "There is no need to worry, your highness. The Hero is strong and wise"—he mentally cleared his throat at the latter—"and will rise to whatever challenge he faces." He bowed again. "If that is all, I will return and—"

"No," she interrupted him. "There is…something else…" She blushed and avoided looking into his eyes.

 _She knows…_ he thought.

"Impa came to me in my dreams last night…" she began, looking at the floor. "She told me that…you and Link seem…attracted…to each other. Is this true?"

Now it was Sheik's turn to avoid _her_ gaze. He could not lie to her. It would be treason…but he felt so ashamed. "…I…" he began and stopped.

"Sheik," said Zelda softly and pulled down his cowl, cupping his cheek with her hand. "You can tell me, I'm your friend." She gasped.

Tears were gathering in the corners of his eyes and were slowly flowing down his face. "I…I…can't help it, Zelda." He sobbed, leaning into the embrace the princess was offering. "I try to stop myself, but I just…I just can't!"

"It's okay, shhhh…" she cooed, holding the shaking youth until he stopped crying. "I don't mind…there's nothing wrong with it." She whispered. "I just wanted to know if it's true."

"But…but it _is_ wrong," protested Sheik, looking up at her. "I'm a Sheikah, sworn to my duty…and…and—"

"You feel you are distracting him," said Zelda, smiling at the younger teen.

"Yes."

"Sheik, you're not distracting him," said Zelda firmly and pulled his cowl back up. "Rauru told me that he looked much more focused and relaxed when you two arrived in the Chamber of the Sages…and he was sure it was because of you. Impa was so glad you had finally found someone to connect with and…she was so happy for you. She believes that you becoming his partner is the best thing that could have happened."

"She…said that?" sniffled Sheik, remembering his aunt's words in the chamber.

" _ **You and the Hero? You have my blessing."**_

He was starting to feel foolish, breaking down and crying in front of the princess like this. He wiped away the remaining tears and looked at Zelda. "Thank you," he said earnestly, causing the princess to giggle and hug him again.

"You're so cute, you know that?" she said. She kissed him on the forehead. "Now, go back to Link. There is still one more temple to unlock…and you have a desert to cross."

Sheik bowed, feeling much better than he had done when he first arrived. "Yes, your highness." He turned to leave, but Zelda called him back.

"Kaiza will accompany you through the mountains," she said, nodding at the falcon that had settled on the window frame. "She will be useful for scouting out areas."

"Thank you…Zelda," he said and left the cottage, leaving the princess to watch him from the window as he teleported away.

"You're growing up, Sheik," she whispered to herself and smiled. Then she felt guilty for sending the sixteen-year-old into such horrors that surely lay on the path ahead of them.

* * *

Outside the gate to Kakariko, Maladict and Epona stood grazing, both looking at Sheik lazily as he passed them. The villagers were coming back, a steady stream of people emerging from the path that led to Goron City. They smiled at him, happy that the monster beneath the well was gone forever. He was too deep in thoughts to smile back. The princess may have said it was okay to have fallen in love with Link, but his sense of duty kept pulling at him, reminding him of the dangers. If they acted on their feelings, then either of them could be used by the enemy to affect the other.

 _That's it,_ he thought as he entered Impa's house. _I can't get close to him. It will all turn out for the worst in the end…_

"Hey," Link greeted him as he entered, looking at the Sheikah suspiciously. He was polishing the Master Sword, its surface gleaming. "Where were you?"

"Reporting to the princess," Sheik answered.

"Ah," said Link, going back to his polishing. He looked peaceful, smiling as he went about his work. His Hylian shield laid next to him, also polished until its surface shone like a mirror.

Sheik unsheathed Kazuya, realising that it too needed a polish. Dust coated the fine blade, and small splatters of blood from the monsters inside the Shadow Temple were speckled along the edge. He sat down next to Link, who handed him the polish.

"I guess we have to go to the next temple soon," he said as Sheik applied the oil to his sword.

"Soon, Link," replied Sheik.

The two warriors spent the rest of the morning in silence, preparing their equipment for the next challenge, both wondering if the other was going to take the next step…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 11**

* * *

They would go the next day, they decided. They were still tired from the ordeal in the Shadow Temple, and they needed to gather supplies for the trek through the mountains and desert. Water was a priority, although Sheik was certain they would find more than enough natural springs before they reached the harsh heat of the Gerudo Desert.

They were staying in Kakariko, using Impa's house as a base of operations of sorts. Really, it was just a fancy expression for the place they slept.

The moon was rising over the land, much like the evening Link had almost died when emerging from the temple beneath Lake Hylia, and Sheik sat on the roof, studying a deku nut. He was looking for all reasons to procrastinate the errand he was about to run, but excuse after excuse failed against the logic that resided in his mind.

He was going to the Water Temple again to assess the situation with the Hero's Shadow. His hand was trembling, remembering the nightmare he'd had the night before. He gritted his teeth and tried to keep the hand still.

_I am a Sheikah, I live in the shadows…so why does this one creature frighten me so?_

He sighed when he realised there was no putting it off now and flung the nut against the roof, disappearing in a flash of light.

Link stepped out of the house, looking up at the roof where Sheik had been sitting. "Where are you going?" he asked the empty air.

* * *

He appeared inside the temple, standing on the central pillar this time, thankfully. The water was ice cold, and he didn't want to get soaked like last time. He briefly wondered why he hadn't teleported into the amoeba's chamber, certain that he had been thinking of the spiked room.

 _I didn't…_ he thought. _I don't even want to be here…but if that…thing is still here, it would calm me and allow me to focus on my duties._

He jumped across to the other side, entering the large door. The spike traps on the small incline were rusting because of the dank and moist environment. Sheik stepped over them, his steps slowing down as he approached the smaller door at the top. Standing in front of it, he took a deep breath, steeled his mind and entered the chamber.

He jumped down into the former basin, looking around for any movement. He slowly turned his head to look at the corner he had first conversed with the shadow in. His eyes widened. There was nothing there! He cursed and punched the stone platform to his right, wincing as he felt the fist connect.

 _How? There was nothing here on which it could feed on and regain its strength…unless._ He turned to the opposite corner, where he had found Navi's body. There had been quite a large amount of blood. Now there was nothing there. He wanted to smack his forehead. "Of course," he groaned.

"Indeed," said a now familiar voice.

Sheik whirled around and spotted the Shadow standing at the edge of the basin, smirking down at him. He was identical to Link, except that his clothes were all different shades of black, his hair a matte grey, his eyes a deep crimson, much like Sheik's own. An evil copy of the Master Sword and Hylian Shield rested on his back.

"You!" Sheik growled and drew Kazuya, the newly polished sword catching and reflecting the ambient lighting. He pointed to where the fairy had lost her life. "You…drank her blood?" He felt a bit of bile rising in his throat, but swallowed it, not wanting to appear weak. He had a feeling that if he showed weakness to the Shadow, it was already over.

The Shadow grinned and flipped down into the basin, stopping some feet away from Sheik. "What else was I supposed to do?" it asked with the same voice as Link's, only darker, more rough. "You deprived me of her body. But fairy's blood is an excellent source of power, so I suppose I'll thank you for leaving it." He eyed Kazuya with distaste. "You can put that away, I have no wish to fight with you this night."

Sheik narrowed his eyes. "You're lying."

Link's Shadow grinned even wider. "You're right…but it's not _that_ kind of fight I'm after tonight." He took a step toward Sheik, who took one backwards, Kazuya pointed at the Hero's dark reflection. "Come," he said, beckoning Sheik toward him. "We both know it's useless to fight me…only My Light can truly rid this world of me forever…and he thinks I'm dead."

Sheik turned around, climbing up the steep wall, trying to get on top of the basin. He looked behind himself briefly, seeing that the Shadow was gone. He swallowed and looked up. That infuriating smile grew even wider as the Shadow looked down at him. In surprise, Sheik let go of the stone and fell back into the basin, loosing his balance. He fell backwards, suddenly crashing against…a chest? Arms wrapped around his front, keeping him in place and preventing him from raising Kazuya.

"Calm down, Sheikah…how many times must I tell you that it's useless to fight me," whispered the Shadow and licked the shell of Sheik's ear. "Submit…and I can pleasure you in ways you could never imagine…" He turned Sheik around, pulled down the Sheikah's cowl, pressing his lips to Sheik's.

Sheik tried to struggle out of the grip, but the Shadow was unrelenting, biting down on Sheik's lips. He gasped, giving the Shadow an opportunity to push his tongue into his mouth. It was impossible to resist. He felt his knees give out, but the Shadow held him up, securing his arms more tightly around the Sheikah. Kazuya clattered to the floor. Suddenly, the Shadow withdrew from his mouth, leaning his head to the side to nuzzle his neck. Without warning, sharp teeth sunk into the fragile flesh of his neck, and Sheik groaned. The Shadow licked at the puncture wounds, relishing in the taste.

Then Sheik was dropped to the ground, the Shadow disappearing from his sight. He looked around, trying to find his enemy. He shakily picked up Kazuya, his entire being shivering. "Wh…where are you!?" he shouted. Receiving no answer, he took his chances and threw a deku nut to the ground, teleporting away.

* * *

He reappeared in the Kakariko Graveyard, panting and sweating profusely. He sat down, leaning against the large commemorative headstone honouring the Sheikah, letting his face drop into his hands. The movement caused him to gasp as the bite mark on his neck flared in pain. He ripped down his cowl, trying to look at the wound. He felt around the area, hissing as he found the mark.

He sighed and pulled out a small vial of red potion from his tabard, glad it hadn't broken during the…fight? Struggle? He wasn't sure what had occurred, but he shuddered when thinking back on it. Popping the cork, Sheik swallowed the potion in one gulp. It soothed the pain, and warmth once again spread to the damaged area.

_He's still alive…and he's trying to get to me to hurt Link…how did I make such a mess of everything?_

The bite mark started itching, and he tried to scratch the skin around it, but was surprised when he felt how warm his neck was growing. Tentatively feeling the mark, he realised that the wounds had closed and stopped bleeding…but the indentations in the skin were still there. His eyes widened, and he stood up. The mark wasn't disappearing.

Storming through the village, he stopped at the well, which had filled with water after Bongo-Bongo escaped. He made sure no one was looking and pulled down his cowl, trying to get a look at his neck in the reflection in the water. He gasped when he saw the vicious, red teeth marks that still appeared on his skin. The area was tender to the touch, and Sheik's fear was confirmed.

_He's…marked me as his…_

Everything was spiralling out of control. The Shadow was alive, could appear to Sheik anywhere, even in his dreams. What would it do next? Where would it stop?

* * *

A sombre silence had enveloped the two partners as they left the village, mounting their horses after leading them down the stairs. The two equines seemed to enjoy each other's company, and Sheik wondered if they were… He shook his head to stop the thoughts. Instead, he looked at Link, who also seemed not to be in a talkative mood that morning. He had never replaced his cap, and the first rays from the sun caught in his blond hair, making it shine.

"So, how come we can't just teleport there?" asked Link suddenly as they cantered along the plains.

Thankful for the break in the awkward silence, Sheik answered. "Because I don't know the song, Hero. I was supposed to follow you there, learn the song from the hieroglyphs in the temple and then teach it to you."

"Then how come you can't teleport there, learn the song, come back here and teach me? And my name is still Link." He looked at Sheik with a pointed gaze.

Ignoring the annoyance in Link's voice, Sheik shook his head. "I can't teleport anywhere if I can't visualise where I'm going. I have never been to the Desert Colossus, Link, and therefore cannot teleport there."

"Oh," said the Hero and looked back to the road in front of them.

Silence enveloped them again. Sheik couldn't understand why Link was suddenly so silent and brooding, having only experienced the Hero as a happy go-lucky child at heart. The bite mark on his neck, mercifully hidden by his cowl, stung again, and he bit down a hiss. Of all the things the Shadow could have done, this was the worst.

"Where did you go last night?" asked Link as Lon Lon Ranch appeared over the next hill.

"Pardon?" said Sheik. Had Link been spying on him?

"I woke up when you went outside and up on the roof," the Hero explained, keeping his gaze locked on the approaching ranch. "I thought you just needed some time to yourself, to think, you know? But then you teleported away with those nuts of yours, I got worried. I waited for an hour, Sheik, but you never came back. And then you were just…there this morning."

 _Was I really gone for that long?_ Sheik thought. _It didn't even seem like five minutes…_

The Hero was waiting for an answer, he realised. "I…it's as you say, Hero. I needed to be by myself for a while…and I never truly feel alone in the village."

Link looked back at him, having not noticed that he was riding a bit faster than Sheik. "Then where did you go?"

"Lake Hylia," replied Sheik. It wasn't a lie. He _technically_ went to the lake, just a bit lower than ground level.

Link raised an eyebrow at the answer. He hadn't expected it.

"Don't look at me like that, Link," said Sheik. "Lake Hylia is one of the most peaceful places in Hyrule, especially now that the monsters are gone and the lake has been refilled. It's a good place to think."

"I'm sorry," apologised the Hylian suddenly, looking downcast.

"For what, Hero?"

"For being so nosy."

"It's what makes you you, Hero."

The Sheikah spurred Maladict on, giving Link a look that clearly said "can't catch me". The Hero of Time took his partner up on the challenge, both racing toward Lon Lon Ranch.

* * *

Greeted with open arms would be a sufficient phrase to describe what happened when the two appeared at the ranch gates. Malon hugged Link excitedly, happy that he was okay while Talon beat him savagely over the shoulder in what could called a friendly way…if they were Gorons.

They had stopped at the ranch in order to thank the two farmers for the hospitality they had been offered when the Hero was injured, but Talon waved it off, saying it had been nothing. He had pulled Sheik aside and thanked him for dealing with Ingo, divulging to the Sheikah that he had been planning to throw him out anyway. Sheik was continually surprised at the dark streak in the man's personality, but he supposed that seven long years of war and oppression could do that to anyone.

He had then tried to give Maladict back to Talon, feeling that he had borrowed the horse for too long. This too, the large man brushed aside, saying that Sheik would need the horse if they were to travel to the mountains. The horse had promptly bumped shake in the shoulder with his muzzle, as if offended by the idea of being separated from him…or Epona, if Sheik's suspicions were correct.

While Sheik and Talon spoke, Link and Malon had gone to Navi's grave. She showed him how she had planted flowers around the tree, saying that they were all sprouting with record speed. Link smiled sadly at the grave and thanked Malon, saying that the fairy would have wanted it this way.

They left, barely half an hour after they had arrived, not wanting to lose a second of daylight on the plains. Bands of roving bandits and soldiers roamed Hyryle Field during the night, and Stalchilds threatened at every turn.

Just as they were about to leave the gates, the father and daughter's calls made them stop. The farmers ran up to the partners.

"We never got your name," said Talon and looked at Sheik. Malon nodded.

Link smiled and cantered away, leaving the Sheikah alone with them.

"My name is Sheik," he said simply, wondering why it was so important for them to know it.

"Sheik," said Talon and smiled. "I just wanted you to know that you are always welcome at the ranch, no matter what." Malon nodded again. She was still afraid to speak to him, it seemed.

He nodded to them and started to follow Link, but smiled when he heard a female voice calling after him.

"Please come back soon!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 12**

* * *

"I think I should have brought my cap," said Link. They were moving down the path that would take them to the bridge across the river that eventually ended at Lake Hylia. Already, the rock around them were absorbing the heat from the sun, turning the area into an oven.

"Why is that?" asked Sheik.

"Because I feel weird without…and I think we're really mismatched with the way you still have your turban on." He grinned at Sheik. "Can I see undernea—"

"No, you may not," Sheik said, but by then it was already too late. The Hero had found and grabbed the loose end of the wrap and was pulling at it. Sheik could feel it loosening. He slapped Link's hand away, groaning as he saw the white cloth fall from his head, feeling his hair coming loose.

"Whoa," Link exclaimed. "Your hair is almost as long as Malon's!"

 _Typical, I indulge myself in_ one _area, and he bloody finds it,_ Sheik thought, his hair cascading down his back.

"Satisfied?" he asked, making Maladict stop so he could pick up the cloth. He frowned when he saw it had attracted dirt like a magnet. He really didn't want to wrap his hair up in a dirty turban. He folded the cloth and put it in one of the saddle packs on Maladict.

Link kept staring at the golden tresses, only nodding dumbly. "Uh-huh," he said.

"Good, then we can keep going," Sheik said, climbing back into Maladict's saddle, spurring the stud on. It _did_ feel good to have his hair loose for once, he had to admit. It cooled his head slightly, and that alone was worth the invasion of privacy.

"And my hair is _not_ as long as Malon's…it barely reaches past my shoulders."

* * *

He glanced up, seeing a dot flying above them. Kaiza was keeping a lookout. If an enemy approached, she would let them know.

Sheik recognised the area around them. They were close to the bridge now. Hopefully the Gerudo hadn't thought of destroying it. If they had, it would mean a suddenly slowdown in their pace, and he didn't feel comfortable about leaving the horses in this sweltering heat.

As they rounded the bend, they both cursed—Link loudly and Sheik silently. The rope bridge had been cut, its separated paths hanging uselessly down the chasm. Below, the river gurgled as it flowed past.

"They've destroyed it!" the Hero shouted, his shoulders sagging. He too knew what it meant. "Now we've gotta walk the whole way!"

Sheik had already climbed off Maladict and was taking the saddle and packs off. The horse bumped his muzzle to Sheik's shoulder in gratitude. It was hot for the horses too, and having to carry two warriors with a ton of equipment and supplies with them was probably not high on their list of enjoyable trips.

After both Epona and Maladict had been relieved of their burdens, Link and Sheik spent an unfruitful ten minutes trying to get them to leave the valley so they wouldn't die of starvation, thirst or the heat. Of course, when dealing with horses like Epona and Maladict, one can only expect failure if one tries to make them do something they don't wish to.

"Are they being stupid on purpose or something?" Link sighed and sat on a rock near the edge of the cliff, staring at the other side.

"They are horses…they can be stubborn as mules and still get away with it," said Sheik and joined the Hero. They were both sweating in the heat, and the weight of their packs weren't helping. Sheik had gathered his hair into a ponytail so it wouldn't get in the way, and Link kept looking at it. "What?" Sheik asked finally, tired of the looks.

"I kinda want to…" Link reached over to the gathered hair, and Sheik understood right away what he was attempting. He turned his head away, keeping the hair out of Link's reach.

"You are not yanking at my hair," Sheik said firmly. _He's such a child sometimes it's not even funny…_

"But I want to," the Hero of Time, Hyrule's last hope, whined.

* * *

"Nope, not going to happen," said Link and shook his head. "You can't jump over the river."

"I have to try, Hero," Sheik said. "There's no other way of getting across, if you haven't noticed. Your feathers won't allow you to float that long."

"I don't need the feathers for this," said Link and pulled out his Longshot. "We can just use this. But I don't really want to be tossing this thing back and forth across that fall." He put a finger to his chin, tapping it as he thought.

The Sheikah already knew the conclusion he would come to, and started to shake his head no prematurely. "We are not doing that."

"There's no other way of getting across, if you haven't noticed," said Link, making his best impression of Sheik's voice. "Get your pack and we can get going."

Knowing it was no use in arguing; Sheik flung the sack onto his back and came back to the Hero, who was looking closely at the thick board hanging from the ropes on the other side. An eye had been painted on it, looking very similar to the boards placed around the temples for the Longshot to grab on to.

 _How…convenient,_ he thought.

He stepped in front of Link, who opened his arms. He stepped into them, wrapping his own around Link's shoulders, blushing all the while. Link grabbed Sheik's waist with his left arm, aiming the Longshot with his right. There was a click, and the hook shot out from the Longshot, burying itself in the wood. The Hero hovered a finger over the button that would cause the chain to retract, hopefully taking them to the other side.

"Ready?" asked Link.

"Yes…this had better work, Hero."

**Click!**

* * *

There had been a brief, awkward moment when they had dangled from the board. A slight miscalculation in Link's aim had caused them hang precariously over the slight gap between the remains of the bridge and the other side. Sheik had calmly pointed this out, to which the Hero could merely grin embarrassed and say "Oops."

They had worked it out in the end by starting to swing slightly, and dropping to the ground one by one.

The heat got worse as they advanced through the many passes and paths in the mountains. At one point, Link had to take off his leggings, baring his legs to the world. Sheik wished he could do the same, the exoskeleton was getting unbearably warm, and the fabric clung to his sweaty skin. And the cowl made everything worse as it trapped the warm air around his face.

In the end, it was a matter of will power…and Sheik had none of it when the sun stood high at noon, baking the land beneath it. He ripped it off and tossed it unceremoniously into his sack, much to the amazement of Link, who gaped at the other teen.

"What?" asked Sheik, pretending he hadn't just looked a lunatic. When the Hero didn't answer, he stepped up to him, glaring. "Is there something wrong with my face?" he demanded.

"No," said Link, mesmerised. "It's…perfect." He reached out and gently stroked Sheik's cheek, causing the Sheikah to blush. "Sheik…you're blushing."

Sheik huffed and looked away. "I don't know what you're talking ab—"He stopped. Fingers were touching the marks on his neck.

 _Damnit, the cowl!_ he screamed in his mind.

"What's this?" asked Link, trying to get a closer look. Sheik pushed away and went to his pack to fish out his cowl again, feeling ever so foolish for forgetting why he had been wearing it in the first place.

"Nothing, Hero. It's just a scratch…"

"No," said Link. "It looked more like a…a bite mark! Did you fight with a monster last night?" he asked, assuming a no-nonsense stance.

Grateful for Link's inability to distinguish between human bites and animal bites, Sheik answered. "Yes, I was ambushed by a wolfos at the lake." It was a bad lie, he knew, but surely the Hero's inner child would believe it.

"You've got to be more careful, Sheik. Those wolves aren't something you want to mess with. But I guess you gave him back tenfold for that, huh?" He handed Sheik a bottle filled with red potion.

Sheik refused the bottle. "No, I want it to scar, to remind me of my foolishness," he said. He was clipping his cowl to his tabard when Link's hand took the cowl away.

"You really shouldn't cover your face with this," Link said and eyed the mask with distaste. "You're far too beautiful for it."

Whether it was the heat or something else that made him say it was unknown, but Sheik didn't care either way.

* * *

The sun was setting when they made their camp in a hidden nook in the stone some distance away from the main road they had been travelling along. They had passed several roads blocked by fallen rocks. Sheik knew the avalanches were manmade. He mentally cursed the Gerudo for being so deviously clever as to block the most direct paths to the desert.

The temperature was dropping rapidly, and Sheik was currently making up a fire while Link made sure to cover their tracks in case a Gerudo patrol came by. Sheik had tried stopping him, reminding the Hero that the Gerudo would see them anyway because of the smoke, but the Hero had replied it was just a habit he needed to satisfy.

But the danger of any patrols this far from the thieves' fortress was miniscule. The almost entirely female race cared little for affairs so close to Hyrule. No, they were probably all at their fortress, waiting for the Hero of Time to dumbly walk right into their trap. They didn't expect that Sheik was with him, however.

He put a pot over the fire, boiling water and adding bits of meat and vegetables, making a thin broth. It was the best he could do with what they had. Most of the space in their packs was occupied by bottles of water, many of which had been consumed on the first day. He had hoped to find a water source before they had to make camp, but that hope was squished when they met a dry riverbed. The Gerudo had probably dammed up the river too. Anything to make the Hero's journey more difficult.

 _Blasted women,_ he thought as he tasted the broth, adding some salt when the flavourless water passed over his tongue. _Some dinner this is,_ he thought bitterly and poured some broth into two wooden bowls, handing Link one when he came back.

They ate in silence, enjoying the ambient sounds of the mountains.

"This is good," said Link, smiling at Sheik.

"Surely not," replied Sheik and stared hatefully at the cooking pot. "I wouldn't feed this to a pig."

"Now don't say that. You may not think it's very good, but this is heaps better than the stuff I ate in the Lost Woods, for example."

"…what _did_ you eat in the Lost Woods."

"Roots and berries that made my tummy hurt."

_Unbelievable…_

* * *

An annoying attribute these mountains shared with Gerudo Desert was the stifling hot days and icy cold nights. Sheik and Link were huddled around the fire, desperately trying to keep warm. The extra cloaks and blankets they had brought along helped little.

"You know, the Shadow Temple was the best experience I've had so far," said Link, his teeth clacking.

"What do you mean, 'best experience'?" asked Sheik. His teeth weren't clacking together, but he had lost the feeling in his hands. "It is a tomb, it's supposed to be dreary, depressing…"

"No, not in atmosphere," scoffed Link and shuffled a little closer to the fire. "But…I don't know how to explain it, but I almost enjoyed myself in there. And I know why, too." He looked into Sheik's eyes. "It was because you were there with me."

Sheik didn't know what to answer and settled with making a "Hn".

"With Navi, it was always plain business," Link continued. "She just wanted to get out of the temples as soon as possible, I think. She didn't care much for being inside."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I want to thank you, Sheik. I want to thank you for being with me…making me feel not as alone as I did when I first started out. And," Link cupped Sheik's cheek with his hand and pressed his soft lips to the Sheikah's, "because I wanted to do that and needed to distract you," he finished and smiled.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 13**

* * *

_Please…let this moment last forever…an eternity until the end of time…_

Unfortunately, the prayer had no effect, and Sheik saw Link's face droop more and more for each second that passed in his lack of response. He was frozen, his fingers lightly touching his lips where the Hero's had been seconds before.

"I knew it," whispered Link and stood up, his eyes watering. "I'm sorry, Sheik. I'll…I'll go away."

"Hero…wait."

Link turned around, a hopeful look in his eyes. His tears gleamed in the firelight. "Y…yes?"

"You didn't tell me why you did it," said Sheik, standing up as well, stepping up to the Hero and placing his hands on his shoulders. "I want to know why you just kissed me."

Link blushed, but smiled happily. "I don't know…I just…I just wanted to…I like you, Sheik, I really, really do. And I didn't know how to say it since you're always so quiet, and mphhhh—"

He never got to finish the explanation, because Sheik had leant up and silenced him with a kiss of his own. Smiling softly at the bumbling Hero, Sheik drew him into an embrace, resting his cheek against the older teen's chest. "It's okay, Hero…" he said. "I like you too."

* * *

They bundled together for the night, partly out of their newfound fondness for each other and partly because of the cold…probably mostly because of the cold, but neither of them cared. At first light of dawn, Sheik was the first to wake up. He was lying back against the Hero's front, essentially spooning (or at least as close to spooning they could get with the many layers of blankets they had wrapped around themselves). He disentangled himself from the mess, shivering slightly in the morning cold. He knew it would soon be stifling hot again, and dreaded another day like the previous…although he also looked forward to it since Link would be there.

But it wasn't the sharp rays burrowing into his eyes that had woken him, he knew. The Shadow's mark had stung again, pretty badly this time, and Sheik just knew that it was watching them…somewhere. There were hundreds of nooks and crannies it could hide in, especially if there were shades in them. He eyed one such nook with suspicion as he took a drink of water from a flask, wincing in slight pain as the icy cold water hit his teeth.

"What time is it?" someone suddenly said, and a pair of strong, green-clad arms wrapped around him.

Sheik smiled and twisted out of the embrace, handing Link the bottle. The Hero raised the bottle in thanks and took a deep draught, also wincing from the coldness.

"It's dawn, Hero," Sheik said and started bundling the blankets together. "If we hurry up, we can make some headway while it's still a tolerable temperature out here."

"Right," said Link and helped him packing the sacks. "How far is it to the fortress?"

"At our current speed," said Sheik slowly. "I'd say a day's march." He looked up at the hero's snicker and gave him a questioning glance.

"Sorry," giggled the Hero. Yes, giggled. "But…did you know you roll your eyes when you're thinking?"

_They do?_

"No, I did not know this," Sheik said and hurled the Hero's sack at him, Link catching it easily. "And I'll thank you not to point out embarrassing facts about me."

"Your head turns to the left when you kiss me—ow! Don't pinch!"

* * *

They had only walked for half an hour before they felt the heat coming on again, gradually getting warmer and warmer the further east the walked…which made no sense to Sheik, but he was not prepared to argue with the laws of nature since he could teleport with a nut from a tree.

They did not talk much except to indicate something interesting—usually funnily shaped rocks and such—or ask for more water. Kaiza had not spent the night with them, Sheik had suddenly remembered as they walked, but her familiar form in the sky reassured him she was still there. She had probably just found some little, furry creature to torment before eating it and had been feasting all night.

He had completely given up on the cowl now, and the tabard would soon follow if it kept heating up like it was. Link was enjoying the view—and not that of nature, although he tsk-ed slightly whenever he saw what he thought was a Wolfos bite.

 _I have to tell him sooner or later,_ was a recurring thought whenever he heard the disappointed sound from the Hero. _If he knew about the Shadow…he would be more prepared for it when it attacks him again…but if I tell him now, he won't stop until he has killed it, and that will keep from concentrating on his quest._

They stopped to take a break when they entered an outcrop above them, a natural ceiling which provided some much needed relief from the burning sun. They took turns in splashing their faces with the remaining water in the bottle they had been drinking of since morning, cooling themselves slightly down.

They were eating a bit of the bread they had brought with them when Link made a sound.

"Hm," he said.

"What?" asked Sheik.

"Does…last night mean we're…together now?" He blushed.

"I suppose it does, Link," said Sheik and smiled. He leant forward. Link grinned and quickly closed the gap between them.

"I don't think I'll ever get tired of doing that," he said when they parted.

"We have only kissed twice, He—Link." Sheik caught himself, remembering his promise.

"You know, it's okay if you want to call me Hero again," Link mused, finishing his slice of bread. "When you say it, it feels good."

_Just when I was starting to get used to the idea…thanks a lot, Hero…_

* * *

They were overjoyed to find the river. Their water was starting to run out, and Link had started to plan to dig a well, which Sheik took as a sign of the Hero's brain overheating and had dumped half a bottle over his head…which he regretted right afterwards.

But there it was, drawing a thin line through the landscape, the water sparkling invitingly. Sheik's plan had been to just refill their bottles and continue on their way, but Link…Link had other plans. As Sheik had bent down to fill the first of fourteen bottles, a loud whoop had caught his attention and had looked up just in time to see a Hero clad in his underwear diving into the river, soaking Sheik with a cannonball.

The Sheikah grunted annoyed and continued his task, making sure to fill the bottle upstream from the river.

"Come on, Sheik. The water's great!" Link shouted, waving at him.

"You've already given me a taste," said Sheik, corking the last bottle. "I'm soaked to the bone because of you."

"Ain't it great?"

"…yes."

It _was_ tempting to wrench off the tabard and exoskeleton and dive in after Link, but something kept Sheik from doing this. He couldn't figure out what it was. All he knew was that he didn't mind looking at Link when he emerged from the water, drying himself with one of the blankets, to Sheik's slight annoyance since it would be useless that night if it didn't dry…which was why Link was appointed to carry the blanket under the sun. He had grumbled for a bit, but saw Sheik's point and agreed. Not that it was a hard task, by the time the sun reached its zenith, the blanket was positively steaming hot.

"How old are you, Sheik," Link said out of the blue as they rounded a curve in the road. They were approaching the point where the road branched—or practically dissolved—into hundreds of smaller paths, footways and every other kind of small road.

"Sixteen," the Sheikah answered, looking at Link when the Hero coughed. "What?"

"I feel like such a pervert, all of a sudden," replied the Hero and grinned uneasily.

Sheik scoffed and swiped at a fly that had suddenly buzzed into his face. "Technically speaking, Hero, you're still just eleven years old. If any of us should feel like a pervert, it's me."

"And?"

"What?"

"Do you feel like a pervert?"

"No."

They lapsed back into silence, the effort of speaking proving just a smidge too much in the heat. Their breaths came in short gasps as they climbed a hill.

"I…thought…you…were…older," panted Link, almost losing his footing. "You…always speak…so dignified…and grown up."

"Seven years of…duty to the princess…will do that to…anyone," answered Sheik, faring a bit better due to his less weighty equipment. "Seven…long years of…war, murder, pillage and rape…"

_Goddesses, did I just imply that it's the princess' fault that this war erupted? This heat is killing us both slowly…_

* * *

They encountered the first of the female thieves just before the sun settled behind the peaks to the west. Sheik was glad they had made it as far as they had in just two days, despite certain…hold-ups.

The woman was on patrol, judging by her light equipment. She rode on a great, white horse that seemed to glow in the last rays of the day. She wore a heavy, white robe to protect her from the heat, the only thing visible being her eyes through a slit between the hood of the robe and a scarf wrapped around her face. She didn't appear to notice them as she rode past, her attention seemingly focused on the crags and peaks around them.

Sheik had pulled Link into a small alcove-like crevice next to the path, holding his hand over the Hero's mouth, trying to keep him quiet. The Hero hadn't noticed the horsewoman, and had kept talking loudly about his hate for cuccoos until Sheik had suddenly sprung into action.

"How can she stand wearing all that?" asked Link. They were climbing up a narrow path, both of them wanting to get away from what seemed to be the main road for the Gerudo patrols.

"The fabric keeps the sun out, Hero," answered Sheik, wishing he had thought of brining along a couple of robes himself. "With that outfit, the only heat she has to worry about is her own body heat, which is substantially easier to stand."

"Wish we had thought of that," muttered Link.

_My thoughts exactly, Hero._

_**And mine…** _

Sheik froze at the familiar, echoing voice. The mark pulsating slightly, he looked around, trying to figure out where it had come from. Link continued climbing, seemingly oblivious to the voice.

_**He can't hear me, Sheik** _ _**ah…** _

_Where are you,_ _foul creature?_

_**Where do you think? My, my, you had quite some dirty thoughts about the water cascading down My Light's muscled torso, didn't you? Heh, I can only hope you will think the same of me when I come tonight…** _

_You're in my head?_

The echoing laughter faded away, never answering Sheik's question. He jumped when Link's voice called after him.

"Sheik? You coming?"

Sheik blinked, looking at the waiting Hero. If Link noticed his ashen expression, he didn't say anything, just waited. Sheik took one last look around and followed. "I thought I heard something," he explained without much conviction, to which Link only nodded and kept walking.

* * *

Kaiza joined them for supper that evening, although Sheik and Link tried to look away as the falcon tore open its prey—a large mouse of some kind—and feasted upon its insides.

Link had volunteered to cook that night, but Sheik had quickly denied his request. "The fire will give us away, Link, we're in the Gerudo valley now."

More rapidly drying bread and lukewarm water was on the menu, along with a few pieces of meat for flavour. The vegetables had rotted in the heat and were useless, if not downright dangerous to eat.

They were both tired, and said little to each other, only resting against each other, enjoying each other's company. Well, Link did, anyway. Sheik was too busy worrying about the promise from the Shadow.

_When is he coming? Where is he coming? In this world, or my dreams?_

"You're tense," said Link, attempting to massage Sheik's shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Hero," replied Sheik, keeping his gaze on the shadows cast by the full moon. "I'm just keeping a lookout for Gerudo…"

"Isn't that Kaiza's job," asked the Hero, pointing at the falcon observing the Hero's massaging hand with barely concealed hate. The bloody falcon was jealous, the Hero realised soon after.

"Yes, but even she must have a break, Hero. She's been watching out of us all day."

"Hm…"

Worry had settled in his stomach, and stayed there for the entire evening. They decided that they should sleep in turns, one keeping watch while the other rested. They trusted Kaiza, but this was the Gerudo's native land, and they had surely found some way to move unnoticed through the mountains. Sheik tried to take first watch, but Link had pushed him down and bundled him inside blankets, not saying a word apart from "Sleep."

Annoyed at being treated like a child, Sheik tried to protest, but stopped when he felt just how good it felt to lie down. He tried not to close his eyes, worried about the Shadow. In the end, though, it was impossible to fight against the beckoning hand of sleep, and his crimson eyes closed slowly.

* * *

_Again, he was in that vast, grey nothing. Unexpectedly, he was clad in his usual uniform, turban and cowl in place. This time, he was prepared and stood in his combat stance when the Shadow materialised behind him and attempted to grab him. To his surprise, the kick actually connected this time, catching the Shadow by surprise and flinging it to the ground._

_It growled and retaliated by moving faster than Sheik's eye could move and punched the Sheikah in the stomach. Sheik dropped to he ground, panting from the sudden lack of air._

" _Nice try, my pet," said the Shadow, grinning at the Sheikah._

" _I…thought…I…couldn't hurt you…in this place,"_ _said Sheik, gulping for air._

_The Shadow yanked him up from the ground by his cowl and claimed Sheik's lips in a possessive kiss. When the Sheikah started punching him in the chest because he couldn't breathe, he let go and chuckled. "You can hit me all you want here, pet, but you cannot hurt me…" He licked his lips and approached Sheik, seizing him by a lock of hair that had escaped the turban. The Shadow ripped off the cowl, smiling at the mark he had left on Sheik in the Water Temple. "You're so beautiful with my mark on you."_

_Suddenly, the Shadow stepped away, growling at the grey sky. "My Light is really pushing it this time."_

_Sheik felt like he was in a trance. "Wh…what?"_

" _He's trying to wake you up, the damnable boy," the Shadow said, kissing Sheik again. The Sheikah didn't resist, feeling a wave of weakness and repulsion flowing over him. "Don't forget, pet, you belong to me, and I'm only allowing you time with My Light."_

_Light exploded around them, taking Sheik far away from the dark figure._

* * *

He woke with a start, feeling Link's hand shaking him.

"Sheik," he whispered. "We've got company." His eyes were wide with panic. "At least a dozen of them."

Trying to still his shaking body, Sheik stood up. The mark still pulsed, as if the Shadow was reminding him of the dream. He listened carefully, and heard the familiar sound of feet trudging quietly along the cliffs and paths. Sometimes, a whispered command in the harsh language of the Gerudo could be heard. The steps were getting closer.

"They've got us surrounded," he said quietly to Link. "There's no way out." He looked around, trying to spot their feathered friend. "Where's Kaiza?"

"She took off while you were asleep," answered Link. "She came back and…warned me, I guess, about the Gerudo before she disappeared again. She left us."

"That's what she has been trained to do, Hero. She is the personal messenger of the princess, as I told you, and she must not fall into enemy hands."

"Fine, fine, but what do we do now?"

Sheik freed a dagger from his wrist bandages and pulled out Kazuya from its sheath. "We fight."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 14**

* * *

It was comforting to have an ally at his back for once. Usually, when the situation called for open combat, Sheik had been alone. He had been lucky those times, as his missions had usually been of the assassination-type where all he had to do was to slit someone's throat in their sleep. But the targets sometimes woke up, and immediately called to arms, forcing Sheik to hold his own against an entire room full of enemies. He wondered how many scars he'd have if such a thing as the red potion did not exist. He had always completed his missions in the end.

He had never fought Gerudo before, only observed them from a distance when he had been spying in the region two years before Link woke up in the Temple of Time. He knew they were fierce warriors, skilled in fighting with both spears and those wicked curved blades of theirs. And they were fast. Sheik was sure most of them could rival him in agility and sheer ability to dodge and dip their way out of harm's way.

And now they were surrounded by at least a dozen of the desert thieves. And he was feeling sick. The encounter with the Shadow had drained him of any additional stamina his bout of sleep had granted.

But, the Hero was with him, and that's all he needed.

The first of the fierce desert folk appeared above them, looking down at them from a small outcrop. She was wearing considerably lighter clothing than the scout they had encountered during the day, a mere tight-fitting purple robe-like garment with a patch of cloth covering the lower half of her face. She was wielding a length of wood with a wicked-looking blade at the tip, much larger than a typical spear. Her eyes widened, and called out to her comrades. She was silenced by a rock thrown by the Hero. She tumbled out of sight, out cold.

But it was too late. The others knew where they were now. Link drew his sword and shield, getting into his usual combat stance. Sheik held his dagger in a reverse grip in his left hand and Kazuya in his right. He bent his legs, ready to spring upon the next attacker.

"We're screwed," said Link quietly, his gaze fixed on one of two possible entrances to their campsite.

"Not until we both lie bleeding, Hero," said Sheik. "They will come at us in two and twos. One will distract, one will attack. Ignore the distracting one and defend against the attacking one until you find and opening." He had no idea if the strategy would work since he had developed it on observation alone, but it was worth a shot.

_We might just be able to win…if those scimitar-wielding ones don't show up…_

In retrospect, he realised he should have known not to trust his luck. He cursed inwardly when two Gerudos appeared on the path before him, both wielding the wicked-looking swords…dual wielding, even.

Link was luckier in that regard, as his two opponents just had those spears. His Hylian shield provided good protection against the long weapons, allowing the Hero time to think.

The first blow Sheik blocked was so strong that it almost numbed his arm. Kazuya vibrated violently, almost making its wielder do it as well. He jumped backwards, away from the two grinning women. The ones with the scimitars were not wearing the facial coverings, to Sheik's surprise.

 _Mistake…_ he thought as he felt something approach from his left. The other swordswoman had snuck past him and were hurtling toward him with frightening speed, her blades held high and ready to strike. Deciding not to risk it, he rolled out of the way. Somewhere behind him, Link fought with his two opponents. He heard the sounds of steel against steel, the grunts from the Hero as dodged a spear blade.

He turned his attention back to his opponents. They were both circling him now, biding their time. Sheik realised he had no idea of how to beat them. If he attacked one, he would be far too preoccupied to dodge an attack from the other one. This had never been a problem before…but then, his opponents in the past had usually been incompetent buffoons hired by Ganondorf to bolster his army's ranks. These women lived for battle.

Movement to his right. He brought Kazuya up just in time to block a vicious strike. His dagger came up a second later, blocking the other scimitar. And they both pushed, neither side relenting. Sheik gritted his teeth, sweat running down his forehead. The one behind him didn't do anything, he realised. She was…watching? Waiting for an opportunity. This was as good as any moment to stick him in the back, he knew. But the blow never came.

The Gerudo in front of him was still grinning, her golden eyes shining in the moonlight. An idea suddenly came to Sheik, and he drew his head back, launching it forward to collide with the Gerudo's, his forehead hitting her right above her nose. She shrieked, falling backwards, holding her bleeding nose. Feeling slightly dizzy from the blow, Sheik whirled around, facing the other Gerudo, who was now looking nervous. She had waited too long, she seemed to think.

Sheikah and Gerudo had clashed in battle before, many decades before Sheik was born, and both sides had passed down stories about the other's viciousness and skill in battle. His remaining opponent seemed to have been told these stories, and her face settled into a grim mask of determination as she raised one scimitar above her head and lowered one to level with her knee, both points toward Sheik.

Sheik readied himself, knowing that this one would not go as easily down as the first. By chance, he happened to glance up, and saw that many more Gerudo were standing on the cliff where the first had been knocked out by Link's rock. They were following the fights intently, most likely gauging the partners' strength.

_Shit!_

His opponent had drawn slightly back, legs preparing to jump. When she leaped, she spun in the air, her blades a whirling tornado of steel. Kazuya was unable to stand against it and was ripped away from his hand, Sheik barely getting away from the desert warrior. His sword clanged to the ground, and his dagger switched hands. He wondered what to do now.

 _Surrender, apparently,_ he thought when he felt the ice-cold edge of a scimitar lightly grazing against his throat, his first opponent having recovered from the blow to her nose.

"Give up," she said, pushing her scimitar slightly harder against Sheik's throat. Seeing no other way, the Sheikah dropped his dagger.

"Hero of Time," called one of the Gerudo from the cliff. "There is no use in struggling any more. Surrender now or your Sheikah partner dies."

Sheik turned his head to look at Link, who was looked up from his fight, staring at Sheik with wide eyes. Seemingly without thinking, the Master Sword and Hylian shield fell to the ground. The Gerudo whose nose Sheik had broken kicked Sheik in the back of his knee, forcing him to kneel. The same was done to Link. Sheik looked regretfully at Link.

"I'm sorry, Hero…"

"Don't be," replied Link, smiling sadly. "We never had a chance."

"That is true," said the Gerudo from the cliff. She, apparently the leader of the party, jumped down into the campsite, striding toward them. "Though I must say you fought well." She was wearing green lipstick, and her uniform was the same colour. Her hair was cut shorter than the others'.

"What shall we do with them?" asked the one who had captured Sheik.

The leader paused and seemed to think deeply. "We will take them back to the fortress," she said and nodded to them, making a fist and hitting her other hand's palm with it.

Sheik felt a blow to the back of his head, and only darkness followed…

* * *

He could feel the shackles even before he woke up. Sheik groaned, his head aching and opened his eyes slowly. The room was completely dark save for the weak light from a small torch on the wall. His hands were locked to the wall behind him, over his head, making for quite an uncomfortable position. A chain had been attached to his right ankle. He tried to follow it with his eyes, finding it stuck in the wall.

"Quite a predicament you've gotten yourselves in," said the dreaded voice of Link's Shadow, coming from somewhere to his left. Sheik turned to look at him, spotting the Shadow standing over Link's unconscious form, the Hero left in the exact same position as his partner.

"Stay away from him!" Sheik growled

"Oh, that I shall," laughed the Shadow and stalked over to Sheik, leaning down and stroking his cheek. "I've yet to fully make you mine…and I want him to know about it before I end his pathetic existence." Sheik tried to turn his head away from the hand, the Shadow slapped him before grabbing his chin, forcing his head place. "Hm…that struggling of yours need to end. It's not good for a pet to fight its master…"

Sheik spat him in the face, receiving yet another slap from the Hero's mirror image. It was about to repeat the blow, but a groan from Link made it stop. It observed the mumbling Hero, leaning close to Sheik's ear.

"I'll be back."

Then it stepped back, disappearing into the shadows.

"Wh…where are we?" asked Link, looking dazedly around.

"Gerudo Fortress," answered Sheik, trying his best to ignore his stinging cheek. How on earth did the Shadow continually stalk him like this without being seen?

"Oh." Link tried to move his hands, finding them locked in place above his head. "I guess we really sucked in that fight."

 _Not really, Hero,_ Sheik thought. _You were holding your own quite well…it was I who foolishly lost focus._ He didn't say it out loud; for he had a feeling the Hero would not accept that Sheik had screwed up.

"My head hurts," complained the Hero.

"Mine too, Link," said Sheik, feeling the dull ache. He was sure he had a bump on the back of his head. He tried to shake it a bit, to get the wooziness away, but was only rewarded with a sting and a curtain of hair covering his vision.

"What do you think will happen now?" Link asked, looking down at the rough stone floor.

"If we're lucky…they will kill us," replied Sheik, knowing that it was not the answer the Hero was looking for. At his partner's shocked expression, he rolled his eyes. "Believe me, it would be better. If they send you to Ganondorf…" He didn't even want to finish the sentence and settled for shuddering.

Their talk was interrupted by the door in front of them being opened, the heavy wood crashing into the wall. In the doorway, the Gerudo that had been the leader of the group that captured them stood, now wearing an exotic, red outfit that surely would have set a few hearts pumping.

"Ah, you're awake. Good," she said and used the lone torch to light the other ones around the room. "I apologise for the accommodations, but—"

"Spare us the fake politeness, Gerudo," interrupted Sheik.

She seemed taken slightly aback, but smoothly covered it up with a calm smile. "Ah, Sheikah, always feisty." She sat down on a chair that stood in front of them. "My name is Aveil, I am second in command of the Gerudo Fortress and Exalted Nabooru's aide."

"How interesting," drawled Sheik.

Aveil laughed. "There is no need to be rude, boy."

"Then tell us why you're here," said Link, joining in. "What are you going to do with us?"

"So, no time for idle chat?" said Aveil and looked disappointed. "Very well." She stood up, pacing back and forth in front of them. "I have a bit of a dilemma. You see, the Great Ganondorf, our king, ordered me to let him know when you two showed up in our valley. However, Nabooru, before she went to the Desert Colossus ordered me to disobey our king at every turn, for neither she nor I agree to what he has done."

Hope was rekindled in Sheik's heart. _Does this mean…?_

Aveil sighed. "However, he is my king, and I cannot disobey."

The hope was gone as quick as it had appeared.

"Unless, of course, you're willing to make a little wager." They both looked at her, confused. She smiled. "It has been years since we seen a fight like the one you challenged my girls to last night. Ganondorf—"she spat the name now—"has not ordered us into battle, preferring to use _men_ in his armies."

Sheik held in a snort. Had Ganondorf known any better, he would have deployed the Gerudo right away. The Evil King sure was short-sighted.

"So, instead of letting him know you're here right away," said Aveil and clapped her hands together, her golden eyes surveying the two teens, "I want to arrange another battle with my strongest warrior."

Sheik wanted to groan. Surely the Hero had been through enough?

"Alright," said Link. "I'll do it—"

"Not you, Hero of Time," said Aveil, dismissing him with a hand. "I want to see what the Sheikah can do in a fair fight." She eyed Sheik with an analyzing gaze. "What say you?"

"What happens if I win?" asked Sheik, noticing Link violently shaking his head in the corner of his vision.

"You both go free, of course," said Aveil, smiling. "And you'll both become honorary members of the Gerudo tribe. No one has ever been able to sneak so far into our valley before. Your thieving skills are phenomenal!"

"And if I lose?"

Now her smile fell. "Then I will be forced to send the Hero of Time to the king. Nabooru and I may not be as loyal to him, but many of our girls are. They do not know any better, the poor dears."

"What about Sheik?" interrupted Link. "What will you do to him?"

"We will keep him for…entertainment," said Aveil. "We have not seen a Sheikah in years…and many of the girls are anxious to see him."

Sheik knew exactly what she meant and shuddered at the thought. Link seemed to get the general idea as well, and his look told Sheik all he needed.

"And…if I refuse to fight?" he asked.

"Then we will do the same that would have happened if you lost," said Aveil sadly. "I am sorry, Sheikah, Hero, but this is the best I can do for you. If you prove yourself in the fight, the rest of the tribe will not question my judgement. I will let you discu—"

"No need," said Sheik. "I'll fight."

"Excellent," smiled Aveil and clapped her hands again. "I will make the arrangements, it won't take long. Someone will down for you soon. Do you require a potion?" To Sheik's shaking head, she nodded and strode out. Before disappearing beyond the edge, she turned to look at the two. "I'm truly sorry about this." Then she was gone.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Link asked immediately. "You heard what they were going to do to you if you lost!"

Sheik fixed him with a penetrating gaze. _Is he truly that stupid? Can he not see that we have no choice? If I win, we will go free, but if I refuse, we will lose anyway…_ "Did you not hear her? I have to, or all will be lost."

"What if it's a trick?"

"The Gerudo are honourable, Hero. Vicious, but honourable. They do not use petty tricks. If anything, you should be relieved there is dissent among the ranks. Also, Hero, you should be more worried about what will happen to yourself rather than me. If Ganondorf gets to you…"

"I still don't like it," Link said, pouting. "I don't want to see you hurt…"

"Nor I you," replied Sheik. "But this is our only chance. If I win, we not only win our freedom, but we also gain valuable allies against the Evil King."

"If you say so…" Link said.

* * *

The sun stung in his eyes as he and Link were led to the training grounds, where it seemed at least half of the Gerudo population had gathered. The Fortress was much bigger than it seemed, the entire mountain it rested against having been carved out to house the clan. Old, young, middle-aged…women of all ages had come to see the fight.

They cheered when Sheik entered the fenced circle in the middle of the grounds. It was quite large, obviously being a major proving ground. He fixed Kazuya's sheath to his back, glad that they recovered his sword. If he lost it, he didn't know what he'd do. Link kept giving him worrying looks that he tried to ignore. He needed to concentrate.

He was suddenly spun around and found his lips claimed by the Hero of Time, feeling the love and passion that was poured into it. The crowd cheered even louder.

 _Perverts,_ Sheik thought, closing his eyes and leaning into Link's chest. When they broke it, Link smiled at him, stroking his cheek lightly.

"Be careful," he whispered, barely audible in the roaring noise from the crowd. "And good luck. I know you'll win." He then walked out of the circle, stopping just outside to watch.

"Thank you," Sheik said to himself and drew Kazuya, swinging it experimentally around, trying to get a feel for it.

Aveil suddenly stepped into the circle, much to the crowd's delight, raising her hands to quiet them. "Ladies, ladies, please," she shouted. When the roar had died down, she smiled. "This is a great moment. We have a Sheikah in our midst, and he will challenge our strongest warrior!" The crowd cheered. "If he wins, he and his partner will have earned their place amongst us as honorary rookie thieves!"

"Now," she continued. "Will our strongest warrior please step forward? Come, Ayla!"

Ayla emerged from the crowd, slowly walking into the circle. She was young, not much older than the Hero, Sheik assumed. She was quite beautiful, having a regal face, and her eyes seemed much more brilliant than the other Gerudo's. She wore clothes similar to Aveil's, although a bit less revealing. Two scimitars were slung on her back, one of which she stuck in the ground.

"This will be a fair fight," reminded Aveil. "One sword per fighter. You may draw blood, but you will _not_ kill each other, understood." Both Ayla and Sheik nodded. "Good. Then I wish you both luck, please do your best." She stepped out of the circle, holding an arm up. "Ready? Begin!"

The two fighters immediately dropped into fighting stances, circling each other. Sheik tried to read her body language, looking for any revealing twitches or sudden movements, but this girl was a master in concealing them. She smirked, like the two warriors he had fought the night before, revealing pearly white teeth.

The crowd continued to cheer, many calling Ayla's victory. Sheik clenched his jaw, vowing not to lose to this girl.

Eventually, he was forced to make the first move. Quickly, he stepped forward and swung Kazuya toward Ayla's stomach, a blow which the Gerudo easily dodged. She answered with an overhead swing. Sheik spun out of the way, using the momentum to aim a kick at Ayla's knee. This too she dodged.

"Is that the best you can do?" she asked mockingly.

"I haven't even started yet," said Sheik and attacked, going through a combo Impa had taught him that usually disarmed the enemy. Ayla knew exactly how to counter it, though, and the fighters found themselves in a lock, much like the one Sheik had been in the night before. He tried to use the same move, using his head as a battering ram, but Ayla stepped back suddenly, causing Sheik to lose his balance and fall to the ground. The crowd laughed and cheered.

"I saw you use that move yesterday," she said, once again circling the Sheikah as he picked himself up. "Simple tricks like that will not work on me, Sheikah." Her tone was surprisingly jolly, as if she wasn't in a fight at all.

"Try this one, then!" yelled Sheik and launched another attack, attaining the same speed he had used against the Stalfos in the Shadow Temple. Infuriatingly, Ayla blocked every blow, sidestepped every punch and kick. He overbalanced at the end of the flurry, and he felt the stinging pain as Ayla's scimitar neatly sliced the side of his thigh.

"And we have first blood!" shouted Aveil, to the crowd's exuberance.

Now Ayla was the one who attacked. She tried to use the spinning swing her comrade had used against Sheik, but without the two scimitars knocking into Kazuya simultaneously, he was able to hold on to it. His arm still lost a bit of feeling, however, and he knew he was in for the most difficult fight of his life.

The opponents seemed to be equally skilled. After a couple of minutes, Sheik too had been able to cut Ayla, cutting into her left bicep.

Neither of them was able to damage the other enough, though, and as the fight stretched on, blood drops were splashing in the sandy ring, Sheik and Ayla covered in minor wounds.

The two stepped back from each other, surveying. They were both getting exhausted, both from the heat and the intensity at which they attacked each other. Sheik could no longer feel his right arm, and he tasted blood in his mouth. His knees were shaking, and he knew he wouldn't last much longer. Ayla wasn't much better off, he saw.

 _Now or never,_ he thought as he launched his final attack, running toward Ayla, Kazuya drawn to he left, aiming for her side. Ayla smiled triumphantly as she moved to block, but Sheik's plan did not include a blow to the left. When he was two steps away from the Gerudo, he used every last bit of strength he had left to suddenly twist the right, slamming Kazuya's hilt to Ayla's temple.

Ayla hit the ground, out cold. The crowd fell completely silent. Aveil stepped back into the ring, making sure Ayla was okay. She smiled and bowed to Sheik. "Congratulations, Sheikah," she said and turned to the crowd. "We have a winner!"

The crowd went wild.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 15**

* * *

For a second, Sheik merely stood there, staring at the fallen Ayla. He hadn't expected her to fall for such a trick, especially not when Sheik had moved so sluggishly.

He hadn't heard Aveil proclaiming him as the winner, neither the crowd roaring with delight at the fight that had just taken place. It wasn't until Link enveloped him in a crushing embrace that he reacted, his numb fingers losing their hold of Kazuya, which hit the sand with a dull thump.

"You did it!" Link all but screamed in his ear. "You won!"

"…yeah," said Sheik, feeling like he had just been run over by a wagon. He looked at his thigh. The cut was shallower than it seemed, he knew, but the sight of the blood welling up in the wound made him somewhat nauseous.

A hand slapped him on the shoulder, and Aveil's grinning face came into view. "Awesome!" she shouted and slapped his shoulder again. "I've never seen anyone be able to stand up to Ayla for more than five minutes, let alone knock her out!"

"Never doubted you for a moment," said Link and kissed Sheik on the cheek, making the younger blush.

"Neither did I," said Sheik…and promptly passed out.

* * *

He was lying in a bed, a welcome change to the way he had woken up last. Sheik groaned, feeling the slight sting of his now closed wounds. The potion had been effective, although his wounds were rather minor compared to…other injuries. He groaned again, horrifying himself with his lack of self-control.

"You're rather talkative, aren't you?" asked Link's amused voice somewhere to his right.

Sheik didn't want to open his eyes, and settled for waving his now prickling arm. It was still slightly asleep, it seemed. "I'm tired, Hero," he grumbled and tried to turn away, but Link stopped him with his hand.

"Can't go back to sleep just yet, Sheik," the Hero said. Sheik didn't even need to see the smile on the Hylian's face, he could _hear_ it. "We've a celebration to go to."

"S'cuse me?" asked Sheik, struggling to lift his eyelids, which felt heavier than lead. "What celebration?"

"Our celebration, of course!"

"I'm afraid I am not following you," said Sheik, finally able to open one eye fully. The other followed suit soon after. "What have we done that warrants a celebration?"

"Well," said Link and chuckled. "We, two boys, have managed to become honorary members of what is normally a completely female organisation, which I think is quite hard to do."

 _Fair enough,_ thought Sheik.

"And," Link continued. "You have defeated the organisation's strongest warrior, an event that is rarely seen in these parts."

_Alright._

"And finally, they wish to honour yours and their ancestors by signing a pact."

 _What the…a pact?_ Sheik slowly sat up, helped by the hero. "What kind of pact?"

"A loyalty pact, I think," said Link, struggling to remember the specifics. "It was…there was something about Gerudo and Sheikah never fighting each other ever again."

 _An honourable deal, certainly…although it is quite a few decades late to be of any help,_ Sheik thought. "One enemy less for me, then," he said, noticing that his neck had been covered with a bandage. They must have noticed that the Shadow's mark did not disappear when they gave him the healing potion. Link hadn't noticed, or he chose not to remark on it. "But we still need them to sign a treaty with Hyrule, not just the Sheikah. We will need their help if we are to win the war."

"One thing at a time, Sheik," Link said and helped him stand. Sheik's legs were still wobbly, and he had to hold on to the Hero without falling over. "Careful," Link said. "You exhausted yourself."

 _So that is what it takes to make me weak? A little fighting in the sun? Granted, I did_ not _have a good night's sleep considering I was knocked out and imprisoned, but still…_

"'ave to appear strong," mumbled Sheik into Link's tunic.

"Pardon?" said Link, smiling. He liked it when Sheik needed him to do something as simple as stand. It showed his human side, he thought.

"I said I have to appear strong," said Sheik and pushed away, almost falling. He regained his balance and planted his feet firmly on the stone floor. "I represent the Sheikah, and I cannot appear a weakling in front of the Gerudo."

"You just knocked their best warrior out, Sheik. I don't think they need more of a proof that you're strong than that."

"Perhaps not, Hero, but I still like to appear dignified since I represent the princess. I must make a strong case if they are to accept a treaty. There is bad blood between Hyrule and them."

"Alright, alright, I get it," said Link and raised his arms in defeat. "Just don't come crying to me when you fall down the stairs or something…"

"If I do such a thing, I'll be trying my hardest to break my neck."

The door slammed open (something that apparently happened frequently in the fortress), revealing a smiling Aveil dressed in an even more—if possible—exotic outfit that clearly showed her figure. She didn't move from the doorway, but struck a pose that was clearly meant to be seductive. When neither Link nor Sheik did nothing but stare confused at her, she clicked her tongue and sighed.

"I knew it," she said and came in.

"Knew what?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow.

 _He stole that from me!_ yelled Sheik in his mind. He blinked, wondering where that outburst had come from.

"That neither of you have any interest in beautiful women," she answered. "Had it been any other Hylian men, you both would have been quite tight in your pants by now." She sat down on the bed that Sheik had been resting in. "The girls are going to be so disappointed."

None of the teens answered, settling for a dual attack of raised eyebrows.

"But, at least they get to see an adorable couple," Aveil said and clapped her hands together, which was seemingly a signature gesture of hers. "Now, there will be a feast to celebrate your victory in an hour. I have arranged for you two to have baths because—"she sniffed and wrinkled her nose—"you both stink. And some…nice clothes have been laid out for you. You can keep them if you like."

"Thanks, Aveil," said Link. "Is there…anything we should know about?" he asked hesitantly.

"What do you mean?"

"Well…strange traditions…you know…like, kissing the hosts and such." The Hero was blushing as he said this.

Aveil giggled and shook her head. "No, no, nothing like that. At worst, some of the girls will grope you, but it's all in good fun."

"Oh thank Farore," said Link and sighed, much to Aveil's amusement.

"The girls are going to be _really_ disappointed," she repeated and went to the door. "The bath is through the door at the left end of the hallway," she said and pointed. "I will come fetch you when we are ready to begin the celebration."

"How did she know we were a couple?" asked Link when she had gone.

"Well, you did kiss me in front of the crowds twice," said Sheik. He was thankful for the promise of a bath. He could feel the dirt and sand encrusted on his skin, and his hair was a greasy mess, a result of the heat and sand.

"Yeah, but I thought that was normal," said Link innocently. "The Kokiri did it all the time to show each other affection."

_Yes, but the Kokiri are children…old as time itself, perhaps, but still children. And so are you…but you will see the ugly face of prejudice from your own kind soon enough, Link._

"Well, just don't expect to see Hylians doing that, Link," said Sheik, looking at the Hero with a sad expression. "There are many who…don't approve of relationships such as ours."

"Well, too bad for them," said Link and hugged Sheik. "'cause I'm never going to stop loving you."

_Love…does he even understand the meaning of the word?_

"That's a bold statement with our relationship barely two days old," said Sheik and smiled, kissing the Hero. When they broke apart, Link sniffed and mimicked Aveil's expression.

"She was right, you know," he said. "We do stink."

"…and you just deflated any trace of romance in this room, Hero."

* * *

It felt like heaven when he slid down into the heated water. The bathroom was huge, he thought. There were about thirty to forty tubs lined in rows, each filled with heated spring water. The Gerudo were clever, having dug channels underneath the lake hidden deep inside the mountain that led the water throughout the entire fortress, providing the thieves with water for all needs.

Salts, oils and soaps of many kinds lined the wall, reminding Sheik that the Gerudo race consisted mainly of women who, even though they were fierce warriors, still cared much about their appearance and…dared he think it? Odour.

"This is great!" exclaimed Link from the other side of the room, having just sunk into his own tub. "It felt like I hadn't bathed in weeks!"

"Mhm," agreed Sheik, relishing the feel of the warm water. Steam filled the room, preventing either of them from seeing the other undressing, although this had probably been a blessing in the long run. Link was nowhere near ready to…explore the less innocent side of their relationship, and Sheik just didn't feel…comfortable enough yet. He knew that if something of that nature was going to happen, it would be a long way off. But it didn't matter; just knowing that Link loved him and kissed him was enough for now.

_But does he truly know what love means? Maybe he is mistaking a crush…or just a deep friendship?_

Sheik shook his head, abandoning the thoughts. They were depressive. Instead, he focused on cleaning the filth from his body, scrubbing the sand-darkened skin. He noticed the water taking on a less than inviting colour, but noticed that it soon disappeared only to be replaced by sparkling clear liquid again.

_They're bloody geniuses!_

* * *

Of all things, the thing he enjoyed most in the bath was the ability to wash his hair. Sheik loved his hair. It seemed odd, he supposed, to those who did not know him, but when it came to the long strands of blond, sun-bleached hair, he didn't care. When he saw the sheer amount of filth that had infested it, he grimaced. He was glad there hadn't been any mirrors in either of the rooms they had been in since they had been brought to the fortress. And Link had seen him like that!

It was a more happy Sheik that emerged from the bath and went to dry himself with the towels that had been lain out for them. Link had already gone, quicker to complete his bath.

 _That's the drawback about my hair,_ he mused as he started to dry it. _It takes quite some time to wash…and even longer to dry._

The Hero had chuckled slightly when he had left the room, though, which Sheik took as a bad sign. His suspicion was confirmed when he found the…"clothes" Aveil had laid out.

_This has got to be a joke!_

They had given him…a skirt! A bloody skirt! Well, it wasn't a skirt, but the Gerudo equivalent, at least. It was the same kind of pants that Aveil had wore, which left little to the imagination for anyone who saw him. He blushed when he imagined what he looked like…and even more blood streamed to his face when the steam lifted slightly to reveal a mirror that ran the entire length of the wall to his right. The bloody pants didn't even reach his knees, and were tight.

At least the shirt was a bit more conservative. It was made of silk and had been dyed to a dark blue, a colour often favoured by the Sheikah. It was sleeveless, which Sheik guessed was to reveal his muscles…if he only had any. He wasn't weak by a long shot, but his muscles were mostly compact. Strangely enough, it had light blue triangles on it, barely visible against the surrounding fabric. In the middle of his chest, a triforce mark had been formed.

He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and blushed again. The Gerudo had clearly gotten an idea of which of the two partners was the dominant one. His theory was confirmed when he returned to their room. Link stared at him, his face growing red quickly. The Hero had been given a finely decorated shirt (with intact sleeves, to Sheik's annoyance) of the same colour as Sheik's, but his pants were…puffed up, it seemed. At least they covered his legs all the way down to his feet, which were clad in strange shoes with pointy tips. All in all, the Hero looked like a prince, his shirt covered in hourglasses and triforces, while Sheik looked like…he dreaded to think it, a concubine.

"Are you done staring, Hero?" asked Sheik, face burning.

"Huh?" asked Link, still staring at the short pants.

A slap later and Link was profusely trying to apologise to Sheik.

"I can't help it," he said desperately. "You just look so…"

"What?" asked Sheik.

_If the next word out of your mouth is sexy, or hot or whatever Hylian slang you picked up during your trips to Castle Town, you had better hope you're skinny enough to climb out that window…_

"…beautiful," Link said.

The annoyance faded, and Sheik surrendered. If Link thought he looked okay, then he guessed it was fine… He realised five seconds later just how much influence the Hero of Time held over him now.

"Thank you," Sheik mumbled and sat on his bed. He hadn't noticed that there were two beds in the room until now, and their weapons and equipment sat in a corner, the Gerudo trusting them enough to give them back.

Link sat next to him and wrapped an arm around his shoulder, Sheik resting his head against the Hero's. Silence descended upon them, which they enjoyed. Silence could say so much more than a thousand words. Link idly played with Sheik's hair, his smile growing wider and wider every time Sheik tried to bat his fingers away.

"Can I braid your hair?" Link asked suddenly.

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Why?"

"Well, it's kind of a formal occasion, isn't it? Got to have you looking your best."

"…do you even know how?"

The Hero grinned. "Saria and the other girls taught me when we played."

… _blasted Kokiri…_

* * *

Aveil had suffered a minor breakdown when she had first seen the pair. Link was the handsomest man she had ever seen, she had said, while Sheik was cute enough to pass for a girl.

The Sheikah had huffed and shook his head at the statement, forgetting that his braided hair could now be utilised as an improvised club and had slammed the lower part of it in Link's face, something Aveil hadn't been able to stop laughing at as they made their way to the grand hall where the celebration would be held.

"You look adorable," she kept saying when she looked back to ensure they were still following her.

 _Last time I trust a Gerudo,_ Sheik thought, wishing that his pants could just stretch a bit further to cover his exposed legs. For several years now he had been hiding his appearance with exoskeletons, tabards, robes and masks, but now he was barely wearing anything! Yet, if he didn't wear the clothes, the Gerudo might be offended and rethink their decision not to send Link to Ganondorf…

"It's true," whispered Link, earning the Hero an elbow to his stomach, which he easily blocked.

"I never asked for either of your opinions," muttered Sheik.

The ambient noise of a room full of laughing and talking women grew louder and louder until they stopped outside the doorway that was all that stood between them and the grand hall.

"Now," said Aveil and turned around to face them. "Traditionally, rookies—yes, that means you—are seated furthest away from the throne, but since you're guests of honour, you're entitled to a place at the king's table—don't worry, he's not here—and dine with me. Nabooru would have joined us, but the dove I sent has not returned, so I will sit at the head of the table. You two will sit at my left. Understood?" At their nods, she smiled and turned around, gripping the massive door handles, preparing to push the doors open. "Remember, big smiles. This is _your_ party!"

The grand hall fell silent as Aveil entered, signalling for Sheik and Link to follow a few steps behind her.

"Ladies," Aveil said loudly. "I give you the newest members of our tribe, Link and his lover, Sheik!" The gathered thieves roared with approval.

_I don't even get a mention of my name without having to be his 'lover'? Some respect for the Sheikah they have…_

As they followed Aveil to the end of the room, where a massive, wooden throne stood on a raised dais, Sheik could feel every eye in the room on him and Link…but mostly on himself. He became self-conscious and looked at his feet, once again wishing that his pants were longer. Any shorter, and they might as well have qualified as sexy underwear.

 _At least the table offers me some decency,_ he thought as they sat at the shorter table close to the throne. Able to look up now, he got a good look at the room. Massive windows would have lit the room with sunlight, but it had become evening by the time Sheik had woken up. Making up for the lost lighting were massive torches lining the stone walls, giving the grand hall a murky appearance, if it could be describes as that. It was…cosy, if Sheik had to describe it in one word.

The celebrating Gerudo were seated at long, low tables that stretched from one end of the room to the other. They did not sit on chairs, but tall and firm pillows. They were all wearing the same type of outfit Aveil wore, albeit less…leader-like. A shorter table stood on the dais in front of the throne, and Sheik and the others sat with their backs to it, facing the rest of the tables.

Link sat closest to Aveil with Sheik at his side. Several high-ranking Gerudo also sat at their table, although it was obvious that the best seats were at Aveil's left. The Gerudo next to Sheik—a captain or something, he didn't know—kept giving him sultry glances, which he did his best to ignore. He knew the way the Gerudo treated men that were not their king.

Out of nowhere, a small army of Gerudo carrying trays and jugs appeared, filling the celebrants' cups with wine and plates with food, the kind of which none of the two partners had even dreamed of. There was meat, fruit and goddesses knew what.

Then a group of musicians started to play softly in the background, their strange, stringed instruments creating a melody that could only be described as Gerudo-ish. It was fast, had a steady rhythm and made Sheik want to bob his head to it.

Both partners lost track of how much time passed and how much they ate. Link finished several cups of wine and didn't seem affected whatsoever by the alcoholic drink. Sheik had politely thanked no to the wine, preferring water. He never drank alcohol, not only because he had seen the effect it had on those who drank too much, but also because Impa had forbidden him to drink while on duty…which, in these dark times, were pretty much all the time. He did take a sip from time to time, though, whenever Aveil decided to toast.

As the time passed, the Gerudo clearly had the time of their lives. Link too; it seemed by the way he was talking animatedly with Aveil and the woman next to her. Sheik had talked a bit with the Gerudo to his left, but she had not been much of a talker…and she had kept touching him until he told her to stop, to which she had only giggled and started talking to her neighbour, sometimes looking back at him and giggling.

He was just finishing the last scraps of food on his plate when a shadow fell over him. He looked up and met the gaze of Ayla. She had a bruise where he had slammed his sword into her temple, and he could see the marks of the injuries he had caused her. To his surprise, she was smiling at him.

"Sheikah," she said.

The noise in the room lowered as the rest of the women saw who had approached the rookies.

"Our battle today was…the most satisfying experience I've ever had," she said loudly enough for the room to hear. "I am honoured to have lost to such a skilled opponent." She held out a hand, which Sheik happily shook. Then she leaned closer, whispering: "Although it was a dirty trick you pulled at the end." With that, she swaggered back to her place at one of the tables, disappearing in the sea of red hair.

The volume of the celebrants then assumed normal levels, and Sheik felt…relieved. Had she been bitter, he surely would have had to watch out for any retaliation.

The idle chat between the celebrants continued for a while, when Aveil suddenly stood up, holding up her arms to make the rest of the thieves quiet down.

"Ladies, today, we have seen an honourable fight in which both Gerudo and Sheikah proved themselves. In the past, our two peoples have clashed in battles, waged over little else than foolish pride and hubris. But I say there must come a time when our differences can be put aside, and I say that time is now!"

The Gerudo cheered.

"As of this moment, I declare that the Gerudo shall never again lift their blades against the Sheikah, and I sincerely hope that our newest rookie will accept our offer." She looked expectantly at Sheik, who stood, wishing Link never had kissed him in front of the thieves. If he hadn't, then he surely would have been wearing something similar to the Hero.

He cleared his throat. "As one of the three surviving Sheikah," he said, trying to keep the quiver out of his voice. He hated speaking in front of people, and the fact that there had to be at least eight hundred people in the room made it worse. "I accept the offer, and I sincerely hope that the honourable Gerudo will accept the same from the Sheikah."

A silver goblet was suddenly thrust in front of him by a blushing serving girl. He took it and saw that Aveil had an identical one in her hand.

 _Ah, a symbolic toast,_ he thought. He could have one glass, couldn't he?

They both raised their goblets to each other.

"To peace," Aveil said.

"To peace," Sheik said.

And then they drank, and the room erupted once more into loud cheers and roars, cups banging together as the Gerudo drank in honour of the new pact. Link too, raised his goblet, looking at Sheik with beaming eyes. In the matter of two toasts, the entire silver goblet was empty, and Sheik was smiling.

As the night wore on, he started to feel tired, and warm. A haze seemed to settle itself over his eyes, and everything seemed to blur.

 _Am I drunk?_ He wondered. _I have never had wine before…they say the more alcohol you drink, the more resistant you get to it…and if you've never had any, you'll quickly be overcome by it…I should…I should…_

Realising that he was now drunk, Sheik laid a hand on Link's shoulder, drawing the Hero's attention.

"What is it?" asked Link.

"I…want to go to bed…Link," answered Sheik, feeling his tongue trying to tie itself into knots.

"You tired?" asked Link. At Sheik's nod, he smiled. "I'm kind of tired too…we've been here for hours."

"You wish to retire?" asked Aveil, having overheard the conversation. "No problem. Do you want an escort?"

"Nah, we're good, I think," said Link, helping Sheik to his feet.

 _Lucky bastard,_ Sheik thought as Link led him out of the grand hall, his vision swimming. It was so warm, he could feel himself sweating. _Why the hell aren't you drunk? Did the goddesses give you immunity or something?_ Realising what he was thinking, he shook his head.

They were in the maze of corridors now, but Link seemed to know the way.

Then, something seemed to click on in Sheik's head, and he stood up straight, making Link stop. He then looked at the Hero. Warmth overcame him, and he felt dizzy. But above all else he felt, there was one thing he desperately needed.

Link.

"Sheik? Something wrong?" asked Link, his face concerned. He tried to shake his partner to life, but he kept staring at him.

"I…want…" began Sheik and trailed off, mumbling the last word.

"You want what? Answer me."

"I…want… _you_ …Link," Sheik said, his voice low. Link was all he cared about, all he could possibly want. The Hero looked so damnable attractive in his attire, but an urge to just rip the silk apart and start licking him all over…

_What…what am I thinking? I…can't control myself._

"Sheik, are you all right?" asked Link, feeling Sheik's forehead. "Geez, you're burning up. I'll get the doctor here and—"

"No!" interrupted Sheik. "I don't need a doctor…all I need is you…and I want you…inside me."

Link blushed, realising what Sheik was talking about. Then he seemed to make a connection. "Are you drunk?"

"Possibly," said Sheik and giggled.

Link sighed and shook his head. Then he seized Sheik's hand and dragged him along the corridors, quickly arriving at their room. He carefully guided Sheik to his bed and went to close and lock the door. When he turned around, Sheik was shirtless.

"I want you, Link," Sheik repeated, his hand starting to fumble with the string that held up his pants. "Mind…body…and soul…" The pants dropped, revealing Sheik to Link.

When Link didn't react, Sheik walked over to him, nuzzling his cheek. That seemed to wake the Hero up, and Link gently pushed Sheik away. The Sheikah whined at the loss of contact and tried to close the distance, but found himself pushed away yet again.

"I can't do this, Sheik," Link said. "I mean…I want to…but you're not in the right state of mind."

"I've never been in a more right state of mind, Hero," Sheik cooed and captured Link's lips with his own. He smirked when he felt the Hero respond, both up there and down there. "And it seems your body disagrees."

"Even so," said Link and extracted himself from Sheik. "It wouldn't feel right, Sheik. Please…just go to bed."

"No."

"Please."

"No."

"Don't make me do this," Link said, raising a palm.

Sheik looked at the palm and smirked, moving in for another kiss. "Make you do wha—"

He never finished the sentence. Link had slammed his palm into Sheik's neck, hitting a pressure spot that made the Sheikah faint. Link caught the slumping, naked body and carried him gently to bed. He pulled the covers over Sheik, smiling sadly. "I'm sorry, but I had to," he said and bent down, kissing Sheik on the forehead. "Some day, we will…but not today." With that done, he blew out the torches, undressed and went to bed, sighing. "If a goblet of wine does that to you, I'd hate to see what happens if you drink Talon's stuff…"


	2. Chapter 2

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 16**

* * *

Hundreds upon hundreds of hours of training, mental tempering and pure agony had he endured in order to become who he was. Training since he was old enough to walk, learning to kill when he was barely ten. All of this, years of preparation, did not shield him against the pain that assaulted his senses the second he opened his eyes. He was accosted by the light shining through the window, blinding him and making the pain in his head flare up. Groaning, he hid under the covers, hoping to the Goddesses that a wall of clouds was rising up. No such luck, though. He also noticed something else. He was naked. Quite naked. Then, everything came rushing back. The conversation in the corridors, the…confession in the room and the undressing. He could feel the heat rising to his cheeks and tried to slide further under the covers.

 _It didn't even…I didn't feel in control. Was I really_ that _drunk? I only had_ one _glass…_

Any further musings were interrupted by the door slamming open, causing lights to dance across Sheik's vision. He knew that he should have been ready to slice the intruder's throat open by now, but there were certain…issues that he could not ignore at the moment. He peeked out from the covers and saw the Hero—back in his tunic, he noticed—who seemed to be fuming. He noticed the hiding Sheikah and softened his expression.

"Hey, you're up," he stated.

"Mmm," replied Sheik, surprised at how dry his mouth was. He cleared his throat. "I mean, yes." He winced at his voice. It was raw and gravelly. Why, he couldn't figure out. Realising the awkward silence that had enveloped them, he cleared his throat again. "Listen, about last night—"

"It's okay," said Link and sat on his bed, facing Sheik. "I know it wasn't your fault."

"But I really shouldn't have been _that_ affected by a little wine, and—"

"That's because it wasn't wine," interrupted Link and stood up, walking over to the window and closing the curtains, much to Sheik's relief. Then the Sheikah picked up on what the Hero had said.

"It wasn't?" He slowly emerged from the mound of covers and looked questioningly at the Hero of Time.

"Nope," said Link. "Or, it _was_ wine, but there was something else in there too."

 _They…poisoned me?_ He voiced the question, to which the Hero shook his head and waved his hands alarmingly.

"No, no, no, nothing like that," he said.

"Then please explain," Sheik said dryly, his gaze sweeping across the room, trying to locate any articles of clothing he could wear. He briefly rested his eyes on the…costume from last night, blushed, and kept on going.

"Well…" said the Hero and blushed, making Sheik groan again. He just _knew_ this was not going to be good. "It was…an afro…aph…ro…"

"Aphrodisiac?" asked Sheik.

Link perked up and smiled. "Yeah!"

"…do you even know what that word means?"

The Hero's expression told it all, and Sheik explained it to him, with much embarrassment. Truly, it was like talking to a child…which, Sheik remembered, he was.

Eyes wide, Link began to cough a cough so fake it was almost painful to listen to. "Are you serious? Why would they—ah….now I understand what she meant by 'slow relationship'…"

"She?"

"It was all Aveil's idea," Link admitted and went over to a sack by the door. "She said we needed a good romp, whatever that is." The Sheikah opted not to explain. "And she said she knew you weren't going to take the initiative voluntarily, so she dumped that afro-thingy in your drink." He apparently found what he was looking in the sack and pulled something out. It shimmered blue. He threw the bundle over to the Sheik, who realised the bundle was his clothes all packed tightly together. He slowly started to pull them on under the covers.

"Frankly, our relationship is none of her business," the Sheikah said, huffing in annoyance when he encountered difficulties with the exoskeleton's legs. " _And_ she tainted our celebratory toast."

"Maybe she'll do it again," suggested Link. "Not the afro, but the toast," he added when he saw the glare from Sheik's eyes.

"Perhaps," said Sheik and threw the covers away, regretting the movement as his head stung. "Though I would be sceptical to drink anything given to me by the Gerudo considering last night." He pulled the tabard over his head. "I'm not even very interested in speaking to her again."

"Oh, come on, Sheik," said Link in a whiny tone. "It's not like she meant any harm."

 _That's easy for you to say, Hero,_ Sheik thought. _You didn't embarrass your entire heritage last night by begging to be…_ He couldn't even finish the thought. He looked at the wrappings of his turban, decided not to wear it and stood up, swaying slightly. Link immediately went to his feet and put a hand on Sheik's shoulder.

"You alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah," said Sheik, pushing the hand away, briefly noting the hurt expression on the Hero's face. "I've got a headache the size of the moon, Hero, I'm sorry."

"It's Link," said the Hero and smiled.

* * *

It was clear that most of the Gerudo knew about Aveil's plan judging by the expressions and leery smiles they sent the couple as they walked to the Grand Hall. Sheik burned with embarrassment and decided to pull up his cowl, to which Link whined with disappointment. Sheik ignored it. He knew Link meant good, but right now, he had a Gerudo woman to reprimand.

They found Aveil sitting next to the throne, her expression worried. She regarded Sheik with unbridled remorse and stood up. Walking down the stone steps, she beat the Sheikah to the punch.

"Listen, I'm sorry about the aphrodisiac," she said. "I just…thought you needed a boost."

Sheik looked at her for a second and turned to Link. "I want to speak with her privately," he said. Link, noting the no-nonsense tone in his voice, nodded and exited the hall, leaving the second-in-command of the Gerudo and the Sheikah alone. "Now…" Sheik said and sat down on one of the large pillows the women had used for chairs. "Please explain _why_ you thought it proper to poison my drink with the aforementioned chemical."

Aveil sat next to him, thinking about what to say, it seemed. "Because…I could see the way you were looking at him…"

"Excuse me?"

"You want him," she replied. "Not just in the way you are now…but…completely."

 _No I don't…_ he tried to convince himself, but the other part of him disagreed. _Yes, you do. You want him so much it hurts to even think about it. But I can't…he's too young. He's older than you! Only physically…mentally, he is still a child._

"Be that as it may, you still had no right to do such a thing…and I am beginning to have regrets about our pact." Sheik narrowed his eyes. "I don't think the toast last night was even valid since you had ulterior motives."

"But, I—"

"No, you listen to me!" Sheik shouted, ignoring the headache that so elegantly had decided to flare up yet again. "I couldn't care less about what you do to me, but the fact remains you made me force myself upon a child!"

"A child?" asked Aveil. "But he's—"

"Only in appearance," said Sheik and sank down in his seat. "He entered the temple of time seven years ago; his mind was sealed away while his body matured. That Hero…is nothing more than an eleven-year-old boy in an eighteen-year-old's body. He doesn't know about these things because he never had a chance to…"

Aveil had covered her mouth with her hands, her eyes wide. That alone was enough to convince Sheik that whatever she said next would be thruthful. "I…I didn't know…I…I thought he was…"

"The Hero of Time," Sheik continued. "Is nothing but a child forced to grow up quickly, given no time to process anything he experienced when he found the Spiritual Gems. He has seen horrors no child that age should see…" Once again, the unfairness of the world made Sheik want to scream. "The last thing he needs is someone to violate him."

Aveil was crying, crystalline tears making their way down her cheeks. "I…thought the Hero of Time was a normal man…someone who didn't bat an eyelash at anything…but…now I…oh, I'm so, so sorry, Sheik."

His anger had faded long before. Sheik nodded. "Now you know," he said. "You are forgiven."

She smiled through the tears and wiped the salty liquid away. "You were right, you know."

"About?"

"About the toast. I doubt it was valid too, so I guess we have to do it again."

"No wine," Sheik said sharply, fixing her with a penetrating gaze.

The Gerudo grinned. "Of course not," she said and clapped her hands. Out of nowhere, a servant girl appeared with two regular, wooden goblets filled with water. She took them both and handed one to Sheik. "I suppose there is no use in repeating the vows, since we both heard them yesterday."

"The vows remain, the execution was flawed," said Sheik and raised his goblet. "To peace."

"To peace."

* * *

"I was wondering where you had gotten off to," said Sheik when he saw the familiar outline sitting in the window. Kaiza shrieked and perched herself upon his shoulder. He stroked her back. "You little coward," he said affectionately.

"So…" said Link and trailed off.

"So what?" asked Sheik, staring out the window. The headache was fading, though the stinging rays of the sun was revitalising it a little. He didn't care. He felt…oddly elated.

"What happened between you and Aveil?" asked the Hero. "You didn't say anything after you came out of the hall."

"Oh, we made up, set things straight, and so on…" said Sheik. He was watching the large gates to the east. Beyond that gate lay the desert, the wasteland which they had to cross. The wind was picking up, it seemed, for large clouds of sand were making their way across the dunes behind the gate.

"That's good," said Link and wrapped his arms around Sheik, careful to avoid the falcon, which was giving him a warning look.

"Mhm."

"What next?" asked Link.

"The desert," replied Sheik.

"Any idea of how we're going to cross it?"

"Not yet, but it seems the Gerudo have set up some posts to follow. I'm more worried about that wind. Sand storms are nasty."

Without warning, Kaiza took off, disappearing out the window.

"What's with her?" asked Link.

"The princess has probably called her," Sheik answered. "I am not the only one she keeps in contact with, you know."

"Hm…" said Link and went to his bed, laying down. He sighed.

"What's wrong?" asked Sheik.

"Nothing," said the Hero.

"Link…you never act this way unless something is bothering you. Tell me." The Sheikah remained where he stood, wanting to give the Hero some space.

"It's just…I'm wondering if what you said last night…was it you or the afro-thingy that was speaking?"

 _Oh, Goddesses…_ thought Sheik, remembering what he had said. He was glad he was wearing the cowl. "I believe…it was a mix," he said, hoping the answer would be satisfactory. "The aphrodisiac helped me…say what I truly wanted to say."

Link perked up. "So you really want to…?"

Knowing he was really crossing the line here, Sheik nodded. "Yes, Hero. I wish to…do that, but it would not be right."

"What do you mean?" asked Link.

Sheik sighed and took one of the Hero's calloused hands in his, his fingers roaming over the scars and rough skin. "You may look like an adult and act like an adult…but the fact remains that you are still a child at heart…the Hero of Time must be pure and good, and—"

"And you think that we doing it would somehow make me filthy and bad?" asked Link, looking at Sheik with a blank look.

"No, Link," said Sheik. "What I'm saying is that you must keep your focus on your quest. Goddesses know I have already distracted you enough as it is, and—"

"Distracted me?" asked Link. "You've saved my life dozens of times. Without you, there wouldn't have been any quest 'cause I would've been dead!"

The sentence came out so fast that Sheik had to take a few seconds to analyse what the Hero had said. "That may be, but the fact remains that I cannot afford to distract you with anything else. Perhaps, after all this, we can….'do it', as you so elegantly put it, but for now, we must—"

"Focus on the quest, I know…" said Link, clearly unhappy with the situation.

 _That's it, be strong, put the mission first. You've already come dangerously close to ruin the quest as it is by getting this close to him,_ Sheik told himself.

"Can I ask you something else?" Link said suddenly.

"Of course," said Sheik, happy to put the awkward subject behind them.

"When you toasted…you said that you were one of three remaining Sheikah…I know you and Impa, but who's the third?"

"Ah…I did say that, didn't I?" said Sheik and wondered whether he should tell the truth or not. "Well…there _are_ three Sheikah left…though only Impa and I follow our traditions…the third one…abandoned them years ago."

"Where are they now?" asked Link.

"I'm not sure…he moved away when I was young. From what Impa told me, I believe he is living in Termina, now."

"Termina?" asked Link.

"It's a country on the other side of the Lost Woods," Sheik explained. "It's quite different from Hyrule."

"I see…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 17**

* * *

"Surely it can wait for a while. Sandstorms can last for weeks, even months!" Aveil was looking between Sheik and Link, her eyes pleading. "It's dangerous to wander out into the desert at this time of year!"

"As much as we would like to stay," said Sheik, "the quest cannot be pushed back any further. We must go to the Colossus, and we must go immediately." He smiled gently at the dark-skinned woman.

"Yeah, unfortunately," Link chimed in. "But as long as Sheik's with me, we'll make it through!"

Aveil, thoroughly defeated, sighed and clapped her hands. Out of nowhere, two servants appeared—Sheik made a note to speak with these servants later if he had time, as they were clearly in possession of some kind of secret stealth technique—carrying rucksacks. Aveil took one of them and fished around inside, pulling out a long, brown cloak.

"This will protect you from the sand and heat," she said and tossed it to Link, who caught it and let out a surprised sound at the weight of the clothing. "It's so tightly spun not even the tiniest grains will get inside, and heat will neither get in nor escape. Very good to wear to keep warm during the night. It's what my warriors wear when they are out in the desert."

They accepted the rucksacks. "It is truly an honour to be given the same clothes the Gerudo wear," said Sheik and bowed deeply. "I thank you."

"No, I thank you, Sheik of the Sheikah, for giving me the opportunity to make up for my ancestors' mistakes. I only pray it is not too late," said Aveil, inclining her head and closing her golden eyes—the highest gesture of respect a Gerudo can give.

"It's never too late," replied Sheik. "I can only hope you feel the same about the Sheikah."

"As you say, it is never too late," said Aveil, smiling. "Anyway, I have arranged for someone to take you to the gate."

Almost right after she said it, a robed Gerudo came into the room. Her face was covered by the purple shawl-like fabric the thieves usually wore. Two wicked scimitars were slung across her back. She bowed to Aveil. "Shall I take them now?" Her voice was familiar.

Aveil nodded. "Yes, Ayla. I believe the rookies are quite anxious to get on with their quest." She turned to the pair. "Good luck. I truly believe that if anyone can right the horrible wrongs that have been done these last seven years, it is you two."

"Farewell, Aveil," said Sheik and bowed again. Link did the same, though he looked a bit awkward with his sword and shield weighing him down, making it difficult for him to straighten up again.

Ayla nodded wordlessly to them and headed for the door. Sheik and Link were just about to head through it when Aveil's voice stopped them.

"One more thing…" They turned around, and saw to their surprise that Aveil looked nervous. "When you get to the Desert Colossus…can you tell Nabooru that…I'm sorry?" She looked at them pleadingly. "Please tell her that…I was stupid, and I need her more than ever, now. Please tell her to come home."

"You can count on it," said Link and flashed her a grin, to which she smiled warmly and ran up to him and nearly crushed him in a hug.

"Thank you, thank you," she kept repeating silently into his ear.

After bidding her farewell for the second time, the pair followed Ayla, who had kept silent throughout the entire exchange.

"Who would've thought?" asked Link suddenly as they rounded a corner, approaching a shining doorway. "That Aveil was—"

"It's not exactly a big secret," said Ayla suddenly.

"It's not?" asked Link.

"No," confirmed Ayla. "Aveil and Nabooru have known each other since they were little, and there was always something more than just friendship between them. But when this war broke out, they started arguing more and more about proper actions and such…and Nabooru had finally had enough and left for the Spirit Temple, preferring to be alone for a while. She has been coming back every so often, but never spoke to Aveil."

"That's horrible," said Link quietly.

"They will probably get over it once everything settles down again," said Ayla as they emerged into the sunlight. It was still early in the morning, and the sun had yet to heat up the valley enough for it to be stifling hot. Even so, Link and Sheik took a moment to put on their robes, both surprised at the coolness the articles provided compared to regular clothing.

To say that the gate to the desert was large would be quite an understatement. The understatement of the century, to be exact. It was a massive portal made of cast-iron, decorated with lithe figures with large swords who stole what seemed to be camels and horses, surely a reference to the Gerudo's past. Although hidden behind an outcropping of rock, Link and Sheik could hear the beasts of burden that were required to open and shut the gate. Sheik sympathised with the animals, unable to imagine the wretched existence they suffered. But what he could do about it? Without sparking another war between the Gerudo and the Sheikah, of course. Starting a war with only two other people on your side, one of which had ascended to a higher state of being, no less, did not seem to be a good idea.

Ayla led them to a small gatehouse next to which another Gerudo was looking at the desert through the grates in the gate. At Ayla's cough, she turned around with an embarrassed grin.

"Heh, sorry about that," she said. "I was just looking at the storm. Looks nasty." She noticed Link and Sheik. "Oh, hey rookies."

"Rookies?" whispered Link to Sheik, who rolled his eyes.

"We're honorary members, remember? Aveil even gave us identification cards," he said.

"Oh, right."

"You're utterly clueless sometimes, you know that?"

"Hey, you're the brains, I'm the brawn."

"Says the salvation of Hyrule."

"Ahem," Ayla said. The pair looked embarrassed at being caught in a childish fight and concentrated on the conversation going on in front of them. "Anyway, as I said," continued Ayla. "The rookies want to enter the desert and head to the Colossus. Open the gate."

"You sure about that?" asked the gatekeeper, giving them a worried look. "I told you, the storm's looking really nasty, and at this time of year, they could go on for weeks."

"Don't worry about that," said Ayla before either of the teens could answer. "It's their choice. Now, open the gate, or will I have to call Aveil?"

"No, no, of course not," said the gatekeeper and waved her hands in alarm. She clapped her hands—which Sheik thought was a strange way to give orders. How did someone know what the clapping meant?—and a whip cracked behind the outcrop. The beasts on the other side grunted and started walking, making the gate slowly slide open, revealing the wasteland on the other side. Dunes that looked taller than mountains obscured the view, and a wall of sand was steadily growing higher and higher in the distance. A series of poles with red cloth tied around them disappeared among the dunes.

"Those are the ones you must follow," said Ayla. "They will take you to a couple of old abandoned forts before continuing to the Colossus. Do _not_ veer of the path, or you are certain to lose your way. Also, look out for the vengeful spirits of the fallen warriors who haunt the wastes."

"Gerudo?" asked Sheik, knowing that a battle had occurred between the shadows and the thieves in the desert many years ago.

"Gerudo _and_ Sheikah," replied Ayla. "Your ancestors weren't able to get _all_ their comrades home." They didn't have to see her face to realise the sadness with which she said it. Did she regret the feud between the shadow people and the thieves as well? She turned to them. "Well, I have done all I can. There is the desert, and you must cross it. Be careful, don't let down your guard and watch out for monsters."

They nodded and started to walk.

"Sheik-sama?"

The call made him stop. Not only because Ayla had used his name, but also attached a suffix in the ancient Sheikah language that were usually only applied to those who commanded great respect with the caller. He turned around and looked at her curiously. Ayla pulled down the cloth concealing her face and smiled at him.

"I would very much like to fight you again when you return. You are my rival, after all."

He nodded. "Of course. I would enjoy another fight with you, Ayla."

"Be safe," she said.

"Live dangerously," replied Sheik, barely remembering the old code of the Gerudo, which, in all fairness, was a bit of an oxymoron, but no one had drawn attention to this fact yet.

* * *

"You know," said Link between spitting out mouthfuls of sand. "Just for once, I'd like a temple to be easy to reach. Just a calm walk from A to B without a troublesome C rearing its ugly face between them!" He had to shout in order to be heard over the howling wind.

Wondering if he should call attention to the Hero's horrible knowledge of the alphabet, Sheik pulled his cowl higher up. It was truly a blessing in the horrible environment they were in at the moment. The robe kept sand out from every part of their bodies except their faces. The hoods were of little help since they kept being blown off their heads by the strong wind. Deciding not to mock the unfortunate Hero of Time, he answered: "What, the Shadow Temple wasn't easy enough to reach for you?"

"Shadow Temple doesn't count since you teleported us there!"

 _Fair enough…_ Sheik thought.

Progress was slow. The first sand dune hadn't been too bad to cross despite the Hero's numerous stops to empty his boots of sand. After the fifth time, Sheik had had enough and demanded to see the boots. There was no mystery as to how the sand got in, there was a hole big enough for his thumb to fit inside, and Sheik had spent five minutes lecturing the Hero about the importance of maintaining his equipment. Link had refused to go back to Gerudo Valley for another pair, and had at the same time lost any right to grumble about that particular issue, so now he focused on cursing the desert in general.

After the first dune had been cleared, they had been treated to a better view of the desert, which revealed absolutely nothing but more dunes and endless fields of sand in every direction. And hundreds of the poles leading them on a path that hopefully didn't terminate in one of the many sinister pools of quicksand Sheik had noticed on the way. He knew for a fact that the risk of drowning in quicksand was less than that of drowning in water, but if you got stuck in it, chances were good you were going to stay there for a while.

They had reached the wall of sand faster than the Sheikah had imagined, and were now being pummelled from all sides by the tiny grains that stung like bee stings if they hit their faces. Naturally, as Link just simply could not keep quiet when he was annoyed, the Hero had to spit every couple of seconds.

_I really shouldn't laugh…but when he can't realise that the simple act of closing his mouth would rid him of the problem…heh._

The sand storm was completely blocking out the sun now, and it was only due to Sheik's sight that they were able to follow the trail of poles, though even he had encountered problems when it turned out that a couple of poles had been swallowed by the wandering dunes. They could feel the warm air, and the environment was stifling, but at least the temperature wasn't a problem. The robes were keeping them quite cool.

It was impossible to figure out for how long they had walked, but Sheik roughly estimated that they had walked for six hours when they encountered strange bumps in the sand. Upon closer inspection, it was revealed that the bumps were the tops of stone walls concealed by the sand.

"Ayla said something about forts, didn't she?!" called Link to Sheik, who was studying the masonry. It was crude and quite frail, it seemed.

"Yes!" he called back. "But I don't think this is it. It seems to be just a regular house…and it's buried under quite a lot of sand."

"So we haven't found shelter?!"

Sheik could _feel_ the disappointment in his voice. "I'm afraid not!" He stood up and walked over to the Hero. "She said they were about halfway through the desert, and with the pace we are going at, I doubt we're even a quarter on the way!"

"I hate this place!" shouted Link.

"As do I, Hero, as do I!" Sheik answered. Then he noticed another bump in the sand. Only this one was…moving? He narrowed his eyes, ignoring the stinging grains that were threatening to fly into them. Sure enough, the sand pile was jerkily moving in a semicircle. Without a word, he went over to it, leaning down.

"What is it?!" asked Link.

"I don't know!" replied Sheik and turned his head to look at the Hero. "I've never been here before, and—"

"Look out!"

Sheik had just enough time to look down at the sand pile, which exploded.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 18**

* * *

There was a moment of complete chaos, and then Sheik roughly hit the sand, knocking the breath out of his lungs. His eyes stung, filled with the tiny particles that swirled around in the air. He could vaguely hear the Hero's cries of his name. He coughed, feeling liquid coming to his mouth. It tasted of iron.

 _I must have split my lip,_ he thought. There was no time for other musings as what had burst out of the sand was obviously not done with him and hooked its…something around his right leg and started pulling. The seriousness of the situation caught up with Sheik's confused mind, and his eyes shot open, his hand automatically going for a dagger in his sleeve.

It was fast and strong, that much was obvious about the creature, but not much else. Sheik knew that he was being dragged through the sand at a pace much greater than his own, and he knew that if he didn't do anything about it soon, he would most likely disappear in the desert like so many others before him. He finally summoned the strength to lift his head (which was blissfully being protected by his hood) and tried to get a good look at what had grabbed his leg, a feat easier said than done since his trek through the desert was kicking up as much sand as a regular storm did.

But then he caught a glimpse of something long and…serpentine? It was hard to tell, but he made a wild guess and assumed that the thing was a creature with tentacles…very long tentacles too. He swung at the tentacle, trying to free his leg. The creature knew what he was trying, though, and dodged the blade, starting to pull him much faster. This caused Sheik's back to straighten, preventing him from attacking the tentacle any further.

Then he was suddenly being lifted into the air, dangling upside down over a large hole in the ground.

_No…not a hole…_

Something big was moving around in the hole, the darkness making it too hard to see. It seemed to be swirling, which caused Sheik to gasp.

_It's…it's not possible…_

He had heard stories of the creatures before, but the Sheikah records had stated that they were extinct, having died out hundreds of years before. It was no wonder why so many people had disappeared in the Gerudo Desert if one of these things were roaming around in it. And it had outsmarted Sheik with a really basic, really _stupid_ trap.

Then the Wyrm emerged, its long, grey body slowly rising from the hole. Apart from its skin, which just looked like rock, it was entirely featureless. Hundreds of tentacles, some long and some short, covered the bare patches of its skin, squirming and writhing as they tasted and smelled the environment. Sheik was lifted even higher, above the end where he assumed the Wyrm's head was, and he suddenly felt fear welling up within him. It was the first time in many years he had felt such fear, because he knew exactly what would happen next.

Four cracks spread from the tip of the Wyrm's head, spreading in four directions. The Wyrm opened its maw, displaying its horrid mouth and tongue to its prey. A vile odour unlike any other he had ever smelled enveloped him, making him gag. He could see the creature's blind eyes, hundreds of them, all lining the inside of its "lips", an evolutionary trait it had discarded when it discovered that eyes were of no use underground.

Then Sheik felt the tentacle's grip slacken, and he knew he was done for. All that awaited him now was a slow, painful death in complete darkness as the creature digested him.

 _ **No!**_ shouted a voice inside his head, and Sheik's hand moved, throwing his dagger at one of the blank eyes, skewering it. Despite being useless to the creature itself, the eyes were still sensitive and vulnerable. The creature roared and recoiled away from the Sheikah, closing its mouth in the process. Then he was dropped, falling several feet through the air. His training kicked in, and Sheik twisted himself in the air, landing on his feet, the sand mercifully softening the impact.

The Wyrm disappeared back into its hole, the ground shaking as it started burrowing. Had he not known the creature's pattern, Sheik would have relaxed and thought the danger was over, but the records had been quite detailed, and he knew the battle was just beginning. But there was something he needed to confirm.

_Are you still there?_

No answer.

_Answer me, I know you're there! Shadow!_

_**You rang?** _

Sheik groaned when the Shadow's mark on his neck flared up in pain.

 _So you_ did _save me…_ Sheik thought.

 _ **Saved?**_ asked the Shadow and laughed, its voice reverberating in Sheik's head. _**My, my, aren't we trying to fool ourselves? No, my pet, I did not "save" you…I'm merely trying to prevent an inferior creature having**_ **my** _ **fun with you… Did you think I had forgotten my promise? Not at all. I shall tell you one thing, pet, and that is that I will do far more than just eat you… Good luck killing the Wyrm…**_

Sheik felt light-headed for a second, and realised the Shadow had gone. There was time to think about what it had said, though, for he could feel the sand beneath his feet collapsing, and had to jump away. A fraction of a second later, the massive Wyrm once again emerged, exploding from the ground. If Sheik had remained standing where he had, he would already have been in the creature's stomach. He backed away, studying the Wyrm, which seemed to be doing the same.

_No surprise…I'm probably the first thing in years that has avoided being eaten by it so far…maybe it's rethinking the idea of the consuming me…_

He dodged a flailing tentacle that smashed down at him.

 _No such luck, I suppose…_ He continued dodging the multitude of appendages that were now trying to crush him, his movements a second nature to him. He flipped, jumped danced out of the tentacles' paths.

 _Now…what did the records say about how to defeat the damn thing? Its skin is impenetrable, and its vital organs are all concealed below ground as a second wall…its eyes are vulnerable, but to hit them, it has to open its mouth, which it never does unless it's preparing to eat something…_ The revelation came to him right after, and he groaned. _I have to let myself get caught in order to hurt it…this is not my day, is it?_

Luckily, it would not take long for another opportunity for the creature to have a hearty meal, as Sheik was whacked by a tentacle as he was mid-air after a jump. He flew through the air, hitting what had once been a stone wall with rib-cracking speed. He slid down to the sand, trying to assess the damage. A rib was definitely cracked, if not broken. Most likely one of the already damaged ones. He coughed, feeling the irony taste of blood on his tongue. Something had ruptured down there as well, he guessed.

He tried to stand up, but a wave of pain from his chest caused him to yell out and collapse against the wall. His ankle hurt as well, something he had not couldn't even remember having hurt it.

Yet again, there was no time for any thinking as one of the long tentacles was slithering its way towards him. He tried to kick it away, but it once again went to wrap around his leg. All it got was his robe. Sheik jumped to his feet, despite heavy protests from his body, and watched as the tentacle triumphantly lifted its quarry into the air, dropping the heavy cloak into the awaiting mouth.

 _Why didn't I let it grab me?_ Sheik wondered. _I know it's the only way to kill it…yet I didn't want it to._ There was no answer from the Shadow, which was both a relief and oddly hurting, since it meant the part of his mind that was his worst critic would then speak. _It's because you're afraid, Sheik…you're afraid of being eaten. It's pathetic, what would your ancestors say?_

"Damnit!" Sheik shouted in frustration. Of all the times he could have an existential crisis, it had to happen now? He was unsure if it was because of his shouting or if the creature noticed that its food was less meaty than it had thought it would be, but the Wyrm turned to him again and roared, blasting the Sheikah with another salvo of the horrid smell emanating from its mouth. The longest tentacle was immediately sent forth to grab him, but this time, Sheik drew a dagger, knowing there was no other way.

He felt it wrap around his ankle, which twanged in pain—and suddenly realised why he could barely stand on it, the tentacle's grip being frighteningly strong. He felt his back impact with the sand as he was dragged to the waiting Wyrm, and he closed his eyes as he was lifted into the air. Again he found himself dangling above the giant worm's mouth. He opened his eyes, quickly finding a target. A milky-white eye regarded nothing as it lazily rolled around. Sheik aimed and threw, hitting the eye with pinpoint precision.

Unexpectedly, the Wyrm did not roar in pain and fling him away, instead opting to grip his ankle harder. Sheik screamed as he felt the bones breaking, but was silenced when another long tentacle smashed into his back. Another hit him in the stomach. He vomited from the impact. He had never read about the creature taking revenge for hurting it. He was blacking out as the pummelling continued, the tentacles knocking into him over and over again.

Then, as he felt the tentacle's grip slackening again, the Wyrm intent to finish him this time, something happened. Even in the roaring storm, Sheik heard the sharp whistle of an arrow flying through the air and the meaty **thunk** of it hitting flesh. The tentacle let go, and Sheik expected the darkness of the Wyrm's insides to envelop him any second, but was surprised to find himself caught by a pair of strong arms.

But even the Hero of Time had problems catching a human falling from dozens of feet in the air, and was unable to remain standing when he caught Sheik. They collapsed in a heap, and Sheik groggily looked at Link's face, blinking confusedly.

"…Link? W-what—"

"Just stay here," said Link and extracted himself from the Sheikah, pulling another arrow from his quiver. "I'll deal with this thing." Then he was gone from Sheik's point of view, but the Sheikah could hear more arrows whistling and hitting the Wyrm. It was an effort of massive proportions just to roll over so Sheik could actually see what was going on, but he was glad he did.

Link had disabled several of the longer tentacles with his arrows, the appendages dangling lifelessly from the Wyrm's body. The Wyrm seemed to be having problems deciding on whether or not to stay and fight (and hopefully eat) the newcomer. Seemingly coming to a conclusion, it leaned down toward the Hero, opening its mouth wide. Sheik tried to shout a warning about hitting the eyes not being effective anymore, but his voice was drowned out by the Wyrm's roar.

Not that it mattered as Link clearly had a plan of his own. He pulled out something from his robe, fiddled with it for a second, and threw it into the Wyrm's mouth. Sheik saw that round shape and burning fuse, and knew what was coming. He shielded his face with his arm, and waited. A body hit the ground next to his and Sheik felt Link trying to shield him with his body. Then the bomb exploded. It was surprisingly loud.

They waited for another thirty seconds before they looked up. Link whooped and stood up, looking at the remains of the Wyrm. The head was gone, replaced by a bloody stump, and the body was slowly sliding into the hole from whence it came. Confident that the creature was dead, Link leant down and looked at Sheik.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

 _Do I look alright?_ thought Sheik. He coughed up blood. "I don't think so…Link," he said weakly. "It…crushed my ankle…some ribs are definitely broken…and I think I've got a concussion…"

"Huh, I think you're the first one who's ever been aware that he has one," said Link, trying to bring a little light into the situation. Realising the Sheikah seemed to be nodding off, he shook him. "Hey! Listen!" He paused for a second, realising how familiar those words sounded. He shrugged. "I passed what looked like a house on the way here! We need to get back to it so I can look at your wounds. Sheik? Sheik!"

The Sheikah was long gone, having passed out. Link sighed. "I'm the one who's supposed to get hurt, not you…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 19**

* * *

It turned out to be much more than a house Link had passed on the way to help Sheik. Kicking down the feeble planks barring the rectangular stone construction, the Hero of Time nearly fell into a large hole in the middle of the barren room. Link usually took these things in stride, seeing falling into a hole in the floor as an opportunity for adventure, but when he on top of everything carried a heavily wounded Sheikah who just happened to be his boyfriend, he decided to be careful.

He gently sat Sheik against the wall, noting that it was clearly disintegrating from lack of maintenance, and studied the hole. At one point or another, a staircase had clearly been placed underneath, the Hero noting the banisters on each side of the hole. A quick fireball, courtesy of Din, revealed that, indeed, there had been a staircase here…which was currently lying at the bottom of the tower, shattered beyond recognition. He did the same to a piece of wood, which was now serving as a torch.

"A tower…" the Hero said to himself, knowing how redundant it was, but he was quite worried at the moment, and the eerie silence that surrounded him needed to be filled. He found it amazing just how noise-insulated the tower was, testing it out by leaning out the boarded-up window. A cacophony of noise, whistling and howls greeted his sensitive ears. He leaned back inside. A mere whisper of the wind could be heard. Nevertheless, quite a bit of sand was starting to pile up in the opening, and he hung the heavy fabric of the tent Aveil had kindly provided them with in the opening, effectively cutting off all noise. It also stopped the small stone grains from trying to fill up the entrance.

Satisfied that they were safe from the wind and any eventual enemy encounters (though he had his doubts), he went to the unconscious Sheikah. Few people knew this, but Link knew quite a bit about medicine and potions, having grown up with Saria, who was (quite possibly) the most knowledgeable inhabitant of the woods apart from the the Deku Tree himself. What had happened in the Water Temple was…an accident, and not something he liked to think about. He knew he had been poisoned by his dark counterpart, but the sight of Navi's dead body had thrown all concern for himself out the window. And when Sheik had waited for him at the lake, Link passed out before he could tell him. And that had apparently been enough for the Sheikah to label Link as a nincompoop when it came to taking care of his body and such and such (the incident with the berries notwithstanding), and had promptly taken care of injuries himself.

But this time, Link thought, it was his turn. Sheik's robe was gone, having disappeared into the Wyrm's maw. Had it been Link's robe, and had the Hero been alone, he knew he would have climbed into the dead worm to find his lost possession, but he supposed Sheik wouldn't want it back now that it was covered in blood and Goddesses knew what else. Carefully, he pulled Sheik down so he was lying on the floor. Link bundled up his own robe and put it underneath the younger (physically, at least) boy's head. There was an ugly bruise on his forehead, a tentacle had struck him there, it seemed. There was nothing the Hero could do for the concussion, if that was what Sheik had. It had to heal on its own. Blushing, Link carefully rolled down Sheik's exoskeleton, noting the many black and purple bruises that were spreading all over the Sheikah's upper body. He also noticed that the scars from Sheik's fight with the wolfos were still brilliantly visible on Sheik's neck.

Shaking his head, Link started feeling around Sheik's ribs. The shadow warrior had been right, Link knew. The two lowest ribs on Sheik's right side were bent out of place, which Link didn't quite know what to do about. He could deal with cuts, scrapes, bruises and so on, but none of the Kokiri had ever had the decency to break a leg or two so Link could practice. But he did know _one_ thing, and that was that any broken bones had to be reset so they would heal right. A red potion would knit them right up, _if_ they were properly aligned.

But he didn't want to hurt Sheik any more than necessary, and he had no idea how to set ribs back in place. Legs probably wouldn't be too much of a challenge, since everyone knew what way they were supposed to face, but ribs…ribs were tricky. Link had seen enough humanoid skeletons to know that the bones in question were curved. If they were broken in more places than one…

In the end, there was no avoiding it, he decided. But just in case, he gently shook Sheik's shoulder.

"Sheik, wake up," he said into his boyfriend's ear, hoping for any kind of reaction. "Sheik…please…"

"Phlm…" said the Sheikah.

Link perked up, realising that Sheik wasn't irreparably damaged. He leaned closer, whispering. "I need your help, Sheik."

"Wh…what…" said the half-unconscious Sheikah, his eyes opening just a crack. "With?" he finished.

"Your ribs are broken," said Link slowly, making sure that Sheik was taking it in. "I need to set them back…but I don't know how."

Sheik groaned. "Jus'…pop…them…back…in…place…" Sheik answered with the speed of a snail. "Should…not…be…hard…even…for…you…"

Feeling vaguely insulted, Link frowned and felt around the topmost broken rib. "Just pop them back?" he asked again, hoping to the goddesses that Sheik wasn't confusing "broken" with "out of joint".

"Mhm…" answered Sheik.

"Alright," said Link and prepared to push the offending bone back in place. "This is gonna hurt."

"Like…everything…else…"

Link looked up. What had prompted the Sheikah to say that? Why did everything else hurt? _What_ hurt? Being with Link? Having to help the Hero of Time? He wanted to ask the Sheikah so badly, but what would happen when Sheik woke up for real and found out that his lover had basically interrogated him? Link shook his head and went back to the task at hand. He looked at Sheik. "Ready?" he asked. At the Sheikah's nod, Link pushed. A horrible snapping sound ensued, closely followed by the unrestrained scream of pain from the blond boy. Link could feel the scream in the marrow, and he could feel tears gathering at the corners of his eyes, knowing that _he_ was the one causing Sheik so much pain. But it had to be done.

He didn't wait for Sheik to prepare himself for the second one, wanting it to be over with as soon as possible. A second snap and a second, higher-pitched scream. Link embraced Sheik from the side, avoiding the damaged area, and whispered soothing words into his ear.

"It's done…it's over…you were so brave…it's over…it's okay now…shhh…"

He did so for five minutes. Halfway through, he noticed that Sheik was crying, tears slowly flowing down his face. This burst the dams in the Hero's eyes as well, and they both lay on the floor, crying in each other's arms.

Link didn't know how long they lay like this, but Sheik fell asleep at some time. Link stayed for a bit longer, not wanting to continue his ministrations, but knew that if he was to heal properly, Sheik needed treatment right away. He checked the Sheikah's ribs again, hoping that nothing was wrong.

"Now…what else was wrong?" he asked himself, trying to remember what Sheik had said. He snapped his finger right after. "Ankle." He took off his gauntlets and carefully rolled up the exoskeleton's legs, wondering at how strong yet delicate the material could be. The left ankle was fine, but the right was a red, bloated mess. The surrounding area had swelled so much it was hard to see where the actual ankle was. He noticed that Sheik's foot was slightly crooked, and carefully tried to make it point in the right direction. He felt like a child playing with a dead animal, poking and prodding just to see what happened. Sheik moaned every now and then.

 _If_ the ankle had been crushed, as Sheik said, there was nothing Link could do but administer the red potion and hope it would heal right. And if it didn't…Sheik would be a cripple for the rest of his life. He punched the wall in frustration, growling at the unfairness of it all. He kicked the packs, one of them almost falling into the hole into the abyss below. The Hero's rage continued until he spotted something blue and shiny spilling out of his pack.

"The Ocarina of Time…" he said. "Of course, I can talk to Saria!" He slapped his forehead and ran to his pack, delicately picking up the instrument. He put the mouthpiece to his lips, feeling the now familiar notion of the entire world listening, and blew, his fingers moving automatically. Saria's Song echoed down below, making the tower just a bit more cheerful for a few seconds.

* * *

_The pain had been unbearable. He had broken bones before, but they had been minor fractures. The ribs had been completely broken, he had felt it. And the Hero had done his best to fix them. It was…comforting to know that someone was looking after him._

_Unlike here, where he was sure someone was looking_ at _him, but didn't reveal themselves. The spy was being spied upon. He realised the irony, but did not find it amusing. Not in the slightest._

 _Of course, he did know_ _exactly_ who _was doing the looking, and he felt better without seeing him. The Shadow was the last person he wanted to see right now, but Sheik once again found himself in_ his _domain. All he could was wait. It didn't take long. A pair of arms wrapped themselves around him, and a chin was neatly placed on his shoulder. A warped version of the Hero's voice hummed into his ear._

" _I was wondering where you had gone off to," said Sheik, breaking out of the hold. "I figured you had lost interest after we were captured by the Gerudo."_

" _Not at all," said the Shadow and observed him with amusement. "You're not attacking me, nor are you insulting me. I wonder why this is." His red eyes glinted with amusement. "Could it be that you have…grown fond of me?" There was a mocking tone in his voice._

" _I have merely realised that there is no use in fighting you," replied Sheik and stepped away from the Hero's dark counterpart. "At least in here," he continued and gestured around. "You can infiltrate my dreams and control them…"_

" _Indeed," replied the Shadow. "If it had not been for your training, pet, I would have taken over your mind long ago."_

_Sheik sighed and crossed his arms, slanting his weight onto a hip. "What exactly is it you want with me, Shadow? I grow tired of these games. You want the Hero dead, and you have had many opportunities, yet taken none of them."_

_The Shadow laughed and walked closer to Sheik, who took one step back for each the Shadow took forward. "The same as I told you the first time, pet. I want you…and I want him to know that you belong to me. So far…I have yet to find a good moment to do so. But believe me, the time is coming, and coming soon."_

_Sheik was fast, but the Shadow was faster and caught the Sheikah's fist in his hand. The Shadow then slapped Sheik so hard he felt his teeth rattle._

" _I do wish you would stop trying to harm me in my domain," said the Shadow, yanking Sheik to him by his collar. "Have I not proven again and again that there is nothing you can do to me in here? Whilst I, on the other hand, can do whatever I wish," he said and crushed his lips to Sheik's. When they parted, the Shadow was grinning. "As much as I like to hear you say the word 'Shadow', I would appreciate that you would call me by my name."_

_Sheik, dizzy and woozy, had to focus on the sentence to make out just what the counterpart had said. "And…that is?"_

_The Shadow grinned. "_ _Speil."_

_Giving up, Sheik sighed. "Suits you…means mirror, doesn't it?"_

_Speil smiled. "Exactly." He once again seized Sheik in an unrelenting grip. "I can sense that you will not wake up for a while. Why don't we…enjoy ourselves?"_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 20**

* * *

There was no end of the storm in sight, it seemed. Link had started feeling cooped up and had peeked outside, receiving a face full of sand for his troubles. After the initial moments of panic and determination while dealing with Sheik's injuries, the silence and lack of space to move around in had started bothering the Hero a lot. There was absolutely nothing to do, and he was feeling more and more stir-crazy for every minute that passed.

Sighing, the Hero sat down against the wall, next to Sheik. He looked at the now somewhat-peaceful Sheikah and smiled. At least Saria had been able to help him. He remembered the conversation perfectly, partly out of its significance and partly out of just having heard Saria's voice again after so long. He hadn't realised how much he actually had missed his friend until after he played her song.

" _Link? Is that you?"_

" _Saria, I need your help!"_

After briefly explaining what had happened, the Kokiri Sage had immediately taken control, making sure that Link did this and that to heal Sheik's injuries. She too had been worried about the crushed ankle, but after Link applied some potion directly to the area, the swelling had gone down a bit, making it much easier for the pair to work out what needed to be done. Fortunately for Sheik, the bones weren't as damaged as originally thought, and with a few days' worth of rest and no applied pressure to the leg, he would be fine.

That was half a day ago now, and Link was impatiently waiting for Sheik to wake up. He was worried about the stillness the Sheikah displayed, his chest barely rising and falling, producing not a single sound, which was a drastic change from the screaming and moaning. But he seemed fine, and another examination had revealed no fever, no abnormal heart beats or any other sign of trouble.

"I guess he just needs the sleep," Link told himself and stretched his arms above his head. It had to be. The Sheikah had gotten very little sleep between being drugged by the Gerudo and wandering in the desert, and he _had_ apparently been pushing himself much harder than usual. And then there was the trek through the mountains…

But he was bored, damnit! Standing up, he walked over to the hole in the floor and peered down into the darkness. Not a sound had emerged from the hole since their arrival, which Link took as a sign of no life down there, friendly or hostile. He looked up at the ceiling above the hole. A patch of wood with a hook in it was attached to the stone, surely a remnant of some kind of hanging torch. There wasn't even a moment of hesitation.

He opened his pack and rummaged around, his fingers closing around the cool metal handle of his Longshot. Its weight was a kind of comfort, reminding him of the first time he had ever used it at the Forest Temple's entrance. That was also the first time he had heard Sheik play his lyre…

With a final glance at the sleeping Sheikah, Link fired the Longshot. The hook buried itself far into the wooden patch. He pressed a button that locked the chain in place and started pulling roughly. Not an inch of give, neither from the hook nor the patch. Link nodded in satisfaction. He was about to swing himself down the hole when he was reminded of something. He pulled out the Ocarina of Time and put it next to Sheik, giving him a light peck on his cheek. If Sheik woke up while he was gone, he would see the Ocarina and know that Link hadn't left him.

He hung in mid-air above the hole, about to release the lock on the chain.

"I'm sorry, Sheik, but I've got to do _something_ ," he said out loud, mostly for himself. The lock gave with a click, and Link fell into the hole.

* * *

_Many strange thoughts and images had popped up in Sheik's mind when Speil's words had drifted into his ears, but nothing could have prepared him for what the Hero's dark counterpart had in mind._

_That the Shadow lusted for him was no secret, especially when one considered the kisses, bites and gropes that had ensued every time Speil had cornered the Sheikah, but he had yet to "go all the way", as Link probably would have put it, even if he didn't understand what it meant._

_Indeed, Sheik had expected Speil to push him to the ground and perform unspeakable acts of…well,_ that _, after suggesting they "enjoy themselves", and had closed his eyes in preparation, determined not to make it easy for the Shadow. When nothing had happened, Sheik had cautiously opened his eyes, the darkness gradually yielding for the sight of an amused-looking Speil, surrounded by…a forest?_

_It was the Lost Woods, he'd realised soon after. He recognised the stump where the Skull Kid had eluded Link when he had first entered the forest after retrieving the Master Sword. Upon receiving Sheik's questioning half-glare, half-glance, Speil had chuckled and jumped up on the stump._

" _You think of me as a beastly creature, do you not?" he asked, although it sounded more like a statement from the way he said it._

_It's a trick question, Sheik had thought. He nodded. "True. I do think of you as beastly. You murdered an innocent fairy and probably countless others before we met. And what for? The mere bid from your master."_

_Speil look surprised, the glow from his red eyes brightening just a fraction. "My master? And who would that be?" he asked._

_It caught Sheik off-guard, but he quickly tried to recover. "Your master, Ganondorf, the Evil King, the one who has reigned in Hyrule with an iron fist and caused unspeakable pain and misery for the last seven years."_

_Speil nodded. "Yes, Ganondorf. I have heard of him…though he is not my master."_

" _What?"_

" _Ah, I do believe we have somewhat of a misunderstanding on our hands," said Speil and sat down on the stump, looking down at Sheik with amusement. "What makes you believe he is my master?"_

" _Your very existence," replied Sheik, crossing his arms. "Ganondorf controls darkness. You are the Hero of Time's dark mirror image, a perversion of his personality and appearance. He created you to surprise the Hero and murder him in the Water Temple."_

_Speil chuckled. "It seems logical, had it not been for one fatal flaw in your reasoning."_

" _Which is?"_

" _The fact that I was not created by Ganondorf."_

 _He's playing with you, Sheik told himself. He is a lying, conniving,_ evil _creature. Don't let him fool you. "I don't believe you," Sheik stated._

" _I didn't expect you to," said Speil. "But perhaps you will after hearing me out?" There was a hitherto unheard tone in Speil's voice. It sounded…hopeful? Speil looked away from Sheik, glancing at the field of wildflowers close to the bridge. The sun's rays cast a radiant shine on them._

_After several seconds of silence, Sheik realised that Speil was actually waiting for him to say yes or no, a complete reversal of how he had behaved before, when he would just do what he wanted, regardless of what Sheik thought. I already know he will lie, Sheik thought. What harm could it do? "Very well, speak."_

" _Surely you have heard of the legend of the temple beneath Lake Hylia?" asked Speil, still looking at the flowers. "That it once used to be a proving ground for young men of the land, Hylian, Sheikah, Goron and Zora alike?"_

" _Yes," answered Sheik._

_It was an old legend, hundreds of years old, in fact. Before it had fallen into disuse and eventually rotted away, the river feeding the lake had once been regulated by a gigantic dam further up. Every fifth year, it would be closed, draining the lake and revealing the temple entrance. The young men of the races flocked to it to prove themselves, whether it be to impress a young lady (or man, in some cases) or other things._

_It was said that the temple was a nightmare to go through, that many perished before they even had a chance to reach the main chamber. And that was just from the creature. The young men's ultimate goal was the inner chamber, where it was said a magnificent treasure lay in wait. Of course, it occurred to none of them that only the Hero of Time could ever reach it. None ever made it to the inner chamber._

_But it was not for the treasure that most went inside, but for a chance to conquer their most hated enemy, their most difficult foe: themselves. The temple required logic, strength and guile._

_The practice died out after so many young men lost their lives to the challenge, killed by either the many hostile creatures inside or the deadly traps, and the records of the Challenge was now only known to ancient historians and librarians…and Impa._

" _It was a suicide run, a foolish quest to conquer their fears," said Sheik. "What does that have to do with your existence?"_

_Speil chuckled. "I see you have not figured it out. Very well, I shall explain it to you." He jumped down from the stump and walked over to Sheik, towering over the young spy. "They did not enter the temple to conquer themselves figuratively, but literally."_

_What's he on about now? Sheik narrowed his eyes in suspicion, to which Speil sighed._

" _Dear, oh dear, must I spell everything out for you, Sheikah?" he asked mockingly. "They fought not their fears, but they very thing that gave birth to those fears itself."_

" _You don't mean…?" began Sheik, unable to finish the sentence. If he understood what Speil was suggesting…_

" _Exactly," said Speil. "At the heart of the temple, close to the inner chamber, there lays a room filled with mist and water. A solitary island lies in the middle, upon which a single, dead, tree stands. The more clever and deducting of the young men realised it the second their reflections in the water disappeared. Others did not until a figure appeared on the island. The Hero, for example, was part of the latter group." He caught sight of Sheik's expression and chuckled again._

" _You're…you're not a…"_

" _A minion of Ganondorf after all? Nay, I am not. I am something much more…complicated. Who created me? The temple did. Why? To test the Hero. A simple existence, perhaps, but something happened when the Master Sword pierced my heart." Speil turned his back to Sheik. "I became…sentient, for the lack of a better word. I became aware of myself. Before, I was just a reflection of My Light, but the magical sword turned me into something else. It…transferred part of his soul into me. That is all I understand about it." He turned back to Sheik. "I am afraid my oral skills are still quite underdeveloped, and I fear my explanation was far from satisfactory. But I believe you now understand what I am…and why I exist."_

_He is nothing like Link, Sheik screamed in his mind. "If a part of the Hero's soul was transferred into you, then surely you would not be such a, for the lack of a better word, bastard. He is nothing like you, and you are nothing like him."_

_Speil's cap slipped off his head and landed in the grass. A strange grin had appeared on his face. "Being the chosen of the Goddesses…has nothing to do with personality or beliefs," he said. "Hero or not, My Light is still very much a mortal man…and every mortal have feelings like fear, anger and hate. My Light may not show it, but even he doubt and hates…and those feelings are in me as well. I am a personification of every negative emotion in My Light. I cannot exist without him…"_

" _Yet you are trying to kill him," stated Sheik, now unsure of what to make of everything. "If you succeed, then surely you will disappear."_

" _That may be," said Speil. "But perhaps not. All I know is that as long as I am still alive, the Hero of Time will never reach his full potential."_

_Sheik gasped. "What?"_

" _I did not just receive his feelings," said Speil. Suddenly, he was standing behind Sheik, his mouth inches away from the Sheikah's left ear. An arm was wrapped around his middle, and Sheik could feel the strong chest at his back. "I received part of his power, which is why I was able to tear myself away from that wretched temple's control. I carry his strength…which he will need to defeat the Evil King." He licked the shell of Sheik's ear. "I have long since resigned myself to my fate, to be defeated by My Light, which, I suppose, it always was. But I will not just let it happen. If My Light wants his power back…he must fight for it."_

" _He…won't…lose…" said Sheik, panting. Why did this creature have such power over him?_

" _Perhaps he will, perhaps he won't. That is yet to be decided."_

" _You…just…said…you…were…resigned…"_

" _There are always loopholes," said Speil and nibbled on Sheik's ear. He sighed, pulling himself away from the confused Sheikah. "You are waking up," he said. "I will see you again very soon, my pet."_

_The forest faded away, replaced by a light growing brighter and brighter…_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 21**

* * *

The moment Sheik woke up, he would have given anything to go back to Speil's realm, despite the presence of said shadow. The pain was almost unbearable. His chest was on fire, every breath was agony. His ankle felt like a mangled mess. Everything was hazy, and he was dizzy. But worst of all: Link wasn't there.

Had he been in a better condition, Sheik would have leapt to his feet, his gaze flying all over the place in search of the Hero of Time, but all he could manage now was slowly shifting his head in either direction while uttering a feeble "Link?"

Where was he? And also, where was _Sheik_? The last thing he remembered from when he was awake was sand approaching at an alarming speed. And then there was darkness, a cracking sound and agonising pain, as well as a warm and shaking embrace. There had been tears as well. But now Sheik was lying inside a building, there was no mistaking it. Stone floor, stone walls, stone ceiling…definitely man-made.

He tried to sit up, but had to yield to the protests from his ribs. Not that he would have accomplished much with it, considering the destroyed ankle, but just lying about didn't _feel_ right. _He_ was supposed to look after the Hero, not the other way around. Said Hero was, of course, missing at the moment, which is where everything fell apart as far as Sheik was concerned. He felt panic rear its ugly head and his eyes darted more desperately around the room. Some kind of fabric was blocking a doorway of sorts, and a small fire had been started close, built with planks.

Then he caught a glimpse of something in the corner of his eye. He turned to his left and saw the instrument. The Ocarina of Time glinted in the firelight, almost blinding Sheik when his gaze faced it at a certain angle. He slowly, tiredly reached out for it. His fingers closed around it, and he brought it closer.

 _He wouldn't leave this behind…_ he thought. Of course, he never expected Link to voluntarily leave Sheik behind, considering all they had been through (also, the Hero would be absolutely _lost_ without the Sheikah's guiding hand), but it was still a comfort, and Sheik felt touched that Link had thought of it.

But, enough was enough, and Sheik sat up. He groaned as the ribs played the symphony of pain, but held fast, and soon found himself sitting up against the wall. The Hero had covered him with a blanket, but Sheik still shivered. The fire helped little with warming up the room. Another thing that bothered him about the place was the complete absence of any other sound than the ones from the fire and himself. There had been a sandstorm during the fight with the Wyrm, and it had shown no sign of dissipating any time soon. Sheik had been injured and knocked out, yes, but not for long judging by the lack of recovery. He glanced at the fabric covering the doorway again.

 _Surely that puny thing is not keeping out the storm?_ He decided not to investigate when his ankle gave an angry throb in warning.

He sighed. He felt…safe, oddly enough, but there were only so many things Sheik could think about before becoming bored. He'd rather not think about what he had talked about with Speil, since the content of that particular conversation had disturbed him to the very core of his being.

 _Link isn't at full strength? But he has defeated the guardians of two temples!_ he thought. _Morpha was not a strong monster,_ his other side reminded him. _And Bongo-Bongo really did not fight back at full strength because of his death wish. You know it, but you won't admit it. Without you, the Hero would have died in the Shadow Temple…of course the Hero isn't at full strength._

Sheik shook his head, earning him another lashing from his clouded mind. Speil…a nemesis, a monster and a mystery all in one being. And apparently, a vital target if the quest is to be a success.

_But why did he tell me all that? Surely he expects me to tell Link about him, about why he still exists?_

_No, he knows you won't, because you have yet to reveal that he survived the last battle with the Hero in the Water Temple. He knows you won't because you're afraid the Hero will reject you when you tell him you have been lying to him all along._

"Shut up!" growled Sheik and punched the floor, ignoring the blossoming pain from his knuckles. It was so frustrating! He again became aware of the ocarina resting in the palm of his other hand. He remembered the feeling he'd gotten when playing it back at Lake Hylia. It was…scary, yet relieving at the same time. The whole world listened, but not with critical ears.

The silence was pressing in around him. A draft, even colder than the air inside the room, suddenly drifted over him. His teeth chattered, and Sheik looked around for the source. It hadn't come from the doorway, the cloth hadn't moved. It was then that he noticed something in front of him, directly underneath the patch of wood in the ceiling. A hole. A rectangular hole, with what looked like ancient banisters on either side.

 _He went down there, didn't he?_ he thought, wondering why in Hyrule he had added a rhetorical question at the end of his own thought. _Must be more injured than I thought._

But how long had he been down there for? What if he had encountered some kind of creature down there that did not take well to trespassers? Or worse yet, another Wyrm?

"Link?!" he shouted, wincing at how much his voice was amplified by the room. No answer came. "Link!" he tried again. No answer yet. He punched the floor again. For all he knew, the Hero of Time could be lying down there, dying or dead, while he lay up here, lazing about. "Link, answer me!"

He was bleeding from his knuckles. He wiped away the blood with a bandage from his wrist.

 _Serves me right for loosing my cool,_ he thought. If Impa had been here, she'd be ashamed at the irrational way he was acting. Panicked, afraid, frustrated, all emotions that the Sheikah were taught to ignore at all times.

He was uncertain, in retrospect, whether he remembered about the ocarina on his own, or if something else was prodding his mind, like the instrument itself. In either case, he wasted no time in putting the mouthpiece to his lips. The world was listening again, and Sheik couldn't remember any songs. The Hero always made it seem so easy. There was a reason for why Sheik kept to stringed instruments.

In the end, a series of notes popped up in his mind, and he wasted no time in playing them. It was an eerie tune, reminding him of the Song of Storms that Link sometimes played when he was in a bad mood. He had yet to figure that the weather actually changed when he played it, and his mood had always worsened when it started to rain. The many times Sheik had wanted to walk up and punch the boy in the head for his slowness…

But no, this was a vastly different song. It sounded like something that should be played at the Temple of Time, yet, at the same time, shouldn't be. Sheik felt dizzy and decided that lying down again would probably be a good idea, especially if his concussion theory was of any value. He kept the ocarina grasped tightly in his hand, though, not daring to let it go. It was his only link to…Link. He giggled. And then he stopped himself, surprised at the sound he had just made.

 _I_ must _be ill…I'm giggling, for goddesses' sake…_

At some point, he must have fallen asleep, for the fire was growing weaker by the minute as he watched it. The wood was nearly all gone, and the flame was starting to flicker out. And with that, his only light source would be gone. But it wasn't the flickering fire that had awoken him, he knew. There had been a noise. A clicking sound, coming from the hole. Had it been the rhythmic, tip-tap-sound that Link made when he was running across stone, Sheik would have been relieved. But this was one was irregular, like something had far too many legs to know what to do with.

With great effort, he was able to sit up again, drawing out a dagger with limbs that felt like lead. And then waited. The first thing that even dared to peek its head over the edge (that wasn't Hylian, at least) would get a knife in the eye. His breath was quickening along with his pulse. He was running several imaginary scenarios through his head, all ending with something dead falling back down the hole. He was expecting pretty much anything at this point.

What he _didn't_ expect, however, was a hook on a chain suddenly exploding from the hall and digging itself deep into the wooden patch above it. Delirious, Sheik prepared to throw a dagger at the chain's weak link close to the hook, intending to sever it. He caught himself just in time, however, and quickly stuffed the dagger away. He may have been injured, but he'd be damned if Link was going to find his partner shaking like a leaf.

Something was coming up the chain, its receptors clicking as the links were fed into the maw of the Longshot. By the time Link was dangling well above the hole, Sheik had managed to cross his arms and set his face in a grim expression. Link noticed that the Sheikah was up, and smiled, wrenching loose the hook, dropping to his feet just shy of the edge of the hole.

"Where were you?" asked Sheik tersely.

The Hero of Time scratched the back of his neck embarrassedly. "Uh, I got a bit…impatient and went off to explore."

"Do you have any idea of how dangerous that could've been, Hero?" asked Sheik, glaring. "What if you had been ambushed and killed by some horrible creature because I was not there to watch your back. Navi is not with you anymore, Hero, and you have made it quite clear that you are absolutely helpless without someone to look out for you."

 _Why did I say that?_ Sheik wondered when he saw the brief look of pain flashing across Link's features. _Why am I even angry? He's more than capable of taking care of himself, despite not…being himself completely…_

"I'm sorry, Sheik."

Any other tirade that was waiting to be unleashed froze completely when Sheik heard the barely choked back sob that Link had made. He gasped when the Hero looked up and revealed that he was starting to cry.

 _I just_ had _to mention the fairy, didn't I? For pity's sake, Sheik, what the hell is wrong with you?_

Indeed, _why_ was he so angry? It was obviously safe enough upstairs, and while Link sometimes didn't think quite through what he did, he would never risk his life for something as silly as exploring.

"No, no, don't be," muttered Sheik. A headache was coming on, and he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm the one who should be…I'm not feeling all too well."

The Sheikah had never seen anyone change moods so quickly. Within seconds of admitting not feeling alright, the Hero had wiped away the salty liquid and run over to him, checking for any more injuries.

"What's wrong? Is it the ribs? Oh, fiddlesticks, I did the ribs wrong, didn't I? Saria assured me it was okay, but I just _knew_ it wasn't? How's the ankle? Worse, or better? Saria said that it was perfect, but I—"

"Hero, Hero!" yelled Sheik, trying to calm the panicking Link. "It's alright…you did good with the bones. It's my head, I'm dizzy and it hurts."

Link sighed and sat beside him. "Not much to do about that but pump you full of potion, Saria said," he said. And that was, apparently, it. No mention of the harsh words Sheik had pumped him full of when he came up, no mention of Navi, no nothing. And Sheik felt anger flare up again, but tried to subdue it.

_Why doesn't he stand up for himself? I yelled at him without reason…_

"Link…I'm sorry for what I said…"

"Don't be," said Link, mirroring Sheik's words. "I understand. I should've known better than to run off on my own while you were injured. And yes, you're right, without someone to watch my back; I probably would have died if I ran into an enemy."

"Hm," said Sheik, unable to come up with anything decent to say. His head was throbbing, and he was so tired…

"By the way," said Link suddenly. "I heard you play the ocarina." He pointed at the instrument Sheik was holding tightly. "I've never heard that song before."

"You…heard me?" asked Sheik.

"Yeah!" said Link. "That's why I came back. I know you wouldn't do it unless it was important or really, really needed me." He put an arm around Sheik's shoulders. "And here I am."

The silence was immediately surrounding them again. The fire was on its last reserves, and soon it would be dark. Sheik leant against Link's side, feeling strangely content, yet incredibly guilty for his outburst.

 _It's the concussion…it's the concussion,_ he repeated to himself.

"I love you."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 22**

* * *

The two stared at each other, both completely flabbergasted at what had just been said. Sheik's eyes had widened to the size of saucers, and Link's lower jaw seemed to have unhinged itself.

"Excuse me?"

"Excuse me?"

They stared again. Saying things in unison could have strange effects on people.

"What did you say?"

"What did you say?"

A pair of mouths closed quicker than a mousetrap, leaving the room in silence. The Hero of Time and the Last of the Sheikah, both unbelieving of what they had just heard.

 _ **Oh, for pity's sake…**_ someone rumbled in Sheik's mind. He ignored it. They both kept staring, their gazes locked with the other's. Shock had numbed Sheik completely, banishing every notion of fatigue and confusion.

A sudden gust of air from the hole killed the last of the flames of the fire, leaving embers in its wake, and the room in darkness.

None of them knew who moved first, but seconds later they found themselves embracing each others, lips locked in passion. Link opened his mouth, his tongue begging Sheik's lips for entrance, to which the Sheikah yielded with pleasure. There wasn't even a battle for dominance, the Hero assuming control instantly. Hands groped, hot breaths intermingled. Ribs ached, but were ignored.

Link's hands found their way to Sheik's braided hair and undid the string holding them together, making the blond tresses cascade down Sheik's back. The Sheikah's fingers were buried in Link's hair, his hands roaming everywhere they could.

Despite the fire having gone out, the pair found themselves hotter than they had ever felt, even warmer than out in the dunes. A hand found its way underneath Link's tunic. Another hand was cupping Sheik's cheek.

It was, Sheik decided later, the most passionate moment they had had, which was why it hurt so much to pull away from the Hero, both panting and sweating. He didn't do so because he had no wish to…continue, but because Link's hand had strayed to a certain _sensitive_ area, which, irrationally, had filled Sheik with a sudden bout of fear. His eyes widened, and he slapped Link's hand away. The Hero gasped and pulled away.

There was no need for words; Sheik could _feel_ the confusion coming from Link. He was thankful it was dark, for if he had been able to see the Hero's face, he surely wouldn't have been able to stop himself from diving back in.

Nevertheless, the Hero had to voice his outrage. "What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" The hand approached again while he said this, and Sheik took it in his own, squeezing comfortingly.

"No, Link, you didn't," he answered, filling his voice with as much regret as he could.

"Then what's wrong?"

"I…I-I just…can't, Link. Not yet." He lowered his head, staring at what he hoped was the ground. "It…I don't think I'm ready." It was a lie. He felt _so_ ready to show how much he loved Link, but something in his mind was telling him not to go through with it. And he knew exactly what it was. Duty reared its ugly head in his thoughts, reminding him that there was no time for relationships when the fate of the entire free world rested on the Hero's shoulders.

_I'm distracting him…again…_

And it was so unfair, like everything else in the world. It was unfair to the princess, the Hero and…it was so unfair to Sheik. All his life he had been taught to put duty before everything else, and he had accepted it. He understood the importance of his complete dedication to the princess' cause, and had sworn to forever uphold the virtues of the royal family…but that was before he had actually _met_ the Hero of Time, before he had rescued him from the traitorous Ingo, _before the Hero had revealed his affection in the mountains_ …

He wanted to cry out and punch something, _anything_. Even the floor would suffice, as it had demonstrated some hours before. And most horrifying of all, he would even have punched the Hero if he had been able to see him. Because, in the end, it was all Link's fault. Sheik didn't blame him, of course, but Link had not proven to be what Sheik had expected of the fabled Hero of Time.

"Don't worry," said Link suddenly and calmly. "I understand."

"No, you don't!" yelled Sheik. "You don't understand anything!"

Link didn't answer, and Sheik knew that he should have kept his mouth shut. But it was done, and nothing could take it back. And the moment was destroyed as the two slid apart, lost in their thoughts. Link was confused as to why Sheik had suddenly rejected him, and Sheik wondered whether or not he had completely ruined his relationship with Link forever.

The storm outside seemed to have picked up, for they could not hear the faint howling of the wind. The fabric in front of the doorway shifted and danced in the wind, yet permitted not a single grain of sand to enter.

A sudden pain in his hand alerted Sheik to the fact that he had been clenching his fist so hard that his nails had bit through the skin. Unable to see, he wiped the hand on his bandages, praising the Sheikah who had come up with the practice.

"So…you love me, huh?" asked Link, having apparently forgotten the way Sheik had angrily rejected him minutes before.

"…yes. And you love me, I suppose?"

"Yeah, more than anything."

_This isn't going to work. If we are to complete the quest, then I can't allow him any closer than this. Perhaps afterwards, if the princess allows it, but not before. The Desert Colossus awaits…and then the Evil King. And Speil…he must be defeated as well…and Link will hate me for lying to him._

"We can't do this," Sheik whispered. He felt Link shift closer to him and lean forwards.

"What?"

"I said we can't do this," Sheik repeated a bit louder.

"Why not?"

"Because it will end up with one of us getting hurt or worse."

"Not to be an ass, but one of us is hurt already," Link pointed out. "Speaking of which, it's time for a dose of potion."

Sheik took the offered bottle and took a swig, shuddering at the bitter taste. He handed the bottle back to Link, who took it and put it away. How he was able to in the complete blackness was beyond Sheik.

"That's not what I meant," said Sheik.

"I know," replied Link. "You meant that we both have our duties to perform and that we shouldn't let anything get between us and them, including each other."

 _ **He really is surprisingly insightful when pressed into a corner, isn't he?**_ asked Speil, his voice a mere hiss in the back of Sheik's head. The Sheikah once again ignored the counterpart's comments. "Correct. Link, I…love you, but as long as Ganondorf is still in control, we can't afford to be sidetracked."

The statement was met with silence, and Sheik wondered if the Hero was angry with him. He wouldn't be surprised if he was. In addition to being a much younger boy trapped in an adult's body, tasked with a nearly impossible quest by the goddesses, he was also currently being shoved away from the person he loved because of a cruel trick by fate.

"I understand," were the last words Sheik expected from Link. He stroked Sheik's cheek with a calloused hand. "You want to put our relationship on hold until we're done."

_Perhaps not the exact wording I would use, but it fits._

"Yes, Link. That's exactly what I mean."

The Hero's sigh, a heart wrenching sound, made Sheik feel terrible.

"Fine, I agree," Link said, his voice a low murmur. "But on one condition."

"What is it?"

Sheik smiled sadly when Link's lips descended on his. "I get to do that whenever I want," he said.

_**Throw the boy a bone!** _

* * *

In the darkness that followed, it was hard to know when he had fallen asleep. Another brightly burning fire greeted Sheik when he woke up, and the Sheikah's mood perked up quite a bit when he discovered that he could move his torso without flinching. There wasn't any pain at all! A dull ache from the ankle was still felt when he walked on his feet, but a vast improvement from the sheer agony that had been there the night before.

Link was gone, again. The ocarina had been left behind this time as well. Sheik decided not to play it, wanting to be alone for a little while. Kazuya direly needed a polish, he found out when he pulled the blade from its scabbard. The sand had gotten inside, and the sword would suffer permanent tarnish if he didn't do something about it.

Oiling and sharpening the blade was an activity Sheik found extreme comfort in. Whether it was the slow, monotonous movements or the satisfaction of a job well done, he didn't know. All he knew was that as long as he had a bottle of oil and a sharpening stone, he could find peace in the worst of situations. Kazuya glinted in the firelight.

Expecting the Hero to emerge from the hole in the floor, Sheik was shaken when the cloth in the doorway was suddenly thrust aside, revealing the murky desert outside. Link hurried inside, quickly covering the entrance to prevent any sand from getting in. He looked annoyed.

"What's wrong?" asked Sheik.

Link jumped, apparently having not noticed the Sheikah sitting on the floor. "Oh, you're up. Good. How's the ribs and leg?"

Slightly disappointed at the neutral tone in the Hero's voice, Sheik answered: "They're fine. I can walk again without trouble. Now, answer my question."

"That's a relief," said Link and sighed. He took off his robe and threw it in the corner with his backpack. "I was trying to scout out where to go next, but the storm's obliterated absolutely everything we could've used as landmarks."

"So we're lost?"

"It seems that way. But, I think I found something yesterday that will help us greatly."

"Which is?"

"A tunnel."

"A tunnel?"

"Yes, a tunnel, now stop repeating what I say."

 _Says the genius himself,_ thought Sheik. "What kind of tunnel was what I meant to say?"

"It's in the lower levels of the tower. It seems to point off in the direction we were heading before the…that worm-thingy."

"The Wyrm," corrected Sheik. "And there are no enemies down there?"

"I'm not sure. I walked a maybe half a mile before I heard the ocarina yesterday, but it seemed safe enough."

Sheik stood up, attaching Kazuya's scabbard to his back. "Then we have no choice. Going through the desert in a sandstorm is no less of a risk."

"Wait," said Link and stopped. "You're actually agreeing to a plan of mine?"

"There's a first for everything, Hero," said Sheik. "How do we get down there?" He fetched his pack and was about to ask Link again, but froze when he heard the clinking of the Hero's Longshot. He turned around and saw Link grinning and fiddling with the chain-shooting device. "Oh no."

"Oh yes."

* * *

"Did I mention I hate the Longshot?" asked Sheik as they dangled over the abyss-like hole. Yet again he was holding on to the Hero for dear life, annoyed at having to break their deal already.

"Many times, I think," said Link. "I like it, though, especially when you're with me." He looked down at Sheik and leant down, pecking the Sheikah slightly on the lips. "I'm not making it very easy for you, am I?"

"Not really," said Sheik, blushing.

 _I won't be able to keep my distance if it continues like this,_ he thought. And then Link released the lock.

* * *

The bottom of the shaft was, not unexpectedly, very dark. Link quickly illuminated the place with a torch and a quick muttering of Din's Fire. The collapsed pile of wood that was all that remained of the staircase was covered in dust and sand. The floor creaked ominously as they walked across it, Sheik noticing _it_ was made of wood as well.

"How many levels are there, exactly?" he asked, wincing at the echo his voice made.

Link detached the Longshot's hook and put the device in his pack. "Thirteen, if you don't count the collapsed floors on the way down," he answered. He pointed at a stone doorway. "There's a staircase in there that leads down to the tunnel. It's made of stone, but it seemed kinda brittle."

Following the Hero, Sheik was amazed at just how big the tower was. A large doorway was blocked off by the rubble, surely hiding a large hall of some kind. The stairs to the tunnel, on the other hand, were cramped and small.

 _It was probably some kind of hidden escape route,_ he thought as they descended the stairs. The piercing ring in Link's ear glowed in the light from the torch, bringing Sheik's train of thought back to the Hero.

 _He's taking this surprisingly well,_ he thought. _He_ did _resist my…advances when the Gerudo drugged me…maybe he's not as…eager as I thought._

"So what was that worm?" Link asked suddenly.

"Hm?"

"The worm. You seemed to know a bit about it."

Happy to be distracted from his thoughts, Sheik explained. "It's a creature from the days of old, the only natural predator in the wastes of the world. They can live almost anywhere, the desert, glaciers, mountains, swamps…anywhere that's big enough for them to hide. I was surprised to see one here, though."

"Why is that?"

They reached the lowest level of the tower, and a gaping hole in the wall seemed to be sucking them in. The tunnel was built in a completely different style than the rest of the building, making Sheik think it had been added in later. The mortar was crumbling, and there were piles of collapsed rock everywhere.

"Because they're supposed to be extinct in this part of the world," continued Sheik. "The Sheikah hunted them down on the order of the royal family of Hyrule. The Gerudo used to hunt them as a rite of passage. Between the two peoples, the Wyrms disappeared. But they're back now, and I think I know why."

"Yeah?"

"Ganondorf must have something to do with their return. He can resurrect creatures, like Volvagia at Death Mountain."

"I see. I hated that dragon."

Their footsteps echoed in the tunnel. It dipped down, went in a sig-sag, suddenly rose sharply. They walked in silence, not out of a lack of wanting conversation, but because they didn't want to alert any possible creatures to their presence. Carrying a torch was bad enough. Neither of them was able to relax when they took breaks either. The weight of the sand above them was pressing down on the small tunnel, and Sheik could see visible cracks in the ceiling where, sooner or later, it would collapse and fill the tunnel with sand. Small piles of the particles lay here and there, slowly falling from the ceiling.

The throbbing in his ankle was growing worse, Sheik noticed. It still hadn't healed enough to be able to take the strain, and he gulped down some potion, not wanting to slow down Link. But his body had other plans, as it usually does, and just as they were rounding a sharp bend to the left, Sheik took a wrong step. His ankle bent, and the Sheikah fell to the floor, gritting his teeth.

Link was beside him right away, fussing. "Are you alright? What happened?"

"Ankle…wrong…step," was all Sheik could say. Something was being pressed down on inside the joint, and kept massaging it so the pain would go away. His hand was pushed away, and Link's gauntleted hand was now feeling the joint. Unlike his own ministrations, Link's felt like bliss. He hit the exact right spots, and whatever was being squeezed in there apparently moved out of the way, quickly clearing up pain.

"Is that better?" asked Link, smiling gently at Sheik. His eyes were filled with concern, and he kept massaging Sheik's ankle.

Against his better judgment, Sheik pulled the Hero down to his level and kissed him. When Link pulled away, Sheik smiled, feeling foolish. "I don't think I can keep my vow," he whispered.

"Then don't," said Link and leaned in for another kiss.

It was cut short, however, by a sound further ahead in the tunnel. A rhythmic tapping…footsteps. The Hero was on his feet immediately, Master Sword in hand. He helped Sheik up, who drew his own sword. Link stepped on the torch, killing the flame, leaving the pair in pitch black darkness. It didn't do much good, as the orange light of another torch appeared further ahead.

Someone…or something, was mumbling to themselves as it approached. Link and Sheik both pressed up against the walls, trying to blend in. It was easy for Link, his robe was the same colour as the stone by now, but Sheik's exoskeleton shone in the approaching light. He looked at Link, who nodded at him. The light was coming around the bend now, and both warriors prepared to charge with all they had, injured ankles be damned!

Their swords fell in unison, the warriors expecting the blades to neatly slice through whatever was coming. Instead, a pair of loud clangs were heard as another pair of swords collided with the Master Sword and Kazuya.

Ayla laughed. "I should've expected a welcome like this."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 23**

* * *

"What the hell are you doing here?" exclaimed Link as he put away the Master Sword.

Ayla glared at him and put her swords back in their scabbards. "'what the hell are you doing here'? What kind of way is that to greet a friend?" She looked at Sheik. "You look awful, what happened?"

"A minor misstep," said Sheik. He was suspicious. How did Ayla know they were down here?

"Ah, I see," said Ayla. "Anyway, Aveil sent me after you to make sure you didn't get lost…which you obviously did judging by your very presence down here."

"Why is that?" asked Link.

"Because there are only two entrances to this tunnel, and the one you came through must have been in the old watchtower, which is in the complete opposite direction of where you're supposed to go. Really, Hero of Time, is it _that_ hard to follow a series of poles?"

"We were distracted," said Sheik, defending Link. "We were…taken quite off course."

"Is that so?" asked Ayla. "And what could possibly distract a great Sheikah warrior and the Hero of Time?" The snide tone was completely mismatched with the respect she had shown the pair back at the fortress.

"Oh, I don't know…does Sheik almost getting eaten by a Wyrm count?" asked Link, standing next to the Sheikah. "He almost died, you know."

Ayla narrowed her eyes. "A Wyrm? In the desert? Don't be ridiculous, they've been dead for centuries. Our ancestors hunted and killed them all."

"Except that one, it seems," said Sheik. "But it's gone now. Hopefully, it was the last of its kind in this particular region."

"We think Ganondorf brought it back to life," added Link. "He did the same with an ancient dragon at Death Mountain."

"This dragon would be the legendary Volvagia?" Ayla said. At their nods, she shook her head. "I truly hope that was the only Wyrm that was resurrected. The clan cannot take the responsibility of hunting down an entire brood of the damnable things. In fact, the only reason we were able to defeat them in the first place was the help we got from your ancestors," she said and pointed at Sheik. "They taught us how to lure them out of hiding and striking them down."

"There were no such tactics yesterday," muttered Sheik.

"A bomb seemed to the trick just fine," said Link proudly. "I've yet to meet a creature that doesn't swallow a bomb if it's smaller than itself."

"And by that you refer to King Dodongo, the monstrous lizard also native to Death Mountain?" said Ayla. At Link's nod, she sighed and shook her head. "That is your tactic against any creature bigger than yourself, then? Throw a bomb at it and hope it is too stupid not to eat it?"

"…it does sound less impressive when you put it that way, doesn't it?" said Sheik and chuckled.

"And he is the hope of Hyrule, is he?" said Ayla. They shared a smile and subsequently erupted in laughter.

Link crossed his arms and snorted. "I'd like to see you come up with a better plan when you're about to be grilled by the biggest lizard in the world…" When neither of the other two stopped laughing, Link grumbled and started walking in the direction Ayla had come from. "Ganging up on me is so unfair!"

* * *

"So, this is the fort we were really looking for?" asked Sheik as Ayla ushered them into the antechamber. It wasn't as much a fort as it was a hole in the ground that had been walled in with stone. A ladder at one end of the circular room led to the open desert, judging by the sand that was raining down there.

"It's not really a fort," Ayla explained. "It's more of a…rest stop. A place to seek shelter from the harsh climate. As you can see, it is far from equipped to deal with an army…there is barely room for ten people down here anyway."

"Better than nothing," said Link and slung his pack onto a solitary table that creaked ominously under the weight of the pack. "I need a break."

"Hero…have you slept at all since yesterday?" asked Sheik. He knew _he_ had fallen asleep after the fire had gone out, but was quite uncertain about Link.

"I caught a light nap after the fire went out, but that was it, I think," said the Hero and slung himself into an old, rickety chair…which fell apart barely a second after Link seated himself. He cursed loudly and rubbed his behind. "I hate this place already."

"Good thing you won't have to stay for too long, then," said Ayla. "When I arrived, the storm was dying down. It's actually possible to see your hand if you hold it in front of you now. And speaking of the storm, why aren't you wearing your robe?" she asked Sheik.

"Eaten by the Wyrm," said Link before the Sheikah could answer.

"Good thing I brought this, then," she said and pulled out a robe identical to the one she was wearing. "It's designed for women, but I guess you won't have too much trouble wearing it," she said and handed to Sheik, who took it apprehensively.

"Was that a thinly veiled insult to my stature?" he asked and tried the robe on. He refused to go out into the storm without some measure of protection.

"Depends on how you interpret it," said Ayla innocently.

 _ **I like this one, she's got charisma,**_ said Speil.

 _Will you shut up?_ Sheik said firmly in his mind. _The last thing I need on top of all this trouble is you commenting on my life!_

 _ **Too bad I'm here to stay from now on, then,**_ the Shadow said snidely. _**It is much easier spying on you two from inside your head than from a distance in my corporeal form.**_

"Is something wrong?" asked Ayla. She had noticed the annoyed expression on Sheik's face. "I'm sorry if I offended you."

"My head hurts," he lied. "I need some water. Hero?" When no answer came, Sheik turned around and saw the pile that was the sleeping Link.

"Looks like someone was a bit more tired than they cared to admit," said Ayla and started climbing the ladder. "I'm heading out to scout for a bit. There was an unusual amount of Leevers out and about."

"Be careful!" Sheik called out after her. "There might be more Wyrms out there scaring them off!"

"Of course!" she shouted back. "I'll be back in twenty minutes!"

When the sounds of her climbing disappeared, Sheik went to Link's pack and helped himself to a water bottle and more red potion. The ankle was still making its presence known (and felt) by giving a vicious throb every now and then.

 _ **She knows I'm here…interesting,**_ Speil said. His statement surprised poor Sheik so much that he choked on the mouthful of water.

"W-what?!" he coughed.

_**You heard me, pet. She knows I'm in your head. Whether she knows** _ **what** _**I am remains to be seen.** _

_But how? She doesn't have a magical aura, how can she possibly read my mind?_

_**She's not reading your mind, silly boy,**_ Speil lambasted. _**She can sense another presence inside you. My presence, to be exact.**_

_Then why didn't she say anything before? You were with me back then—_

_**Not when you first met or fought, not even during the banquet…I was…hunting in the mountains at the time.**_ After a brief moment of silence, Speil added: _**If her knowledge of my existence proves to be a…liability, I might just have to do something about her…**_

 _You will leave her alone, you hear me?_ Sheik mentally shouted. The only reply he got was Speil's rapidly fading laughter. _Bastard!_

He sank down in the second chair, which did not break under his weight like Link's had, and buried his face in his hands. Why did everything bad have to happen at the same time? First Speil decides to stay in his head permanently, and now he was considering killing Ayla.

And what's worse, he was starting to…appreciate the Hero's dark side's presence. This was the thing that was truly scaring him. Speil treated him like dirt, like a possession.

 _Like a pet,_ he thought bitterly as he felt the mark the shadow had left on his neck. Everything had changed so quickly. One moment he was happily accompanying his lover on his quest to save the world, in the next he was fighting off a lecherous, twisted version of said lover, whom he was also presently in a semi-argument with.

Link shifted in his sleep, propping himself up against the wall. Sheik suddenly had an urge to crawl up beside the Hero, to just let the oblivion of sleep claim him for a while. Everything had to be sorted out sooner or later, but Sheik didn't want that time to stall any longer.

 _Should I just tell him that Speil—his Shadow—isn't dead? He will be angry, that's for sure. And if I_ do _decide to tell him, how much should I reveal? Everything, including the fact that he has…_ he shuddered when he thought about it… _claimed me as his own?_

That was what his thoughts mainly revolved around as he waited for Ayla to come back. For a second, he thought that Speil had decided to act upon his threat, but Ayla had yet to show any hostility, and, strangely enough, he had not seemed particularly…serious, when he had said it. But the doubt kept nibbling at the back of his mind, and he was just about to climb up the ladder when the cloaked Gerudo warrior appeared in the doorway. She shook her head and removed the cloth covering her face.

"It's more or less clear outside now," she said. "Leevers are gone, and I there seems to be a clear passage to the Colossus…if you look away from the pools of quicksand, but I'm sure you can distinguish them from regular sand." She glanced at Link as she pulled down her hood, letting her hair loose. "Did he end up like that by himself?" she asked, referring to the cramped position the Hero was lying in.

"Yes," replied Sheik. "He is not a calm sleeper." He looked at her closely. "Are you coming with us?" he asked.

"Coming with you? Where?" she asked back.

"To the Colossus."

"Oh, heavens no," she said, shaking her head. "It's forbidden for anyone but the clan leader to approach the Desert Goddess."

"Then how come we're given a passage there?"

"I am sure there are special exceptions, especially for legendary heroes," she said. "Besides, you're honorary members of the clan, there are probably some perks to that."

It was disappointing to know that the capable woman would not be joining them. Sheik knew little about the desert other than basic survival skills, and even they helped very little in practical situations. Ayla must have noticed his mood, and smiled.

"There's no need to worry. It's not far to the Colossus. Most of the sand that's been shifted has been carried away, so it'll be easier than usual to walk there. In fact, I picked up the remaining trail of poles just half a mile from here. Follow that, and it'll take you directly to the Colossus." She patted him on his shoulder. "But you're not really worried about your passage there, are you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Sheik and turned away, rummaging around in his pack to seem busy. His lyre almost fell out. Had it hit the floor, it would surely have been broken.

"Come on, kid," said Ayla. "Your eyes hide nothing from me."

_Kid? Yesterday…or was it the day before? Anyway, she called me "sama" the other day_ _._

"You're worried about the Hero, aren't you?" Ayla said and glanced back to Link. "And not about his physical well-being either."

Giving up, Sheik sighed and slid down in his chair again. "How did you know?"

Ayla put a hand on her hip. "Other than the fact that I can read you like an open book, which is quite a change from when you left?" she asked. "Not much, but you two seem very tense around each other. You've got a story to tell, and I am sure it has something to do with whatever is sharing your headspace."

_Shit._

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 24**

* * *

For the umpteenth time that day, Sheik had to grab hold of Link's robe in order to stop him from wandering right into a pool of quicksand. How the Hero was unable to see the rapidly moving sand was a mystery to the Sheikah, but he didn't hate it. Mostly because Link insisted on hugging him every time, thanking him for saving his life. The Hero also managed to sneak in a few kisses here and there, which wasn't a problem for Sheik.

Ayla had been right, the marker poles the Gerudo had set up many years ago were still easily seen, and they stretched off for quite a way, indicating that the sandstorm had not wreaked as much havoc as they had thought.

The Sheikah couldn't thank Ayla enough for bringing him another robe. The air in front of them was waving hazily, and not even carrion birds were willing to follow them in the heat. Their water supply was running low, though, despite having received another batch of bottles from Ayla. But she _had_ said that the Colossus, the Spirit Temple, was not far away when they parted ways.

Link was not dealing with the desert very well. Having lived in the Kokiri Forest for most of his life, he had become adjusted to a temperate climate, with an abundance of cooling winds and a ready source of water almost everywhere. But here, where the only moisture to be found was the sweat on in their faces, the Hero was struggling. Sheik too felt maladjusted to the wasteland, but not to the same degree.

"Sheik…I need to sit down for a bit," said Link desperately. He was panting hard, and his eyes were filled with the same despair only a man thirsting to death could display.

"Of course," said Sheik and helped Link to a nearby rock. The wind had died down considerably now, and they could see quite far now. Sheik predicted that it would clear up completely in an hour's time. As far as he could see now, though, was that they only had one big dune left to cross, after which Ayla had said it was mostly clear sailing to the Colossus. The Sheikah joined the Hero of Time on the rock, staring at the vast desert. Link had pulled down his hood and was lightly splashing his face with a bit of water. Sheik frowned at the waste of water, but he couldn't bare depriving Link of the relief, no matter how useless it would be in the end.

Of course, the Hero's plight was not all out of his control. Link had, while they were packing up and getting ready to continue, insisted on carrying most of the heavy things, including the tent and most of their weapons. When Sheik had protested, Link had snorted and started climbing the ladder, only to lose his grip and fall right on his bottom, a sight both Sheik and Ayla had taken great pleasure in seeing.

Sheik took the offered water bottle from Link and took a small sip. They had to conserve whatever liquid they had.

"It's…kind of beautiful, don't you think?" asked Link suddenly, making Sheik look at him with confusion.

"Beautiful?" he asked. "That's a bit strange coming from you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you were raised in a forest…I thought you'd be pining for the Kokiri Forest right now."

"I kinda am, actually…but I like seeing new places. Let's face it; trees get incredibly dull when you're surrounded by them all the time."

Sheik blinked. "I wouldn't exactly call this place a barrel of fun, either. There's nothing even remotely alive here."

"But it's still…I can't explain it," Link said with a huff. "It's just beautiful, okay?"

"Okay," Sheik repeated. He couldn't quite see the charm in the lifeless, scorching desert, but to each his own, he supposed. A comfortable silence fell over them, each enjoying the other's company. It was moments like these that Sheik enjoyed the most. It allowed him time to reflect on things. And the comforting presence of the Hero let him relax.

There was another thing about these silences he enjoyed, he realised. Speil had been oddly quiet ever since their talk inside the fort. He had not even surfaced to sound let his outrage be known after his conversation with Ayla. It had been hard, telling her everything…

* * *

"So what you are saying is that you are unwillingly playing host to the Hero of Time's dark, evil twin?" Ayla asked after Sheik had finished his story. "And that he claims ownership over you, and plans to kill the Hero?"

"That's the gist of it, yes," Sheik replied. "But here's the strange thing about it all: when I first met the Shadow in the temple under Lake Hylia, he was reduced to the most basic of being, a mere shadow, and a murderous one at that. But every time I have spoken with him, he seems to have…changed, somewhat. His intelligence is increasing, and his language and grammar is improving."

"So he's…developing?" she asked. "Evolving?"

"In the lack of a better word, yes. Also, he is becoming more…friendly. He leaves me mostly alone as long as I don't attack him."

"But you said he basically violates you every time you sleep!" exclaimed Ayla. "How is that even remotely friendly?"

"He hasn't violated me yet," said Sheik. "At least, not like _that_. I don't think he wants to do it…not yet, at least."

They both fell silent. Ayla seemed to be thinking hard, her eyes rolling around every now and then. She was biting her lips as well. Sheik was doing something he only did when extremely preoccupied while thinking, which was twiddling his thumbs. He really couldn't think of anything else to say. Speil was, by definition, an evil creature created by the Water Temple to test the Hero of Time, but he was developing a personality that was quite…approachable. And then there was the matter of his hopeful-sounding voice when he had wanted to explain what he was to Sheik in his last dream.

"Is he here now?" asked Ayla, snapping the Sheikah out of his reverie. "Is he listening to us?"

"I'm not sure," said Sheik. "He could be. He has started commenting on whatever is going on lately, but he hasn't spoken to me in a while. I think he may be sleeping, or lying dormant."

"Good, then he hopefully won't take offence to what I'm about to say," said Ayla and grabbed Sheik's shoulders. "You need to get rid of that thing at once," she said gravely. "Demonic possessions, charming or not, is dangerous. For all you know, he may be planning to take over your body, especially if you consider the way he talks about making you his."

That thought had never occurred to Sheik, and he looked worried over at Link. "He could possess me and force me to stab Link in his sleep…" he said slowly.

"Among…other things, yes," agreed Ayla. "You said he left a mark upon you. Let me see it."

Sheik obeyed, pushing aside his cowl, revealing the bite mark left by Speil. She studied it for a bit, prodding and brushing it. He hissed when she hit a particularly tender spot.

"How long has it been there?" Ayla asked.

"A couple of weeks, I think. I can't remember exactly when he gave it to me." It was true, too. He couldn't remember when exactly he had gone back to the Water Temple and been thoroughly beaten by Speil in his corporeal form.

"I think this is what he uses to enter your mind," she said, laying her hand over the mark. "It's still raw and tender. Either you've got one hell of an infection under that scar, or the shadow irritates it every time he leaves and enters you." She blushed a few seconds afterwards, realising what she had just said. "Uh, I didn't mean it _that_ way…"

"I'm sure you didn't," said Sheik with a huff. He pulled his cowl back up. "Is there anything I should do?" He knew the Gerudo elders were quite proficient with magic, although he had not seen any of these at the fortress.

"Had Kotake and Koume still been around, they might have been able to exorcise the shadow. Unfortunately, they are missing," answered Ayla. She sighed. "Everything is falling apart back at the fortress, you know."

"What do you mean?"

"There is talk of open rebellion against Aveil, her detractors claiming that she does not have the clan's best interests in mind anymore. And I suspect her honouring and making an alliance with you was the drop that spilled the cup. The things I heard when I was preparing to leave for the desert…"

"I'm sorry," said Sheik. He hadn't realised just how much trouble his presence at the fortress could possibly cause. "I guess bad blood is hard to get rid of."

"Indeed," said Ayla. "That is the biggest reason I cannot come with you to the Colossus."

"I thought you said you were forbidden from going there?"

"I am, but I rarely play by the rules, Sheik-sama," she said and grinned. It fell right after. "If things get out of hand back at the fortress, I must be by Aveil's side to protect her. We cannot risk a civil war now, not when we are making plans to separate ourselves from Ganondorf."

"You what?"

This was unheard of. The Gerudo openly rebelling against their king? There had not been a single case in the entire Gerudo history of something similar happening.

"He is not what we look for in a king," said Ayla and grinned. "We are…deposing him."

"Then who will take the throne?"

"Nabooru, of course! She is the only one who can. Which is why it is so important for us that you bring her back to the fortress after conquering the temple. We need her as a figurehead when we declare our independence!"

* * *

It had been an interesting day for both parties involved in the conversation. Link had started waking up after Ayla revealed the Gerudo's plans, and nothing more had been said between the two. But Ayla had winked at him when they parted ways, telling him in her own way that his secret was safe with her.

It had been comforting to finally get the burden off his chest, to have someone else but him be aware of Speil's existence. He never had the time to ask her his most pressing and crucial question, though. "Should I tell him?"

A sound to his left caught his attention, and he saw that Link was preparing to move on. Sheik stood up, hefting his pack over his shoulder. Then he grabbed Link's outstretched hand and helped the Hero onto his feet.

"We'll soon be there," he said, nodding at Link.

Link smiled. "We'd better be…or I'll melt."

"Please don't," said Sheik and started walking, his hand still clasped with Link's. "I prefer my boyfriend to be solid."

It was a ridiculous joke, but they both enjoyed a hearty laugh.

* * *

"It's a carpet."

"Yes, Link, it is."

"In the desert."

"Indeed."

" _Floating_."

"That it does." Feeling that they had had a conversation just like this some time before, Sheik derailed it. "Over a quicksand-hole. And there's no occupant. There is only one logical conclusion to draw, is there not?" He looked at Link.

"They fell," said the Hero simply. Sheik nodded.

"That is the most likely case."

"And there's nothing we can do for them," said Link.

"No, there is not." Sheik looked at the floating carpet for a few seconds. If he knew what kind of magic controlled it, then perhaps—

 _No, no, no! I will_ not _try to control a magical carpet in the middle of a bloody desert!_

Why the idea had even occurred to him was something he did not wish to know. He bowed his head respectfully to the carpet and dragged Link along.

When they had disappeared over the nearby dune, a long-haired man materialised on the carpet, his face obscured by his long, brown tresses. Only his nose peeked out from the curtain that was his hair.

"A Sheikah…how interesting. The sisters will be interested to know about this…"

* * *

The sun was beginning to set now, and the temperature was rapidly dropping. It did not dampen their spirits, though, for Sheik had spotted something as they came over the largest dune so far. An outline further ahead. There were few mountains in the _actual_ Gerudo Desert, and they had been following the poles the entire way.

"I believe that is the Colossus," he told Link and pointed at the peak in the distance. It was not a tall one.

"Finally," said Link, sweat pouring from his forehead. "I don't think I would've been able to walk much farther."

"At least not without some sort of gratification, I think," replied Sheik. He too had slowly started to lose patience with the nothingness that was the environment in the desert. The heat didn't help much either.

Link straightened up from the slouch he had assumed as they walked, his shield glinting in the dying sunlight. "I think…we'll have a race."

Sheik looked at the Hero. "In your condition? I'd win just by standing still."

"You're on," said Link and took off, running across the dune with renewed vigour. Smiling, Sheik followed him, easily catching up with the Hero and, with a grin in Link's direction, ran past him.

Link shouted after him. "Hey, my pack is heavier!"

At the top of the large dune, a tiny light was flickering in and out of existence.

**"Hee-he-he-he-he…"**

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 25**

* * *

He had been told stories of this place, an ancient temple where the Gerudo once worshipped the heathen goddess, whose name was no longer allowed to be spoken. Sheik had done his best to find her name out, but all effort had been in vain. It was as if her name had simply been stricken from history, the only evidence of her "existence" being the gigantic mountain carved in her likeness and the Gerudo's fierce protection of the place.

The stories truly could not compare to seeing the place with his own eyes, Sheik decided. He and Link were standing some distance away from the entrance, looking at the Colossus' face. She looked oddly benevolent; quite a contrast to what the stories had depicted her as. Years upon years of sandstorms had, of course, withered away the once solid stone and removed quite a large part of her face, but there was still a distinctive quirk in her lips.

They were both panting. Link had done his best to catch up with Sheik, but had to yield to the younger boy's speed, agility and the fact that he was not carrying the heavy pack containing most of their equipment and supplies. Upon stopping, Sheik had turned around and given Link a smug smile, which the Hero had scowled at and then continued to trudge past Sheik, stopping in front of a miniature oasis.

It was amazing how clear the water was, and its sheer presence in this particular area of the desert tipped Sheik off about the inherent magical qualities the Colossus possessed. None of the sand at the bottom of the pond swirled up when their hands brushed against it, and the water itself was exactly like the water you could find at the top of a glacier.

Just to be sure, they refilled their empty bottles with the sparkling water. Magic was highly unpredictable unless wielded by someone who had studied it for years (The Hero of Time was, naturally, an exception. Sheik found it highly unfair), and this oasis could very well disappear in thin air the next day. Ironically, the water in their bottles would probably evaporate as well, but it was worth a shot, Link had decided.

The sun was dipping below the horizon now, and already the temperature was falling quite fast. Redoing his ponytail, Sheik looked at Link's pack, which the Hero had dropped noisily on the sand.

"We should probably set up the tent," said Sheik. "And make a start on the temple tomorrow."

Link nodded. "Yeah. There's no way I'm going in there—"he jerked a thumb at the Colossus"—tonight."

"We," said Sheik. "'We' aren't going in there tonight."

"Yeah, yeah," said Link and pulled out the heavy cloth. It was hard to identify the fabric. It seemed to be similar to Sheik's exoskeleton, but much coarser and sturdier, if that was even possible. The setting up was something neither of the boys ever wanted to do again. Link, having grown accustomed to sleeping underneath the stars by a fire, had never had any experience with setting up a tent, and Sheik, while having shared quite a few tents with the princess' soldiers now and then, had never taken part in the actual construction.

The biggest problem was the pegs. The sand around the oasis was the kind that was especially dry, which was just a plain oxymoron according to Sheik considering the amount of moisture barely a couple of feet away. In any case, the pegs had difficulty in finding grip in the brittle sand. It wasn't until Link suggested pouring water on the places they wanted to pegs to go that they actually made somewhat progress.

"It's just a temporary measure, though," said Sheik, but smiled as the peg finally stayed where it was supposed to after he rammed it into the ground. "The sand will dry again, and then the pegs will loosen."

"Hopefully, by the time the sand dries, we'll be long gone," replied Link. He rammed the final peg home and adjusted it so the line was completely rigid. He seemed to remember something and turned to Sheik with a grave expression previously unseen on the young warrior's face. "I am not _walking_ backthrough the desert when we leave, you hear me?"

Surprised, and just a bit frightened by the smouldering look, Sheik nodded. "Do not worry. We will teleport." Then something flashed across his memory.

 _The song…I need to find the song!_ he thought. He looked around, trying to find the dais every temple possessed. He turned to Link. "We need to find the teleport spot."

Link looked confused. "Can't that wait until tomorrow? It's not like we're gonna use it…"

"Perhaps not, but I still need to find the song and teach it to you," said Sheik and drew his lyre from his pack. "It's…necessary."

Link sighed and nodded, picking up his sword and shield. "Let's find it, then. Though I think it's kind of strange that _you're_ going to _teach_ _me_ a song not even _you know_."

Sheik blinked. There had been a lot of emphasising in that sentence, and the tone had not been particularly friendly.

 _He's tired from the journey,_ he reminded himself. _And so are you, don't let it get to you._ He smiled gently at Link. "Well, I'm the only one who can read notes, ne?"

"I can read _some_ of them," said Link. "Saria taught me…that's how I was able to learn The Sun's Song."

"Then how about we see who can learn it first? And whoever wins can teach the other?" Sheik suggested. He was feeling a bit giddy.

He suspected it was the magical ambience that was cheering him up. Back in Kakariko, the Shadow Temple had always leaked traces of magic, which often manifested in sudden mood swings in the people who lived there. Contradictory enough, most of these mood swings were toward the happier end of the emotional spectrum, and people paid them no heed anymore. But Sheik had been away from Kakariko for a long time, and just the feeling of a strong magical presence was comforting.

Link seemed to take quite well to the idea and smiled. "Another competition, eh? Trying to give your lover another chance to prove his mettle and manliness?"

"I wouldn't call a musical competition especially manly, but yes, that is what I'm attempting," answered Sheik. He looked around at the open space in front of the Colossus. "Considering the storm, I suppose the dais has been buried in the sand. Let's just hope it's not buried too deep." And off they went.

* * *

Night had fallen by the time they found it, and the moon had risen high in the sky. The dais was a little ways to the right of the temple entrance. To say that they found it would be a lie. To say that Link tripped over it and fell on his face would be accurate. After a heavy bout of cursing, some of which Sheik was horrified to find that Link _knew_ , the pair had uncovered the marble platform. The symbol of the Spirit Temple, three dots intersected by lines, glowed eerily in the moonlight.

"So…" said Link, rubbing his nose, which had gotten scraped in his encounter with the sand, "What now?"

Sheik felt around the stone. "Impa told me that the notes have been carved into the marble itself, close to the symbol." He found a nook, which felt suspiciously like a note, and then another. "I think I've got it," he said. "I need some more light, though."

"Not a problem," said Link. He held out a hand, and glowing ember appeared in his palm. He looked around for something he could use. Regrettable, the only thing that could be helpful at this time was a dry-looking palm tree. "Damn," he whispered and threw the ember at the palm, the dry plant quickly catching fire. It cast a red glow over the area. It was useful, but having been raised as a Kokiri, hurting trees was something he never wanted to do. Or could, for fear of being ostracised by the rest of the forest children…

"Thank you," said Sheik without looking up. He blew the remaining grains of sand out of the nooks, and there it was, the Requiem of Spirit, transcribed in the marble. "Hm…it's not very complex," he said and fingered the strings on his lyre. He was roughly pushed aside by an eager-looking Link, Ocarina of Time in hand. The Hero studied the notes for quite some time, blowing experimentally in the flute, trying to figure out how it went.

 _He's cute when he's so focused,_ thought Sheik. He shook his head. _After the quest,_ after _the quest._

"Ah-hah!" exclaimed the Hero of Time and stood up triumphantly, holding the ocarina high. "I know how to play it now. How about you?"

Sheik couldn't bring himself to tell Link that he had learnt the song right after seeing the notes, being quite proficient at the musical art. He shook his head in what he hoped was a sad way.

"I am afraid not, Link." He held his lyre closer to his body. "Can you teach me?"

Link beamed. "Of course!"

* * *

 _He's actually quite a good teacher,_ Sheik reflected as they headed back to the tent, paying the temple entrance no heed. They were having the evening off, and that was final. _Of course, it helps knowing the subject beforehand, but still…good teacher._

He smiled as he felt the Hero's fingers interlink with his. A faint breeze was blowing across the area, just faint enough to be noticeable, not strong enough to be annoying. But it _was_ cold, though.

The campsite was not a proper campsite unless it had a roaring fire, Link had decided, and as soon as the tent came into sight, began to gather anything flammable close by, except living plants. Sheik noticed that he kept a respectful distance to them.

 _Must be something about being a Kokiri,_ he thought. While Link gathered firewood, he decided to organise their packs and get everything inside the tent before anything was stolen by mischievous desert creatures. He knew for a fact that there were foxes nearby, as he had seen a pair of ears appearing over a dune, and he would not stand for theft by the furry little animals.

The tent was, in his opinion, far bigger than they needed it to be. It was clearly designed for at least eight to ten occupants, and the space inside was enormous. The packs barely occupied a small portion of a corner, for the goddesses' sake! But still, it _had_ been useful when they were camping out in the old watchtower, so Sheik was grateful for it. But there was a bit of a problem. The floor was still the sandy ground, and neither of them had thought of taking futons with them. At worst, they could use their cloaks for mattresses, but then they would have nothing to protect themselves from the cold.

Sheik voiced this concern to Link, who had gotten a surprisingly large fire going. The Hero looked deep in thought for a second, and had then smiled at Sheik in the way someone with a secret usually did. He said nothing, but kept that little smile on his face all evening as the two sat and ate another broth, courtesy of Sheik's extraordinary culinary skills. Sipping at the flavoured water, Sheik looked suspiciously at the Hero.

_He's not thinking about…is he?_

_**What do you think, pet?** _

Sheik was barely able to keep the groan back. The bite mark had started to itch as he had stuffed their packs into the tent, but had ignored it in the hope that Speil had been leaving, not coming back.

_Where have you been? Out killing someone?_

_**And there we have it again. Just because I am a creature created specifically to kill someone, you think that I cannot control myself. I would like you to stop that, pet. And you need not worry about the Gerudo female…she is unharmed.** _

_She had better be, or else—_

_**Or else what? You will 'end' me, as you so theatrically told me when we first met? I amused myself endlessly with that line as I slowly drank the fairy's blood, and—** _

_SHUT UP!_ Sheik mentally shouted, dropping his bowl in the process. The broth spilled out on the sand, where it was quickly swallowed up by the grains. The pieces of meat and vegetables, although unharmed, were covered in sand and now inedible.

Link's hand was on his immediately, and the Sheikah looked up into the worried gaze of the Hero.

"Is something wrong?"

 _ **Think fast, pet…**_ said Speil and chuckled, his voice fading away.

"Eh…ankle twitched," Sheik lied, feeling absolutely pathetic. He, a trained spy, a master of deception and subterfuge, unable to keep an "Eh" out of his lies.

"Let me see," said Link and started to unroll the bandage around Sheik's ankle. The Sheikah sighed as the still tender area was slowly massaged by Link.

All things considered, excluding the malevolent spirit in his head, Sheik was enjoying himself immensely.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 26**

* * *

"That's the last time I pitch a tent with the opening facing the sun," grumbled Link as he stretched his back. He shivered slightly as a small breeze came through the opening. The night had been cold, very cold. If he had to compare it to a similar experience, the ice cavern was the prime candidate…only he didn't have to spend a night in the frozen cave.

Sheik was standing outside, enjoying the sunrise. Unlike Link, he had been awake for over an hour already. And it was just as well. The position he had found himself in when he woke up, while very comfortable and warming, was not something he was supposed to do.

_What did the villagers call it again? …ah, yes. Spooning._

It _had_ been hard to extract himself from Link's embrace, but nature had also made a call, and there are just some calls you don't ignore or put on a waiting list.

The desert, while a hellish wasteland during the day and a frozen tundra at night, was absolutely stunning at dawn. The rising sun's rays were reflected in the dew from the night, and mirages were slowly starting to form, a phenomenon Sheik had never seen before. He had always assumed that mirages were just…there.

He smiled when Link hugged him from behind, apparently trying to continue the cuddle from the night. He leaned slightly back into the embrace, wondering why he had even thought he could resist being around the Hero.

"Sleep well?" he asked the Hero, who snorted.

"Cold," was the short reply.

"Must be why you so desperately curled around me, then."

"That, and the fact that you look adorable when you're asleep."

"Hm."

They stood like this for a while, neither of them wanting to let go and begin the arduous task that awaited them. Light was creeping up the Colossus, and the entrance to the temple inside was mocking them, Sheik was sure of it.

To his surprise, as he was usually the one to focus, Link was the first to sigh heavily and step away. The Sheikah looked at him with an inquisitive glance.

"I just want to get this over with as soon as possible," the Hero explained and started to buckle on his sword and shield. "This is the last temple, and after this we can put an end to this madness."

 _He…seems so mature these days…_ Sheik thought. _A clear change from the boy I met in the Temple of Time so many months ago._ The Sheikah, while appreciative of the shift in Link's priorities, kind of missed the boyish outbursts and general behaviour. He had been so…optimistic.

Sheik nodded to Link and started gathering his weapons and items. Kazuya had become a comfortable weight on his back now, and he was starting to feel so very unarmed unless the sword was in reach. Of course, the multiple daggers hidden in his bandages were still very potent against most foes, but there was just something about the inherited blade that… He couldn't even explain it to himself.

He redid his turban, much to Link's chagrin. "The ponytail will just be in the way," Sheik explained as he finished it and tightened its hold on his hair. "I don't want it to smack into my face when we fight."

Link smiled as he surely imagined it happening. "Yeah, that would be kind of annoying, wouldn't it?"

"Annoying?" asked Sheik. "It could get me killed."

"Fair enough," said Link and went through his pack, finding his bow and arrows along with the Longshot. The bow was flung across his back, and the quiver hung on his left side, which Sheik found odd until he remembered that Link was left-handed. That was a fact Sheik had never been able to memorise, strangely enough.

 _It doesn't really matter as long as he's capable of using his tools,_ he thought. He found another errant dagger and shoved it between two lengths of bandage on his wrist, close to the exoskeleton's sleeve. He looked long and hard at the lyre, trying to figure whether or not it would be a wise idea to bring it along. It could be used to teleport them out in case of trouble, but so could the Ocarina of Time, and Link did not know how to play the lyre while Sheik knew how to play the flute… He regretfully put the lyre back in his pack and put the pack into the tent.

"I'll be back for you," he said quietly. The instrument had no real value as it was really a simple construction, but Impa had given it to him when he had finished his training, and he had taken really good care of it ever after.

Stepping outside, Link turned to him now fully equipped. The pockets of his tunic bulged from the many devices and weapons he had put in there. Sheik still liked him better without that ridiculous cap.

"Ready?" asked the Hero.

Sheik nodded in confirmation. "As I'll ever be, I suppose." He turned to look at the Colossus. "There is _one_ thing that still worries me, however."

"Which is?"

"Where is Nabooru?" He looked back at Link. "Surely she would have noticed us combing the area for the dais and chased us away, given the inherent holiness of this place. But she didn't. Which makes me think—"

"That she's in trouble," finished Link and nodded. "I was thinking the same, actually. So, I guess we have a Gerudo princess to save, then."

"Indeed," agreed Sheik.

The walk to the temple entrance was slow. So far, nothing had seemed out of the ordinary around the Colossus, which was different from all the other temples. Moblins had infested the Lost Woods. Volvagia had awoken and imprisoned every Goron she could find and made the smoke ring around Death Mountain glow eerily. Lake Hylia had been drained of all water and the creatures had gone wild. Bongo-Bongo had escaped from the well in Kakariko and caused havoc around the village. Yet here, not a single suspicious thing had happened. Apart from the missing Nabooru, of course.

It made them both apprehensive, and none of them could shake off the feeling that someone was watching them.

The tension was broken, thankfully, by something moving underneath the sand in front of them, very much like the Wyrm had done a few days ago. Link was not prepared to take any chances this time, and let loose an arrow against the moving mound. There was a high-pitched shriek, but no gigantic worm to see, nor any tentacles. Instead, another six mounds appeared, and were now moving toward the pair with alarming speed.

The first of the mounds reached Link, and the mound exploded in flying sand as something green revealed itself, spinning around with sharp teeth quickly trying to bite the Hero's leg. Unexpectedly, Link did not draw his sword or another arrow. Instead, he pulled his right leg a little back, and _punted_ the leever all the way back to the entrance to the temple. Had Sheik been less trained to handle surprises and ambushes, his jaw would have fallen open at the Hero's display of athletic prowess. Leevers, while not very large creatures, weighed quite a lot because of the extreme muscle power they required to spin around in the sand. The creature's feeble legs kicked in the air as it tried to right itself, an act of futility considering it had landed on solid stone.

The other leevers took no notice of this, apparently, and kept coming. Now Link drew his sword and shield, assuming his normal fighting stance, shield front and sword pointed behind him, ready to slice or stab. The leevers all targeted him, it seemed, and Sheik briefly wondered if they were all magically compelled to attack the chosen of the goddesses. Not that it mattered, since Link easily sliced them apart, one by one.

As the last leever's head hit the sand, the Master Sword was already halfway back in its scabbard. He looked at Sheik, noting the bemused expression on the Sheikah's face.

"What?"

"Nothing," said Sheik. "It's just that they were all after you. Leevers _do_ attack en masse if their prey is alone, but are intelligent enough to fan out a bit if there is an additional threat."

"Maybe they just didn't consider you a threat," said Link and grinned. Sheik narrowed his eyes, and Link waved his arms. "I was kidding, _kidding_! I know what you mean. You think someone's controlling them."

"Or influencing them, at the very least," said Sheik. "Had someone been in direct control, they surely would have used a more clever strategy than 'Charge Straight at the Chosen One'." He noticed Link's shiver. "What's wrong?"

"I don't like that title," explained Link. "It's even worse than 'Hero of Time'."

"You will have to get used to them eventually," said Sheik. "When you defeat Ganondorf, all of Hyrule will hail you as such."

Link's snorted and laid an arm across the Sheikah's shoulders. "You mean that when _we_ defeat Ganondorf, _we_ will be hailed as such. I'm not gonna suffer alone."

 _Touching, but foolish,_ Sheik thought. _Hyrule will not accept that a filthy Sheikah helped the Hero of Time, except Kakariko, of course._

He slowly pulled the arm away from him. "I won't be hailed, Hero, for I do not exist. Nor do I wish to be." He pulled his cowl up, once again obscuring his face from the world. Only his ruby eyes were allowed to be seen. "I am a Sheikah, I am but a shadow in the background." Link opened his mouth to say something, surely a protest of some sort, but Sheik silenced him with a finger to his lips. "Nothing you say or do will ever change that, Link, so there is no need to argue."

Defeated, Link started to trudge to the entrance, Sheik following.

"Fine," said the Hero.

_Damn…I just offended him, didn't I?_

He stopped Link and turned him around so they were face to face. "You must understand that Hyrule will never accept that I aided you in your quest."

Link's eyes widened. "What? Why not?"

"Surely you heard the inhabitants of Castle Town speaking ill of the Sheikah when you were there seven years ago?" Sheik said. "They were uneasy around Impa, but when I was announced as the newest protector of the Royal Family a couple of weeks before you arrived, the town nearly went into hysterics."

"That's ridiculous!" exclaimed Link. "Why would they possibly do that?"

"Because they thought Impa was the last of the Sheikah," Sheik explained. "Hylians have always been sceptical to us, despite the fact that we have protected their royal family for centuries. Perhaps they thought that they finally were going to be rid of us."

Link's jaw was clenching, and Sheik realised he had just made a fatal mistake by telling him of this.

"And they expect me to save them, despite them being prejudiced bastards?" he asked slowly.

"Not all of them," Sheik tried to explain. "The villagers in Kakariko don't think so, and I believe their views are affecting the refugees."

Link shook his head. "Not good enough."

Giving up, Sheik looked at the entrance to the temple. "Look, nothing I have revealed to you right now changes anything. Hyrule and all its races and civilizations are in dire need of the Hero of Time, and for you to abandon them just because some of them are distrustful of the Sheikah simply will not do. If it helps, keep thinking that you are not doing it for them, but all your friends and loved ones. The Kokiri, the Zora, the Gorons…"

Link looked Sheik deep in the eyes for a second, hard at thought. He then smiled gently. "Alright, then I'm doing it for you."

* * *

"There's something in the statue's hands," Link said as they were climbing the stairs to the entrance. The incapacitated leever was still shrieking at the top, and Sheik could not wait to put the creature out of its misery. The sound went through bone and marrow, and the stairs were not helping either.

"Where?" asked sheik, realising just seconds later how stupid the question was. He looked at the Colossus' hands saw that, indeed, there were objects in both palms. "Looks like chests," he said.

"I bet some stupid puzzle involves their contents," muttered Link as he absent-mindedly sliced the dying leever in half. Sheik noted this with worry.

While it was no secret that the Hero of Time would be forced to kill many creatures and enemies, it had always seemed to Sheik that Link was apprehensive to the idea of killing other living beings. But now he had just cut a leever in half without thinking.

 _I must speak to him about this later,_ he thought and shuffled the worry to the back of his mind.

"Ready?" asked Link as they stood in front of the entrance. Torches lined the walls inside and gave a clear view of the first room. A small set of stairs to a large, empty platform.

"Ready," he confirmed, and they walked inside.

* * *

It was warm inside, probably because of the massive torches. Many pots and vases lined the walls before the small staircase, and two serpent-shaped tablets stood on both sides of the steps. Sheik could not read them and informed Link of this. The Hero couldn't care less, as he was not interested in the history of the temple and just wanted it to be over with.

They were just about to approach the stairs when two of the pots on either side of them were suddenly lifted into the air and thrown at them. Sheik sidestepped out of a pot's path while Link raised his shield, the pot smashing to bits against it.

"That's not a very good sign, is it?" Link asked.

"Not if you were expecting a friendly welcome," said Sheik and climbed the stairs, looking around at the large platform at the top. There was a large, silvery block of stone blocking of the path to the right, and to the left…

"I can't fit in there," said Link. "Even if I stripped naked!"

 _Not a sight I wouldn't enjoy…_ Sheik thought. "Neither will I. It is too narrow for either of us."

It truly was small. The crawlspace had clearly been designed for something else than crawling around in. Now that Sheik looked at more closely, it seemed to be more of a drainage ditch than a crawlspace.

 _Only a child could fit in there,_ he thought. _But where are we going to find a child around here, much less one who would be willing to brave whatever dangers there are on the other side?_

He noticed Link was gone and turned around. The Hero was currently trying to move the gigantic block. Without luck, too. He noticed Sheik's stare. "Don't just stand there, help me!"

The Sheikah did so, but even with their efforts combined, the block did not move an inch. It didn't even groan in protest from being pushed about.

They tried again and again, the block never yielding. Finally, in a fit of frustration, Link punched it. It wasn't an especially hard punch, but Sheik still heard the cracking sound as a finger clearly went out of joint. If that wasn't much of a hint, the screaming and cursing Link sure was.

* * *

"What the hell are we supposed to do?!" growled Link. They were sitting on the steps outside the entrance. Leevers were flocking around the lowest step, just waiting for one of them to come down. Link yelped as Sheik finally managed to get digit back in its place.

"I don't know, Hero," said Sheik. He was truly stumped. They could not move the block, and they could not fit in the crawlspace, and those were the only paths out of the main hall and further into the temple. "I truly don't know."

They both sat silent in thought, until Link's eyebrow rose slowly.

"Hey…what if I try—"

"You will not throw a bomb at the block," Sheik said sharply. "What if you destroy something vital on the other side?"

Link slumped dejectedly. "Fine."

_If only there was another way into temple…a back entrance, or something similar…_

Then an idea popped up. He looked at the Colossus' hands again. He then looked at the crumbling rock wall underneath them. Deep grooves littered the entire surface. He looked back to the hands.

"I can climb up there and see what is in the chests," he said slowly and stood up. He walked over to the wall, Link following closely after.

"Are you sure? Looks kinda…dangerous," said the Hero.

"It's either that, or sit around waiting for a miracle," said Sheik and felt around for points to start. He found one and put his foot inside. He tested his weight, trying to gauge whether or not the crumbling stone would support him. It did. He looked at Link. "I'll be right back."

It didn't take long to reach the right hand of the Colossus. It was as if the surface had been specially tailored and worn away to accommodate climbing on it. Sheik was sure that some kind of trap would spring any second as he made his way upwards. He swung himself onto the gigantic palm and looked around. A door was obscured by the cliff wall when you stood down on the ground, but Sheik saw it now. And then there was the chest.

He took a moment to check it for traps. There was no point in rushing, as Impa had hammered through his head day in and day out for years. Slowly opening the large, wooden chest, he narrowed his eyes in case something flew out of it. Nothing did. He opened it all the way and gazed down at the contents.

A pair of gauntlets, not very different from the ones Link was wearing, except the silver plates on the back of the hands. He lifted them and marvelled at their seemingly non-existent weight. He remembered the legend about these gauntlets. They allowed the wearer to lift many times their own weight.

"Link! Catch!" he called and dropped the gauntlets. These too could only be used by the Hero of Time.

Said Hero caught them, looked puzzled at them for a moment and then back up at Sheik. "What're these?!"

"Put them on!" Sheik called. "They'll make you much stronger, you can use them too move that block in—"

He was never able to finish the sentence, for a lightning bolt had suddenly materialised out of thin air and struck the hand Sheik was standing on, slicing off two of the massive fingers at the same time. Sheik ducked to avoid a second bolt, this one hitting the cliff wall, which immediately started to crack and crumble.

" **Got you, Sheikah! Hee-he-he-he-he!"** said an old, dry voice as yet another bolt shot toward Sheik. He had to think fast. He was a sitting duck where he stood, and he could feel the hand slowly giving away. He couldn't climb back down, nor could he jump. If the fall didn't kill him, then the assailant would.

 _ **The door, pet. That's the only way!**_ yelled Speil's voice suddenly, and for once Sheik couldn't find any faults with his suggestion. He looked down at Link, who had drawn his bow and were trying to find a target.

"Link! I'll meet you inside!" he yelled. The Hero nodded.

He darted inside the doorway, slamming the massive door behind him. Link ran inside the temple, fumbling with the gauntlets.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 27**

* * *

The sounds of the statue breaking apart behind him were effectively cut off as the heavy wooden door slammed shut. Sheik braced himself against it in case the attacker tried to follow him inside. After two minutes of no activity, Sheik considered the threat gone at the moment. Detaching himself from the door, he turned around—and almost walked right into a brick wall. Taking a step back, he realised that it was the back of a throne of sorts, in which a large suit of armour was sitting. He inspected it. The helmet was open, and there was no one inside.

Sheik finally let himself breathe out, and took a moment to recuperate, leaning against the throne. This journey was taking quite a toll on the shadow warrior, and he tired more easily now.

 _Well, with dozens of injuries, that is no mystery,_ he reminded himself and pushed away from the throne, observing the room more closely. It looked like a throne hall. A small one, but a throne hall nonetheless. There were pillars lining a small path created by a purple rug that ran from the door at the end of the room all the way to the throne. Torches crackled happily along the walls, and the room was quite warm. Not unpleasant desert-warm, but comfortable-warm, like the one in the princess' hideout.

Then he took a closer look at the door. Something was blocking it. As he drew near, he realised what they were. Heavy steel bars had slammed shut in front of the door, preventing any exit. Something clicked under his boot, and an identical set of bars descended upon the door he had originally come through.

 _Great,_ he thought. _I'm trapped._

Wasting no time, Sheik immediately tried to find any switches, buttons or levers he could pull. He had stepped on a switch that had locked him in; surely there would be one that would do the opposite. After fifteen minutes of frustrating and fruitless search, he sighed and sat on the floor with his back to a pillar.

He was sweating. The turban was uncomfortably tight, and his cowl seemed to have the intention of cutting off his air supply. He wrenched the thing off his face and threw it in the corner with a growl. He wiped his forehead, scoffing at the moisture gathered there. The room was getting warmer, and quickly so. In another fit of frustration, he pulled off his turban as well, immediately tying his hair into a somewhat-practical ponytail.

 _Twenty minutes into the quest and I'm already out of uniform,_ he thought bitterly. _I hope Link is okay…what if that…thing followed him inside? No, Link wouldn't fall to such a cheap foe._ It was hard to keep that in mind as the temperature rose and rose with no end in sight. In a final search effort, Sheik went back to the door he came in through and looked around. And there it was. He couldn't believe he had overlooked it at first, it was so obvious. He could feel letters lining the frame. _Familiar_ letters.

 _Sheikah letters!_ he thought excitedly. Concentrating (which was quite hard in the heat), he felt the indentations and read.

 _To unseal what has been sealed, The Executioner of Iron must be destroyed …_ That was all it said. Sheik knew what it meant. _The armour…_

He walked around the throne and observed the seated armour. It was covered in dust and massive in size, far larger than any Hylian or Gerudo he had ever seen. Gorons could not fit their frame into the delicately shaped joints, and Zoras would have been crushed by it. An equally massive battleaxe lay across its lap, surely the reason for the armour's name.

 _No time to dwell on this,_ he reminded himself and drew Kazuya. If what Impa had told him was true, then the blade would easily slice through the ancient metal. But how should it be done? He had to commit some thought to this, and came to the conclusion that a diagonal slice from the shoulder down would do the trick, as it would with any other armour-clad enemy. Sheik raised Kazuya, and swung.

What exactly happened right after was a blur for Sheik. He vaguely remembered Kazuya connecting with the armour with a loud clang, but the metal had not given in to the sword. Instead, the impact sent vibrations back through Kazuya, numbing Sheik's arm in the process. And then the armour had moved…

A massive fist had swung back and hit him in the chest, throwing him clear across the room. He collided painfully with a pillar and fell to the floor, coughing. He could hear the sound of metal sliding against metal, and looked up. The helmet had clapped shut, and an eerie glow emerged from the eyeholes. Then the armour rose, and Sheik realised just what kind of creature he was dealing with.

 _An Iron Knuckle,_ he thought. _Ancient, tortured souls bound within suits of armour, forever slaves to the will of whoever bound them…_ He shook life back into his arm, and prepared himself for what would not be an easy battle.

It was standing now, and gazed directly at the Sheikah. It uttered a sound not too far from a growl, but it sounded far too ancient and malevolent. Then it started walking towards him. Slowly, step by step, it approached Sheik, axe held firmly in its gauntlets. Sheik moved around it in a circle, trying to remember what the historical texts had said about the monsters.

 _The armour is enchanted, impossible to damage with conventional means,_ he thought. He was surprised at the speed at which the Iron Knuckle could turn as it pirouetted 180 degrees and kept walking to him. _Their only weak point is the dark brain, which is located inside the helmet._

Sheik jumped backwards as the Knuckle swung its axe, this also surprisingly fast. The axe buried itself in one of the pillars, and the Knuckle grunted as it pulled it out, tearing apart the pillar in the process. Dust filled the room, making it difficult to see. Sheik coughed as he accidentally inhaled the pulverised rock. All the while, the temperature was still rising, and if he didn't do anything about the Knuckle, he would either die from the heat or the axe.

 _Out of a frying pan and into another frying pan, I guess,_ he thought. He crouched down, looking closely at the approaching Knuckle. The bricks from the pillars were crushed underneath its feet, and the floor shook slightly with every step it took. Just as it was passing by a pillar, Sheik made his move. _This will get me killed!_ he shouted in his mind as he ran directly at the armour, which prepared itself for another massive swing.

Sheik ducked underneath the axe, changing course just as he was within striking distance with Kazuya. He jumped up on the pillar's side, launching himself up on the Knuckle's shoulders. The armour, clearly confounded by what its prey had done, swung the axe around wildly, trying to catch Sheik. Just as the Sheikah had expected, the Knuckle paid no heed to its own safety as it tried to get rid of the immediate threat. Just as the blade was about to connect, Sheik back-flipped off the Knuckle's shoulders, smiling as he heard the impact. He didn't even need to see, he could hear the helmet rolling along the floor. He pulled a dagger from his wrist bandage and threw it at the now exposed brain, a floating lump of darkness.

Another of the growl's issued forth from the creature as it struggled to stay upright, swaying as the dark brain succumbed to a final death from which it would not return. It slowly dissolved, the darkness gradually disappearing. The armour fell apart with a crash that made Sheik's ears ring, covering the purple carpet with cuirass and greaves.

Slowly standing, Sheik smiled as he heard the bars on either side of the room disappear upwards into the doorframes. He wasted no time in exiting the throne room, sighing in relief as the cool air of the corridor beyond the door washed over him. It was small and cramped, barely having room for the six steps leading down, where another door, smaller this time, awaited.

 _That was…easier than I expected it to be,_ he thought as he leaned against the wall, panting. _The poor soul's intelligence must have dropped as the years went by._ It had been so easy to trick it to knock its own head off. He became aware of a cracking sound coming from the direction of the downstairs door, and looked in that direction. A strange-looking Skulltula was making a net above the door, slowly and meticulously spinning its fragile strings in a pattern.

 _It's…golden,_ he thought as the light from the torch was caught by its brilliant carapace. It seemed not to notice him as Sheik approached it, studying it. It was unlike any other Skulltula Sheik had ever seen before. Then he remembered something Link had told him while camping in the mountains.

" _ **I'm trying to help a cursed family in Kakariko with lifting the curse. There are golden Skulltulas scattered all over Hyrule, and I have to kill them."**_

It had taken Sheik a while to remember just what family the Hero was talking about. He had remembered eventually. He had snuck into the house next to Impa's when he was seven or eight years old. A…family member had suddenly come down from the roof and scared little Sheik. It wasn't until Link reminded him about it that he felt ashamed for running away, realising that they had only wanted to ask for help.

He took another look at the golden Skulltula.

 _It's a shame,_ he thought as he drew another dagger, aiming at the absent-minded spider. _It really doesn't seem aggressive like the other Skulltulas. But, a curse is a curse, and it must be lifted._ The spider-like creature squeaked as it died with a dagger deep in its back. To the Sheikah's shock, it did not fall from the wall, but disappeared in a small burst of flame, the dagger clattering to the floor.

Sheik picked up the dagger and replaced it in the bandage, looking at the small, scorched spot where the Skulltula had been busy. The net had also gone up with the creature, leaving no evidence of its existence. According to Sheikah history, this was the kind of death every member of the tribe should strive for; one where no one knew you had ever been alive. Sheik had believed in it ever since Impa had taught him about it, wanting to honour his ancestors. But now…he wasn't so sure anymore.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 28**

* * *

It became obvious to Sheik, as he progressed through the rooms, that this particular part of the temple had been designed with someone of a much smaller stature in mind, considering the low doorways ledges which the Sheikah could scale almost without bending his knees. There weren't many hostile creatures inside, only a couple of Skulltulas here and there and some razor traps.

 _Maybe Link was supposed to…no, that would be impossible. Going back and forth through time would be too risky…although he_ does _know the song to teleport here now…_ He shook his head and sighed. Despite the cooler temperature in these rooms, he was still sweating. The mountain which the temple had been built in was quite capable of retaining heat, and was apparently expelling it right now, to his chagrin.

 _Face it, Sheik,_ he told himself. _You don't think it's impossible for the Hero to travel back and forth through time. You're worried that he will do something to change history, and possibly negate all that you have accomplished together._ The words, even though his own, stung. It was true. He had been ready to suggest just that when they discovered the too small crawlspace at the entrance, but something had held him back. If Link went back and completed this portion of the temple, Ganondorf would surely have heard of it and stepped up his efforts in locating the princess since he now knew that the Hero of Time was active. And if he did so, there could have been a moment where Sheik was called on to perform other duties and never have met Link.

So it was, indeed, a product of Sheik's selfishness that was at fault here, but for some strange reason, he didn't regret it. Sure, it felt bad to know he had not performed his duty as exactly described, but he didn't regret volunteering to climb up the Colossus mountain. He had accomplished the mission of procuring the Silver Gauntlets, albeit in an unorthodox way. He just hoped he hadn't compromised everything by forcing Link into the temple on his own.

 _And there we have my doubts again,_ he thought. _I keep thinking of him as blundering fool, but he has proven himself able to handle situations in ways I can only dream about. He's inelegant, perhaps, but effective._ He stood up from his resting position and headed for the closest door, dodging a razor trap that suddenly shot out from the wall. Even at their fastest, the razor traps could not possibly come close to hitting Sheik, whose reflexes were highly trained.

A floor master, invisible to all but Sheikah and those possessing the Lens of Truth, tried to ambush him, but Kazuya neatly cut the creature in half, both sides of the hand-shaped monster withering away in seconds, leaving only empty husks behind. The massive door opened, the thousand-year-old mechanisms still working perfectly. Sheik ducked inside, immediately placing himself in corner so nothing could sneak up on him. The room was covered in sand, and a rough cliff wall was directly in front of him on the other side of the room. A large boulder covered a circular hole in the wall, the sunlight from outside reduced to a mere halo.

A sculpture of a sun lay in the middle of the room, its eyes closed. Judging by the position of it and the light being blocked by the boulder, Sheik came to the conclusion that the sculpture needed sunlight.

 _But that's if I want to go back the way I came,_ he reminded himself. He kept forgetting that he was going through the temple backwards, that the challenges in the rooms were hardly supposed to be conquered since he would only return to the throne hall if he did so. He was about to jump down the shaft to the right of the sun when he heard a hiss, the kind only a reptile could make. Sheik slowly turned around and looked up. There were ledges up there, where the shadows had made quite a domain, close to the ceiling. The Sheikah could see tiny movements up there. Something flashed. Kazuya was out of its sheathe before the pair of Lizalfos was even halfway down.

The first Lizalfos' head tumbled away into the corner Sheik had occupied minutes before. Its body sagged lifelessly to the floor. Its partner hissed and shrieked, outraged, apparently, that Sheik had attacked before they were ready.

 _You won't find a fair fight with me, lizard,_ Sheik thought. Green blood slowly dripped from Kazuya's blade as the foes circled each other. The second lizard had learned from its partner's death that this foe was not going to go down easily. Which was, perhaps, why it thought an attack from behind would work. Sheik saw what it was planning as its legs tensed, and sliced Kazuya through the air above his head in a high arc as the lizard jumped. It barely had time to shriek before Kazuya cut it apart midair.

As Sheik wiped the green blood from his blade, he came to the conclusion that the Hero of Time was indeed supposed to return to his childhood and come through here. Lizalfos, while dangerous if they caught you unawares, were easy to defeat if you were properly armed and of a somewhat agreeable height, while a child would clearly be at a disadvantage.

 _Which means I've saved Link a whole lot of problems in the past,_ he thought. And then he had to reanalyse what he had just thought. It was useless to apply logic or certainties when dealing with time travel, he quickly found and abandoned such thinking. The main thing was that Link had the gauntlets and that Sheik was steadily getting close to the heart of the temple.

* * *

It was truly magnificent. Not only had the Gerudo managed to carve out a temple inside a mountain, but also managed to build another, just as large statue of the Sand Goddess inside the main chamber. Sheik found himself transfixed by the softly smiling Goddess' visage. A large pair of sculpted snakes coiled around her neck, and the sheer detail of the beasts' scales was stunning.

He snapped out of it when he heard a door open to his right and looked in that direction. The door on the opposite side of the room had not opened, he knew, since that's where they needed to after meeting up again in order to get the second treasure, which could only mean that there was a door on the first floor, in front of the goddess.

His suspicion was confirmed when Link's voice called out: "Sheik?! Are you here?"

Sheik climbed over the railing on his balcony and jumped down, landing slightly behind Link, who jumped in surprise. He then smiled when he realised who it was.

"We meet again, Hero," Sheik said and smiled. "The gauntlets fit well, I see." He pointed at the gloves. "And they work?"

"Yup, they do," said Link, grinning. "You should've seen the size of that block and how I easily could have tossed it aside."

Sheik's smile faded a little. "The attacker did not follow you?" he asked, to which Link shook his head.

"No, I thought they followed you. I was so worried, I think I might have skipped several treasure chests on the way here. I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Touching, Link. Thank you," said Sheik earnestly. "No, they didn't follow me, which means they're still around here somewhere…waiting for another opportunity to strike."

"Maybe they can't get inside the temple," suggested Link.

"No, the enemy is a strong magic-user and could easily find a way inside," said Sheik. "They are very strong if they're able to control lightning like that, Link. We must be careful."

Link nodded. "I just hope Nabooru's okay as well."

"She wouldn't be the second-in-command of the Gerudo, only answering to the Evil King for nothing, Link," Sheik said. "I'm sure she is able to take care of herself. Right now, however, we must focus on retrieving the next treasure."

"Next treasure?" asked Link. "What treasure?"

"The one in the other hand of the Colossus," replied Sheik. "There was another chest up there. And I just came through that door—"he pointed to his exit"—so it is only logical to conclude that that one—"he pointed to the door on the opposite side of the room"—leads to the other hand."

"Wish I could think logical," said Link as they climbed the stairs to the door. "I have a feeling everything would go much easier."

"There is no need for that, Link," said Sheik. "You've got me, remember. I'm the brains, you're the brawn."

Link grinned. "I never thought I'd hear _you_ say that."

"Again, Hero, there is a first for everything. Besides, I've been spending so much time with you that I think your speech is affecting mine."

"Good, I'm sick of not understanding a word of what you're saying sometimes."

"Pardon?"

"Nothing."

* * *

The room challenges were very anticlimactic to Sheik, being mostly enlarged versions of the ones he had encountered on his way to the main chamber. Granted, the one with the mysterious creature known as the Anubis had been interesting, but he had been slightly disappointed when the Anubis had walked directly into a plume of fire by its own volition, leading the Sheikah to doubt the average intelligence of the monsters in the temple.

He did, however, groan slightly when they emerged from the last room, only to be faced with another throne room with another Iron Knuckle sitting dormant at the end.

"What's that?" asked Link, picking up on Sheik's annoyance.

"That is what is known as an Iron Knuckle," explained Sheik. "It's a magically reanimated suit of armour, which is currently in our way." He pointed at the barred door behind the throne. "They won't be removed until the thing is dead." He had intentionally left out the "tortured and bound soul" bit, not wanting Link to suddenly have second thoughts about killing it. It was actually doing it a favour, in Sheik's view, but the Hero might have had a different idea.

"So it's just an empty suit of armour, then?" asked Link, drawing the Master Sword.

"Indeed," replied Sheik. "Its brain is its weakness. It is also quite slow and stupid."

"So…" said Link after a few seconds of silence. "Is it going to wake up, or something?"

"I believe _we_ have to do that," said Sheik and stepped up to the throne. This armour was different, he realised. It looked to be of the same strength, but the design was different, and some parts of it had been painted black. He also noticed bloodstains on the blade of the axe.

 _Nabooru's? I hope not,_ he thought. He drew Kazuya and looked back at Link, who nodded. This time, Sheik decided to stab inside the empty helmet, hoping to destroy its brain before it even had a chance to wake up. Alas, it was not to be as yet another mailed fist swung at him. However, Sheik knew what to expect this time and jumped away, the fist missing by several inches.

As it slowly stood up and began to approach the pair, Link's eyes widened.

"It's huge!" he exclaimed.

"Quite so," replied Sheik. "Remember, the brain must be destroyed in order to defeat it."

"No problem," said Link uncertainly and stepped forward, holding the Master Sword in front of Sheik, blocking the younger's way. "Stay back, Sheik. I want to deal with this one on my own."

 _He wants to prove his_ _masculinity_ now, _of all times?_ Thought Sheik and rolled his eyes. "If that is your wish, then go ahead," he said and stepped back.

Even though Link was not quite as fast as his lover, Sheik was still impressed at the sheer agility and cunning Link displayed as he jumped around the Knuckle, rolled underneath its strikes and clobbered its head from behind. No matter how much the Knuckle tried, it was unable to even come close to hitting the Hero of Time. Before ten minutes had passed (Sheik counted) Link stood with his sword buried in the helmet, the Knuckle's brain growling and hissing as it slowly died.

"I would step away from that thing if I were you," said Sheik, knowing what would happen next.

Smiling at his victory, Link turned his head to regard Sheik. "Why? What's gonna happe—" The armour exploded, the cuirass smacking into Link. He was thrown against a pillar, and stayed on the ground.

Sheik ran over to Link and bent down, looking him over. "Are you alright?"

The Hero responded by grabbing Sheik's collar, pulling him down. Placing a soft kiss on the Sheikah's lips, Link smiled. "Next time, tell me about the exploding bit a little earlier, eh?"

Smiling, Sheik stood up and offered Link his hand, pulling the Hero up. "Very well," he said.

A roar filled the room as the rusting bars in front of the doors were slowly raised. Link looked at the door to the outside.

"I guess we've got a treasure waiting for us out there."

"And perhaps a powerful enemy."

"Think we can handle it?"

"We had better, or Hyrule will perish."

"…you know, a little optimism every now and then never hurt anyone, Sheik."

"I thought it was _your_ job to positive and mine to be negative."

"It's a shared responsibility."

"Ah."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 29**

* * *

The pair slowly moved out of the doorway, keeping a close eye on their surroundings as they approached the innocent-looking chest. Sheik gestured to Link that he should do the honours while he kept on guard. The sun was high in the sky now, indicating that they had spent quite a bit of time inside the temple already. The heat was approaching scorching point, and Sheik briefly wished he was back in temperate Hyrule, where the autumn was now starting to rage. What he wouldn't give for a shower of rain right now… He shook his head, realising he was drifting off. A creak to his right caught his attention and he watched as Link bent down and picked up something inside the chest.

"Heh, cool," the Hero of Time, Chosen of the Goddesses, Saviour of Hyrule as he slowly lifted the object out. He turned to Sheik, who was immediately blinded as the sunlight was reflected of the object's surface. Turning away, Sheik rubbed his eyes. Red spots danced across his retinas.

"Hero, would you kindly point that thing away from me?" Sheik said slowly as he gradually regained his sight. "Or at the very least, bring it into the shade where it won't destroy my eyes?"

He heard Link shuffling past him, muttering. "Sorry, didn't know it was that strong."

Not taking any chances, Sheik kept his back to the Hero. "If I'm not wrong, that would be a shield, would it not?"

"Yup, it is. It's good a very…shiny surface," replied Link, and Sheik could _hear_ the grin. "Also, it's got a crescent moon on it."

"Good, then we've found the second fabled treasure of the Desert Colossus," said Sheik, slowly turning around. "The Mirror Shield."

The shield in question was shaped almost exactly like Link's Hylian shield, except much more abrupt in the edges. The mirror-like surface was surrounded by a red metal frame, which also reflected light to a certain degree.

"Great," said Link. "So, what do I do with it?"

"You…use it, I suppose, like a regular shield," said Sheik hesitantly. Surely the Hero had not just asked that? "It will probably come in handy in the next couple of rooms we go through."

"Oh, alright," said Link and studied the backside of the Mirror Shield. "You're right, there's a small hole here for the hook on my bandolier." He removed his Hylian shield, smiling as his fingers ran over familiar dents and scrapes. "Sorry, but it looks like this is the end of the road for you," he told the shield and dropped it over the edge. They heard it make a thump as it hit the sand in front of the Colossus.

"You just…talked to a shield, Link," said Sheik, slowly raising an eyebrow. "Is the heat getting to you?"

Link attached the Mirror Shield and, after making sure it wouldn't fall off, stared at Sheik. "I've had that shield since I was eleven, thank you very much," he said. "I have a lot of fond memories of that shield. Besides, if you can talk to your harp, then I can talk to my shield."

 _Damn, he heard me?_ Suddenly wishing he hadn't thrown away his cowl in the first throne room, Sheik pushed past Link, walking back into the second throne room. "It's not a harp, it's a lyre!"

* * *

"Do you think this is it?" asked Link, his arm straining as he aimed an arrow at the switch on the other side of the bars.

Sheik studied the light being reflected from the complex series of mirrors in the other room, making sure it hit the large mirror above them at the right angle.

"It should be," he answered. "If it's not, we'll just have to come back and change it. Now shoot."

The words had barely left his mouth when Link let loose, the arrow whistling through the air, slipping neatly between the bars, colliding with the switch with a loud clang. The crystalline switch's core began to glow. At first, nothing happened, and Sheik began to think they had made a mistake, but just as he was about voice these concerns to Link, the massive chains gave a jerk, and the platform they stood on slowly descended.

They were back in the central chamber, they realised as they were lowered into the room. Almost directly in front of the second statue of the Sand Goddess, as a matter of fact. They stood there for a minute, bathed in the light from the room above, the massive mirror doing its job.

"And the point of that was?" asked Link, annoyed at the lack of any other events.

"Don't ask me," said Sheik, looking around. Surely this was not it? The platform had to have some significance. He looked at the statue, staring into the wizened eyes of a goddess that no one except the Gerudo still remembered.

"I thought it was your job to know these things," said Link sourly.

"It's my job to gather information, yes," admitted Sheik. "But," he continued, "There are no records of any Sheikah ever entering this place." He remembered the letters on the wall in the throne room. "Although I have my doubts on whether the reports are lying or not. Either way, the only thing I know about this temple is the commonplace knowledge everyone knows, the two treasures and whatnot." There was something wrong with the goddess' left eye. There was a hole in it.

Link was also studying the room, apparently, as Sheik saw the reflected beam of the Mirror Shield dance around the walls. It slowly roamed over the Goddess. Something snapped, and a small cloud of dust wafted down from her nose. Sheik's eyes widened as he realised what was going on.

"Link," he said and turned to the Hero. "I want you to shine on her face."

"What good is that gonna do?"

"Just do it!"

"Sheesh, fine," said Link and unhooked the Mirror Shield, adjusting the angle so the reflected beam fell directly on the statue's face. Just as Sheik had suspected, it slowly began to crack and fall apart. Her nose detached and exploded as it hit the floor, throwing up a huge cloud of dust. More and more of her face fell away until it was no more. "Huh, there's a room inside her head."

"Indeed," said Sheik. _There is just one, small problem…_

"How're we going to get over there?" asked Link.

 _You read my mind, Hero,_ Sheik thought. There was a small grated area just inside the face, which gave him an idea. "How good are you with the Longshot?"

* * *

"You know, I think you're starting to like the Longshot rides," said Link as they picked themselves up from the floor, brushing off the dust that clung stubbornly to their clothes.

"I most certainly am not," said Sheik sharply and looked around. It wasn't as much a room as it was an antechamber. There was barely room for the pair to move around, and a quite small wooden door stood in front of them. He was about to feel it for any traps, but the second his fingertips touched it, it slid open. "That's…foreboding," said Sheik and stepped inside.

Link followed. "I still think you like the ride." He walked right into Sheik, who had stopped just beyond the doorframe. "What's wrong?"

The Sheikah shook his head and sighed for what felt like the thousandth time that day. "It just had to be another, didn't there?" he asked softly.

Link looked over Sheik's shoulder and saw another carpet stretching off into the cavernous room, where several pillars and torches lined the walls, the torches illuminating a very familiar piece of furniture.

"Another armour?" asked Link, squeezing past Sheik, who seemed to having some sort of episode, judging by the way he was muttering. He waved a hand in front of the Sheikah, who blinked, apparently snapping out of whatever daydream he was having.

"What?"

"I should be asking that," said Link. "It's just another Iron Knuckle. Easily taken care of. Come on, I'll even bet you that I ca—huh?" He stopped, realising that…something was in front of the throne.

"Hee-he-he-he," said one of the things. "I think we are found, Kotake."

"Hee-he-he-he," said the other. "I think you're right, Koume."

The things turned around, revealing to the pair the most hideous women they had ever seen. They were old, seemingly ancient, noses like beaks, covered in warts, their gray hair defying gravity. They were both holding brooms, and Sheik realised who they were.

"Gerudo witches…" he said.

"He's a clever one, isn't he, Kotake?" asked Koume, looking at her sister with a googly eye. "He knows who we are."

"Oh, Koume," said Kotake. "He is a Sheikah, remember? He is supposed to be clever; otherwise he would not be so high on our Gannykins' target list, would he?"

As the witches kept talking between themselves, Link leant over to Sheik and whispered: "Gannykins?"

"These must be Gannykin—I mean, Ganondorf's surrogate mothers," whispered Sheik back. "They raised him in this temple, away from the rest of the Gerudo."

"Ah," said Link and nodded. "And I suppose they are the guardians of this temple?"

"Possibly."

"Whispering is rude!" shouted one of the witches in a shrill voice from the other end of the room. "Especially when your elders are talking!"

"We shall have to teach you two naughty boys a lesson," said the other as they, as one, jumped onto their brooms and slowly floated up to the ceiling. One of them muttered and gestured with a hand to the Iron Knuckle sitting on the throne. With a jerk, it came to life and stood up.

"That's it!" shrieked the other witch. It was impossible to see who was who. "Punish them!"

The Iron Knuckle, which was of yet another design Sheik had never seen before took a step forward…and jerked to a stop as it realised something was missing. It looked around, searching. Then, as if an idea popped up in its head, it snapped its finger. A double-bladed battleaxe, far larger than the ones the other two armours had carried, appeared out from thin air in its hand. Then it seemingly nodded to itself and continued advancing on Sheik and Link.

"Just how weak do you hags think we are?!" shouted Link at the cackling witches and drew the Master Sword. "Come on, Sheik. Let's show them what it means to mess with us!"

"Wait," said Sheik and grabbed Link's shoulder, effectively stopping the Hero in his tracks. "There's something different about this one." He looked closer at the walking armour. "It hasn't got a brain."

"What?"

"Its eyes aren't glowing. There isn't a central brain we can attack."

"What do we do, then?"

"Follow my lead," said Sheik, Kazuya at the ready. He had a theory about this particular Iron Knuckle, but he needed to get closer to confirm it. He started running at in a sig-sag at the Knuckle, noticing how it kept turning its head to follow him. "Distract it for me!" he shouted at Link, who nodded.

The Hero ran straight up to it, ducking under the axe. He tried to stab upwards, aiming to get for something vulnerable underneath the cuirass. Lightning-fast, a massive fist grabbed hold of the blade, stopping its ascent. Link looked up. "Oh, crap…"

"Duck!"

The Hero responded immediately to Sheik's command, and just has he jumped away, he noticed the Sheikah coming in from the side, Kazuya aiming at the hand holding the axe. The Sheikah blade did not slice through the armour, which Sheik had expected. But the vibrations from the impact caused the Knuckle to loose hold of its axe, which fell to the floor with a crash, just where Link had been seconds earlier.

But Sheik was not done. Taking advantage of the leap, he grabbed hold of a spike on the Knuckle's shoulder, perching on top of the hulking mountain of metal. He hooked his fingers around the helmet's visor and pulled, hearing squeak as it opened. He leaned forward, looking inside the helmet. To Link, it looked like Sheik was trying to engage in a staring contest with the Knuckle. Then Sheik nodded, and pulled the helmet off. To Link's surprise, something red and bushy appeared where the helmet had once been. He saw Sheik throw a punch at whatever was inside.

"Ah!" a woman exclaimed, and then the Iron Knuckle collapsed, falling apart just like the others had done. Except this one had someone inside. Link ran over to them.

"Princess Nabooru, I presume," said Sheik as he gently caught the unconscious Gerudo woman and slowly lowered her to the floor.

"Is she alright?" asked Link.

"Yeah, I just knocked her out," said Sheik.

She didn't much different from the rest of her clan. The only thing that seemed to distinguish her from the others were her many pieces of jewellery. Other than that, she wore the exact same attire as the rest of the thieves. Her breaths came in short, shallow gasps, and her skin was covered in sweat, showing how much of a strain controlling the Iron Knuckle had put upon her.

"She…fought us. Is she an enemy?" Link asked. "I thought she was on our side."

"I suspect the hags had something to do with that," said Sheik, standing up. He looked at the floating witches, who were observing them in silent rage. "Or am I wrong?" he asked loudly.

"Hee-he-he-he," said one of them. "I think the jig is up, Kotake."

"Hee-he-he-he, I think you're right, Koume," replied Kotake. "And the princess is of no use to us now."

"But the boy is," said Koume and pointed at Sheik.

"You're right, hee-he-he-he." They looked at each other, and then their hands began to glow, balls of light forming. They looked at Sheik with the eyes of vultures. "Gannykins will be so happy!"

"Sheik! Move!"

But Link's warning came too late, and Sheik had no time to dodge the balls of light as they were hurled at him. They crashed into him from both sides, knocking him aside. He screamed as pain started creeping over him. And then the Sheikah was gone, Kazuya clattering loudly on the floor.

"Sheik!" Link pulled out his bow and had an arrow aimed at the witches within seconds. "What did you do to him?"

"He needed a time-out, hee-he-he-he," said Kotake.

"A little break, hee-he-he-he," said Koume.

"If you want him back, Hero of Time, you know what to do," said Kotake. The sisters grabbed each other's arms and disappeared in a flash of light, leaving Link alone in the throne room with the unconscious Nabooru.

"Sheik…" Link said, dropping his bow, sinking to his knees. "No… No!" he shouted and stood up, looking at Nabooru. Then he turned and ran to the door behind the throne.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 30**

* * *

"Last chance, witch!" snarled Link, pressing the Master Sword painfully against Koume's throat. "Tell me what you did to him!"

A rage unlike any he had ever felt before had seized Link just as he had entered the inner sanctum, causing him to loose control. He had taken quite a bit of damage, but sheer anger had kept him going and going. After the twin sisters had merged into the horrible being Twinrova (as they called themselves) and had the _audacity_ to _wink_ at him, Link had blacked out. When he finally came to, Kotake lay dead in front of him, her blood dripping off his sword. Koume had tried to attack him from behind, but Link's heightened senses tipped him off, and the Hero had whirled around, slamming his sword hilt into the ancient witch's chest, which sent her flying, crashing to the floor close to platform's edge.

"Hee-he-uurgh." Koume hacked up blood, her dilating eye roaming the room, eventually stopping on her dead sister. "Oh, sister, we have failed."

"Answer me!" Link screamed and pressed the blade harder, drawing blood.

"We…have…sent…him…where…he…belongs…Hero…of…Time…" said Koume, her breath coming in short gasps. She was dying, Link knew, and he only had a little time to get the information he needed.

"Where?" He lessened the pressure, realising that blocking the witch's air supply with his sword was hardly a good way of making her talk. "Tell me, and I'll end your suffering."

"Suffering?" wheezed Koume. "This is nothing compared to what Ganondorf the Great is putting your friend through right now, hee-he-he…"

"You sent him to Ganondorf?" Link asked, eyes wide.

"Correct," said Koume and coughed up more blood. "Ah, the pain he must be exacting on the boy now…I…can only…imagine…"

The witch was not able to say any more, for the Hero of Time had had enough. The Master Sword cleaved the air, silencing the snickering witch with a single stroke. Her head made a slight thump as it hit the floor, blood slowly leaking from severed neck.

"Argh!" Link screamed, tearing at his hair. If Ganondorf had Sheik, then his lover was lost. Something clenched around his heart, his chest burned. He sank to his knees, dropping his sword and shield, burying his face in his hands. And he screamed and screamed, unable to stop.

And then the tears fell, splashing on the floor, mixing with the pool of blood that slowly spread. Unable to keep it in, Link punched the floor repeatedly, trying to make the pain in his chest go away. He could feel the flesh on his knuckles slowly being ripped away by the stone.

He didn't stop until a hand softly fell on his shoulder, making him jump. He sprung from his position on the floor, whirling around, hands fumbling for his weapons which suddenly weren't on his back anymore.

"Please, don't be afraid," said the Gerudo woman, eyes pleading. She looked dishevelled, her hair greasy and unkempt. Her golden eyes looked tired, and there were bags under her eyes. "I'm Nabooru, princess of the Gerudo."

Link hastily wiped away the tears from his face, trying to maintain his dignity somewhat, but the knowledge that Sheik was in the hands of the Evil King would not leave his mind. "You're awake." It was a simple statement.

"Yes."

An awkward silence stretched on. Neither of them knew what to say.

"You saved me," Nabooru finally said.

"Yeah," replied Link.

"You have no idea for how long those two have kept me here," she said. "Eleven long years under their control. They even made me visit the fortress. I had no control, I—I…" Unable to voice her thoughts any longer, she grabbed Link's shoulder and placed a kiss upon his forehead. "Thank you." She looked around. "There was another…where is he?"

"He's gone…"

* * *

"Damn it, pet, don't do this to me now," said a gruff voice, its owner roughly shaking him. "Wake up!"

Sheik slowly opened his eyes, and was greeted by a pair of glowing, red eyes staring into his own. He flinched, turning away.

Speil stopped shaking him and stepped away. "About time you came back. You have no idea how long you've been sleeping."

Sheik sat up, feeling softness beneath him. And grass. "Where are we?"

"I was hoping you would tell me," said Speil, his eyes scanning their surroundings. They were in the middle of a clearing in some sort of forest. It was night, and the moon was obscured by the thick layer of clouds above them. A star or two winkled pathetically, they too slowly being blocked out by the clouds. "I've come to the conclusion that we are in a forest."

"Good for you," said Sheik roughly, not in the mood to be civil to Link's shadow. "What tipped you off? The trees?"

"Among other things," said Speil and nodded. His eyes narrowed. "I don't appreciate that tone, pet."

Sheik slowly stood up, feeling a headache coming on as he stretched his sore limbs. He looked down and saw that he had been lying on a small stump, which accounted for the pain in his lower back. "And I don't appreciate your presence at the moment," he said. "What happened?"

"You foolishly forgot about the witches while you dawdled over that desert woman," said Speil. "They tried to send you to their master, and I could have none of that."

"You…stopped them?" Sheik asked.

"Why so surprised, pet?" asked Speil, opening his arms wide. "Is it really that hard to imagine me working against the Evil King?"

"You do not exactly radiate goodness," said Sheik off-handily. "I'd expect you to find entertainment in someone's captivity."

"Perhaps, but not if it's you who is captured," said Speil, staring at the Sheikah. "You belong to me, and _only me_."

Something that had been gnawing on Sheik's mind finally clicked into place. The little tingling feeling he always felt from his scar when he was around Speil wasn't there anymore. He felt for the scar, and gasped. It was gone.

"Yes, our bond is gone," said Speil in a regretful voice, sitting down on a stump. "I had to use most of my power to break their spell…and I had to make a sacrifice."

"Does that mean…?"

"Yes, I cannot enter your mind any longer. We are, as of now, completely separate beings again."

Sheik sighed, relieved. Then he looked up, suspicious. "Then how come you haven't bonded with me again? There were ample opportunities for it while I was unconscious."

"I am still too weak," replied Speil. Sheik noticed that his eyes weren't as bright as they once were; when they had burned with a glow not unlike the sun. Now they were dull, and the entire being that was Speil was sagging. His limbs seemed to weigh tons, and his hair, while never having been very brilliant to begin with, seemed to have lost its lustre, hanging down in greasy clumps. "I can barely speak to you right now."

The dagger was in Sheik's hand before he could even think about it. "Then you realise that I could easily kill you right now, or at the very least weaken you so you lose your form?"

"Yes, that thought has occurred to me several times," said Speil, the corners of his mouth rising a little in an attempt at a grim smile. "But I also know that you will not be able to do it."

"And why is that?" asked Sheik, approaching the sitting shadow, ready to lash out in case of a trick.

"Because I know that deep in your heart, no matter how many times you keep telling yourself the opposite, you love me." The smile turned into a when he saw Sheik's jaw drop. "Don't try to deny it, pet. I've seen it, the way you hide your affection behind sarcasm and hateful words. I could _feel_ it as you poured out your heart to that Ayla woman."

"That…that's not true!" said Sheik loudly and placed the blade of his dagger beneath Speil's jaw, just shy of the skin. The slightest movement from the shadow, and Sheik would slice his jugular. "Take that back!"

"What has been said cannot be unsaid," said Speil and continued grinning. "Deep inside, there glows an ember of affection for me…and you have made no attempts at extinguishing it."

 _Just one movement, a tiny flick, and he will shut up,_ Sheik thought. _Just a swish of the dagger and the world will be rid of this creature…_

Speil seemed to be waiting for something, keeping still as Sheik tried to make his arm move, trying to end the shadow's life.

"You can't do it, can you?" he asked, a neutral tone in his voice. His hand enclosed Sheik's and guided the dagger away from his throat. "It's impossible for you to kill me because I am the Hero, and he is me. Completely alike, yet vastly different. You are aware of this, but cannot harm me."

Sheik tore his hand away from Speil's, stepping away from the stump the shadow was sitting on. "No, I just remembered that the only thing that can kill you is his sword," he said, not even able to convince himself. "I hate you. You killed the fairy."

"Yes, you hate me. But not because I killed the fairy. You hate me because I have traits that your Hero does not, traits you wish for him to display." Speil slowly stood up, a major effort on his part judging by his shaking legs. "The fairy…got in the way. My only intent was to kill the Hero. I would have spared her."

"Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I clearly remember you gloating when we first met, revelling in the slaughter."

"That was the primeval me," said Speil, slowly stepping up to Sheik, who found himself unable to move. "The me that knew no better…the me that still wished to kill everything inside the room."

"Yet you say that you would have spared the fairy," muttered Sheik as Speil enveloped his lithe frame with his arms, clutching the Sheikah to his chest.

"The fairy…was an accident," Speil insisted, nuzzling Sheik's hair. "She…did not bother me."

"But I did?"

"At first…when I still had no solid form."

_Damn it, Sheik, he's doing something to you!_

"Please, pet, let me—"

Sheik pushed him away, dagger once again at the ready. "Stay away from me!" he growled. "You may look like Link, but you're nothing like him. _Appearance_ is the only thing alike between you!"

Speil sighed and lifted his arms in a defensive gesture. "You are acting irrationally."

"Irrationally? I'm stuck between the Hero of Time and his shadow who keeps trying to seduce me and get into my pants! Acting irrationally would be killing myself because I could not decide, but I have no trouble in choosing which of you I want!" Sheik sighed and lowered the dagger. "But then again, I cannot kill you. Not now."

"Why is that?" asked Speil. His eyes were glowing a bit brighter now, his power slowly returning.

"Because we need you…the Hero needs you if he is to defeat Ganondorf," said Sheik, putting the dagger away. "There is only one forest like this close to Hyrule." He looked around, noting the tree type and general ambience. Wolves howled in the distance, and small balls of light, young fairies, were emerging from their hiding places. "We're in the Lost Woods."

"There is a certain feeling of…hopelessness here, isn't there?" said Speil, apparently unfazed by Sheik's reasoning. "Do you know how to get out of here?"

"If I can find a familiar landmark, then yes," said Sheik, giving up on figuring out the shadow's mentality. "Be quiet." He listened carefully, trying to filter out the background noise. There was a familiar sound far away. It sounded like a… "Waterfall, that direction," he said and pointed in among the trees.

"Not to be a…fuddy-duddy, as they are known as, but I imagine there are hundreds of waterfalls in this forest," said Speil, pausing as he processed the word he had just used. "What is a fuddy-duddy?" he asked.

"A killjoy of some kind, I imagine," said Sheik, studying the clearing. There were no tall stumps, so they were far away from the Skull Childrens' hideout, which was quite close to the Kokiri village. "I have not put great effort in learning slang."

"Heh, you're lucky in that way," said Speil, coughing slightly. "I keep learning new things all the time, and I know words, but don't understand their meaning. Like 'inculcate'. What does that mean?"

"Imprinting an idea in someone's head," replied Sheik without thinking.

"Thank you, that word has been bothering me for quite some time." Speil had to sit down again. "So…any idea of how we are going to get out of here?"

"No, Link, I—"Sheik shut his mouth, horrified at his slip of tongue. Speil had sounded so much like Link at that moment that he had been unable to keep it in. He cleared his throat. "No, I don't. We can't teleport since I've left my lyre back in the desert, and all my deku nuts are gone…" He thought for a second. "Our best bet is to head for the waterfall and go from there."

To his credit, Speil kept his mouth shut about Sheik's embarrassing slip, and nodded. "I have but one thing to ask, though."

"Which is?"

"Can I have a bit of rest first?"

* * *

"I had no idea things had declined so badly," said Nabooru. They were in the Chamber of the Sages now, her awakening as a sage having brought them there. She looked completely revitalised now, her hair flowing and eyes shining. She looked very much like Aveil, except that Nabooru dressed much more conservatively. "And Aveil is facing open rebellion soon?"

"That's what Sheik told me," said Link dejectedly. The knowledge that his quest for the temples was finally over did nothing to bolster his spirits. Right now, Sheik could be in the worst agony of his life, and Link could do nothing about it. "As the second-in-command of the Gerudo, she knows that you are the only one the clan will gather behind to rebel against their king."

Nabooru shook her head. "And I am not allowed to return to the mortal plane," she said sadly. She suddenly perked up and fixed Link with a triumphant gaze. "Aveil will take over my position!"

"What?"

"You heard me, Link! If Aveil was to assume command, the Gerudo will obey her every order, even if it's against the king." She clapped her hands, the sound echoing. "I will teleport you back to the fortress, and you will tell her!"

"Very well," said Link in a not very enthusiastic tone. "I'll tell her."

"Excellent!" Nabooru held her hand palm up, and an orange medallion appeared in her hand. "Take this; the power of the Spirit Temple will be with you." Link took it, putting it in one of the many pockets of his tunic. Just as Nabooru prepared to teleport him out, his eyes widened and he stopped her.

"Wait! I need to go back to the temple!"

"What? Why?"

"Sheik's sword…it's still in the throne room."

The Gerudo's expression faltered. "Oh…of course, I will teleport you back at once. But how will you get to the fortress from there? My power is still limited to this plane."

"I'll walk," said Link, tightening his jaw. Nabooru nodded and crossed her arms, closing her eyes. A blue light appeared around Link's feet, and a diamond-shaped outline slowly materialised around him. "And don't worry," he added. "I will tell Aveil…and remind her of your love."

Nabooru smiled, nodding her thanks. And then everything went white.

The Hero hit the floor with an "oof", barely able to keep himself standing. He looked around, seeing the corpses of the twin witches. He spat at them and headed out the door, leaving the battlefield.

He almost tripped on an errant piece of Iron Knuckle, kicking it away after regaining his balance. Kazuya lay on the floor, almost accusingly so. The many marks and notches left by the generations of Sheikah that had owned it seemed to focus a certain animosity against Link. He gingerly picked the sword up, marvelling at how light and perfectly balanced it was. It had looked so flimsy and easily broken when Sheik had wielded it, but the Hero now realised just how dangerous Sheik could be in a fight if he had the sword.

"Sheik…I'm coming for you," he said, both to himself and the sword, as if the message would be carried to its owner.

Emerging from the temple, he realised that night had fallen. The temperature was rapidly dropping, but there was no wind. Perfect conditions for what Link had in mind. He went to their tent, wanting to gather as much of their supplies as he could before heading into the desert. He vaguely remembered the way to the rest stop, and the tunnel would take him back to the poles he could follow back to the fortress.

He was stuffing the remaining water bottles into his pack when he noticed something sticking out of Sheik's. He picked it up. The lyre twanged sadly when he plucked a string. This too went into Link's pack. He then fashioned a scabbard for Kazuya out of Sheik's robe, inserting it into his bandoleer.

He was just out of the tent when something exploded inside, throwing the Hero forward. He jumped back on his feet, whirling around with the Master Sword at the ready. The immediate area was illuminated by the burning cloth. A sudden breeze wafted over him. He had heard something buzzing just prior to the explosion.

"I knew the witches weren't working alone," he said loudly. "None of them controlled lightning." He looked around. "Reveal yourself!"

"Hmph, the sisters were unable to destroy you," said a gruff voice above Link, who looked up. The mysterious floating carpet he and Sheik had seen in the desert hovered above him. It descended slightly, revealing the speaker. The man was more hair than…well, man. "But you can rest assured that I will make no mistak—"He fell back, an arrow through his forehead. The carpet seemed to lose its updraft and fell to the ground.

Link replaced the bow on his back, gritting his teeth. "I have no time for nonsense."

* * *

"Steady, steady," said Speil as Sheik helped him up. "It's strange," he said when they had both steadied themselves. "It's been hours, but I keep feeling…weaker."

"You probably overexerted yourself," said Sheik, not really caring. It was a relief that Speil no longer had a direct link to him, and he found himself unable to respond to the shadow's idle chatter. "If magic was involved, it probably has lasting effects."

_And you won't be able to do anything until I'm far away…or you are dead._

"I'm confusing you, aren't I?" the shadow asked, smiling. His eyes, which had brightened ever so slightly, were once again fading. "At the moment, that is not my intention."

"I have a hard time believing that," replied Sheik and stepped away from Speil. "Can you stand and walk on your own?"

"For a little while, at least."

"Good, then let's go."

The trek was slowly, partly due to Speil's slug-like speed, and partly due to Sheik having to readjust their course every now and then to make sure they were heading in the right direction. It helped very little that Speil seemed to insist on tripping over every small rock and twig, helping himself to a grope here and there when Sheik helped him up.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Sheik asked when Speil pinched his buttock for the tenth time within five minutes.

"Quite," said Speil and grinned. "But I also have some rather distressing news…well, distressing to me, at least."

"What is it?" asked Sheik, rolling his eyes. He half-expected some kind of innuendo now.

"I think…I'm dying."

* * *

"You're right," said Sheik. They had paused in another clearing, the roar of the waterfall not far away. "Something is…draining you," he said, doing his best to describe what he was seeing. He hadn't noticed it before since he had been far too busy verbally sparring with the shadow, but he could now see that Speil's vibrancy and colour were fading fast.

"I think…that the spell is still trying to take you to the Evil King," supplied the shadow.

"Then how come it's attached to you?"

Speil shrugged. "Don't know. Maybe the spell recognised me as its target instead of you, and now that it has been weakened considerably, it's unable to do anything but weaken _me_ as well."

 _Good, you deserve it, you bastard,_ Sheik thought. He put a hand on Speil's cheek, trying to assess the damage that was being done on the shadow. "You're cold," he said. Speil had never been cold.

"Dying, as I said earlier," the shadow replied. "Don't you know some Sheikah magic that can counter this?"

"I'm trying to remember," said Sheik. He really was trying. Impa had never been much for the magic part of their heritage apart from the deku nuts and teleporting songs. As a result of that, Sheik had researched it on his own, but the unwieldy tomes of the small Sheikah library had been hard to read, and many of the pages had been torn out. But he _did_ recall something about a ritual for ridding oneself of hostile influences.

_Does that apply here? I can't kill him on my own, but if the witches' spell can weaken him this much, then what will happen if I make a mistake?_

He looked at Speil for a moment, then at the moon, which was slowly coming out of hiding. "I may have an idea…"

_I hope Link is alright…_


	3. Chapter 3

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 31**

* * *

The trek through the desert was surprisingly easier this time, mostly because of the lack of a sandstorm insisting on breaking the flow of everyone's day. Link didn't care. He couldn't get Sheik out of his thoughts. All he could think about was the times they had shared a laugh, cuddled in front of a campfire, kissed… When he had reached their campsite in the old watchtower, he had been forced to sit down, just staring at the charred remains of the campfire. It had taken all the willpower he could summon to stand up and walk on, not casting a single glance back.

But it was still a relief to see that he was almost done with his journey. He could deliver the news to Aveil, perhaps carry a message to the princess as proof of the Gerudo's coming help. Except…except he didn't know how to contact Zelda. Kaiza had not been joined them at the temple, and Sheik was the only one who knew where she was hiding. And now he was a prisoner of Ganondorf, who was undoubtedly exacting horrible torture over the Sheikah in an attempt to get him to divulge the secrets only he knew.

He shook his head, trying to get the image of a helpless, bleeding Sheik shackled to wall. He had always had a vivid imagination, but for once he wished he hadn't. It made things far too real. He was just reaching the summit of a large sand dune when he saw the familiar peaks and tops over the top. He smiled a bit when he saw the gigantic gate of the Gerudo Fortress. It was open, to his surprise.

As he plodded on and got closer to the gate, he saw that a spear, the same carried by the Gerudo, was stuck in the sand just outside the gate, a small mound of sand just next to it. He the noticed another one. And another one. Along the entire wall, a large amount of graves had been dug. There were no guards, he saw. He walked through the gateway, noticing how empty and quiet the fortress was. When they had left, the entire area had been teeming with life, but now he could have heard a pin drop.

"You're back," a familiar voice said behind him. Link turned around, hand finding its way to his sword hilt. Ayla was leaning against the small shed next to the gate. She was smoking a cigarette, something Link had never seen outside this region, as Hylians mostly preferred pipes or just chewed tobacco. "And you're alone," she added, stomping the cigarette into the ground. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you if you tell me what happened _here_ first," replied Link, not really wanting to explain what had happened to Sheik again. It was too hard.

Whether she noticed the pleading look in his eyes or just really wanted to get the events off her chest was unknown, but Ayla nodded anyway and sighed, looking sadly at the entrance to the desert.

"They attempted a coup," she said. "The group of malcontents I told you about instigated a rebellion just after I came back from the desert. They tried to kill Aveil while she was bathing."

"Is she okay?" asked Link.

"Yes, fortunately," said Ayla, the corners of her mouth rising a little. "They forgot the reason Nabooru chose her as her stand-in while she was gone: her fighting skill. Don't tell her I said this, but between the two of us, she is the only one who can rival me in a fight in this place."

"And…the graves?" asked Link, dreading the answer.

"The traitors," answered Ayla. "While a group of assassins were trying to kill Aveil, the rest of them instigated a fight in throne hall. They were expecting more of us to rise to their cause, I think, for they were quite outnumbered and were almost all killed. The ones who survived were executed for treason. The ones on our side who died in the fight have been inhumed in our catacombs." She must have seen the question in Link's eyes, for she then said: "Traitors are not welcome among our honoured. They will rot in the desert for their crimes."

Link looked at the fortress, now seemingly empty. "Where is everyone?"

"Mourning," said Ayla. "Aveil was wounded, but she too is spending the day, secluded to her chambers, in silence to honour the fallen."

"But you're not?"

Ayla shook her head, flicking her hair out of her eyes. "No. I have mourned far too many warriors in my time, and someone has to watch for enemies while the others share their grief." She took another look at the desert through the open gateway. "We lost so many yesterday," she said softly. "And more will join them tonight." She then took her swords and swung them onto her back, turning to Link with a smile. "But it's good to see you again, though, Hero of Time. Since you're back, I can only assume that you have completed the temple…although you return with neither your companion nor our exalted leader."

The sun was setting, casting a garish light over the fortress. Link looked at the open desert for one last time. "Can we go inside?" he asked. "It's a long story."

Ayla nodded. "Of course. I just have to close the gate."

As the massive doors slid shut, Link noticed that there had been cut a small gap in the bars to allow the guards to see outside. He was sure they had not been there before, and told Ayla this.

"We hope to…use the opening as a discouraging example," she answered as they walked to the entrance of the fortress. When Link gave her a questioning glance, she elaborated: "If you look through the slit, you can see the first of the many graves of the traitors buried along the wall. When people see those graves, they will hopefully realise what happens to traitors."

"I see."

"Yes."

The halls of the fortress, while not having been so loud and noisy when Link and Sheik had first been there, were eerily quiet. Sometimes, he could hear quiet footsteps skittering over the stone floor, and shadows moved in the light of the flickering torches. Every now and then, he could see a head ducking inside a doorway as they passed it. Some of the faces looked hopeful, but fell when they saw that it was only them.

"They were expecting you to bring Nabooru home," said Ayla. "The general mood has dropped significantly, and I fear that unless _something_ boosts the morale soon, we will have yet _another_ rebellion on our hands." As they passed the throne room, Link could see several Gerudo servants scrubbing the floors. Here and there he could see the tell-tale deep-red, almost black, stains of blood.

Ayla had led him to her own quarters, Link realised when she pulled out a heavy-looking key and unlocked a large door. The quarters were quite Spartan, the only apparent luxury being the large mirror attached to a small table in the corner. Other than that, the only thing in Ayla's quarters were her bed, a small chest, a table with two chairs and a weapons rack. She deposited her swords there, motioning for Link to take a seat at the table. She disappeared out the door for a few minutes, returning with a tray, upon which a pair of cups and a pitcher of water stood.

"I thought you might be thirsty from your journey," she said and poured water into both of the glasses. She waited until the Hero had taken a large gulp and swallowed it before speaking again. "So, tell me what happened."

And Link told her everything that had happened after she had left them in the vicinity of the Collosus. Their search for the teleport song, their confusion when they found no apparent entrance to the rest of the temple, Sheik's climb and their subsequent separation, their reunion and the fight with the disguised Nabooru. Here, Ayla stopped him.

"Are you saying Kotake and Koume were controlling her?" she asked, her eyes wide. "And for how long? Those damnable women, if I ever find them I'll—"

"There's no need," said Link softly. "I killed them for what they did to Sheik." He explained what had happened after Nabooru had been freed from the twins' control. As he did so, he took out Kazuya from his bandoleer, laying it on the table. "…and this is all I have left of him," he finished. "He's in Ganondorf's hands, and I there was nothing I could do." He felt himself tear up, but blinked the tears away.

Ayla took his hand in hers. "I don't think you should worry, Link. Sheik is a powerful, cunning and resourceful young man. I'm sure he found a way to disrupt the spell."

"Then how come he didn't come back to the temple?" asked Link. "If he managed to escape, then how come he didn't play the song and return to me?" Link sniffed, unable to stop the tears from falling now.

Ayla smiled softly, deciding to bend her promise to Sheik just a little bit. "I'm not really supposed to tell you this," she said and leaned forward conspiratorially. "But Sheik…has someone else on his side as well, apparently."

Link looked up. "Huh?"

Ayla stood up, walked over to the window and looked out, trying to formulate the explanation in a way that left her honour in place. She just couldn't let Link go on like this, it was destroying him. "When you were asleep, Sheik told me some…secrets, that you don't know about."

"No offense," said Link, brushing his tears away, his misery now replaced by curiosity and just a little bit anger at being kept in darkness. "But why would he tell you and not me. I've known him longer, and we are much closer to each other."

"I don't know," said Ayla. "All I can do is guess that he didn't want to burden you with his problems."

"Sheik was in trouble?"

"Both yes and no," said Ayla, turning to face him. "He was in trouble, yet not in trouble at the same time. You see, for some time now, he has been the host of a…shall we say, sentient spirit that seems quite…taken with him."

"A dead person has fallen in love with Sheik?" asked Link in a deadpan, not quite believing what he was hearing.

"It's a bit more complicated than that," said Ayla. "But yes, in a nutshell, that's what happened to him."

"How long has this been going on?" asked Link.

"From what I could gather, for several weeks," she replied. "At first, the spirit was quite violent and threatening, but Sheik told me he has warmed up considerably."

"It's a _he_?"

"Is that so strange an idea, Hero?" asked Ayla. "If I roll down your leggings, will I find girly parts?"

Link blushed, glaring at her. " _No_ ," he vehemently denied. "I'm a boy, and I don't think it's strange!"

"Good, otherwise you would have been a hypocrite, just saying," said Ayla with a smug tone. "In any case, this spirit just happens to have…considerable physical and magical power considering he was able to place a mark on Sheik, and—"

"Wait, a mark?" asked Link. "Would that be the scar on his neck?" At Ayla's nod, he sighed and sat back in his chair, staring at the ceiling. "I knew there was something off about it…Wolfos' usually have bigger teeth…if one of them had gotten to Sheik's neck, he'd be dead…"

"Focus, Hero," said Ayla. "Anyway, I don't think Ganondorf has got his hands on your lover. In fact, I think it's quite the opposite."

"But why hasn't he come back?" repeated Link. "If he is not with Ganondorf, then he must be somewhere, and I _know_ he wouldn't leave me alone, not even to report to the princess!"

"Perhaps he is injured," supplied Ayla. "Maybe he has been otherwise incapacitated. Or perhaps he is fighting the spirit. I don't know, Hero, but since there have been no major troop movements in the last twenty-four hours, I can only assume that Ganondorf has not learned the location of Princess Zelda."

"Sheik probably wouldn't tell him anyway," said Link quietly. "Not even under torture. He'd rather die than betray Hyrule."

"Not to discredit him, Hero, but no one, and I mean _no one_ , can resist for long in the Evil King's torture chambers. Not even Sheik."

Link stood up, pushing Kazuya back in his bandoleer. "Then I have no time to lose. I have to find him." He marched to the door, managing to open it just a bit before Ayla's hand slammed it back closed. "What the hell?" he asked.

"There is still one more matter you haven't elaborated upon, Hero. What happened to Nabooru?"

Then Link remembered the Gerudo princess' message. "She has ascended."

"Ascended?" asked Ayla, thinking. "You mean she is the sage?"

Link nodded. "And she wants Aveil to assume her position as leader of the Gerudo. She is convinced that the Gerudo will rally behind her if she is named princess."

Ayla thought about it for a few minutes. "She's right," she finally said. "The others will surely accept her. But the question is whether or not Aveil wants the position."

"Let's go ask her, then," said Link, opening the door.

* * *

Aveil sat in front of the shrine of the Desert Goddess, her eyes closed and head held low in respect for the fallen Gerudo warriors. She heard the pair's footsteps, but did not look up. Neither did she acknowledge their presence.

"Aveil, I must speak to you," Ayla said. When the stand-in leader of the Gerudo did not look up, Ayla continued: "It's about Nabooru."

This caught Aveil's attention, and she stood up, turning to face them. She noticed Link and smiled, but noticed the absence of two others.

"She's not here," said Ayla. "Something happened. I know you specifically told me not to disturb your mourning, but it's important."

Aveil looked worried, but her eyes narrowed. "Tell me."

Again, Link had to explain everything that had happened in the Desert Colossus. All the way through the story, Aveil gave a little nod every now and then, as if to confirm something she already knew or had suspected. When Link got to their encounter with the twin witches, she held up a hand.

"Are you saying Kotake and Koume have betrayed us?" At Link's nod, she hissed. "I knew those two would be trouble, even after they swore loyalty to the Gerudo as a whole rather than just Ganondorf."

"They _did_ raise him, though" said Ayla in a neutral tone. "Perhaps we were foolish to believe them."

"That doesn't matter," said Link. "They're dead now."

"Go on," said Aveil.

"Okay, I just told Ayla this, so I'm sure she can tell you in greater detail later, but Nabooru is the Sage of the temple and is no longer allowed to walk this plane, I think," said Link. "She told me to tell you that you are to assume the position as the Gerudo princess."

Aveil looked to Ayla, who nodded. "Is that true, Hero? Did she really say this?" Link nodded. "Then I have no choice," said Aveil. "If Nabooru wishes it, then so be it."

Link then moved closer to Aveil, signalling her to bend down so he could whisper in her ear. "She also sends her eternal love," he whispered.

Tears gathered in Aveil's eyes, and the new princess wept.

* * *

"I am truly sorry for your loss, Link," said Aveil. The three, Link, Aveil and Ayla, were approaching the mountain pass where Link and Sheik had been captured by the Gerudo. "But I'm sure it is as Ayla said, that this spirit has interfered with the witches' plans and foiled it."

"I can only hope," said Link quietly, hefting his pack on his shoulder. He was going to walk back through the mountains. He had packed more than enough water for the return trip. He needed time to clear his head and think, not to mention rendezvous with Epona and Maladict, who were surely waiting for them by the bridge. Their loyalty to their masters—well, Epona's anyway—would have kept them there. Maladict may not have had much time to feel much for his new master, but his attraction to Epona… He turned to the two Gerudo women. "Can Hyrule count on your support?"

Aveil smiled and nodded. "Of course. I will send a letter to the princess as soon as I can, but first I must assert myself as the people's leader."

"Good," said Link and began to walk. He had made ten paces when he heard hurried footsteps behind him.

"Are you sure you want to go back alone?" asked Ayla, regarding him with worried eyes. "I will gladly go with you to make sure you—"

"No, I'd rather be alone just now," said Link. "I have a lot to think about. Besides, I know the way now, and I'm sure there aren't any enemies along the way."

"I suppose not," said Ayla, admitting defeat. "Then I guess all I can say is good luck, and hope you find your lover again in good health."

"Thank you. I hope everything works out for the Gerudo," answered Link. He bowed, first to Ayla, and then to Aveil, hoping he hadn't offended them by not doing so at first. They mirrored the gesture, and that was it. Link began to walk, but turned around after two steps. "Ayla?"

"Yes?"

"Did…did Sheik tell you that he…liked the spirit?"

Ayla answered, after a few seconds of unseen hesitation. "No, I don't think so. He was quite negative to its presence."

Link sighed in relief. "Good. The last thing I want to do is to compete with a ghost." He walked, quickly disappearing behind an outcrop. Ayla remained for a few minutes and sighed.

"If only you knew, Hero…if only you knew…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 32**

* * *

The sun was setting. Yet another day had passed in the mountains, and Link was starting to regret his choice of walking back to Hyrule. The walking in itself wasn't so bad, he was used to it. It was more the thoughts that kept popping into his head that was bothering him, and the hostile and arid environment was so bereft of stimulus for pleasant thoughts that he was unable to think of anything else. There was the usual worry of not finding water after running out, not finding a somewhat sheltered place to hide from the autumn winds that were finding their way through the valleys, and so on. And, as his stomach never let him forget, the lack of a proper cook.

He was sitting in front of the fire, wrapped in his cloak, gazing into the flames while munching on some kind of lizard he had managed to catch. It had been horrid raw, slightly less so when cooked. The food he had received from Aveil had been eaten in the first couple of days, and after that he was on his own. It didn't help that he kept underestimating the agility and speed of the indigenous animals in the region. He had lost count of the many times a mountain goat had easily leapt out of his bow's range, leaving the Hero of Time cursing and shouting in the dust.

He took a sip of water, noting with worry that he would be on his last bottle after finishing the current one. He took a look at the fried lizard on a stick, and then he looked at the bottle of water. He practically swallowed the little lizard in a single gulp, washing it down with the last of the water in the bottle. He shuddered from the taste of the lizard.

"No wonder Lizalfos aren't prey where they live," he said quietly to himself, snickering. It wasn't a funny joke, but it helped to have a bit of a laugh every now and then. It kept the depression away, the mood that invariably fell over anyone who travelled in this region. It also kept loneliness somewhat at bay. Travelling alone wasn't half as fun as travelling with Sheik, or even Navi. The fairy had been somewhat annoying at times, but she always meant well.

And Sheik… Sheik had been a quiet, comforting presence. He didn't say much except when absolutely necessary, but the looks he had given Link, the nods and grunts, had always cheered him up. And after Link had kissed the Sheikah when they first travelled through here… Link smiled, remembering the bewildered look on Sheik's face, as if he couldn't believe what the Hero had just done. Link had hardly been able to believe it himself, but there it was.

He looked up, observing the last of the sun disappear behind a mountain. It would be cold tonight, he realised. The sun had been setting faster than when he and Sheik had come through. Autumn came fast when you didn't keep up with the current events. Just how long had they been in that desert? Both of them had lost count of the days since it was practically impossible to see sunlight in the sandstorm anyway, and the events in the watchtower…

The temple hadn't taken taken them more than a day, of that he was sure. And the walk back…a day or two, he supposed. But then he had walked unhindered by sand being thrown around by a gale so strong it could probably rip through stone given enough time. He remembered the graves of the rebellious Gerudo. They hadn't looked that old…but more than a couple of days old. Without noticing, the thoughts of what Ayla had told him snuck up on him.

" _For some time now, he has been the host of a…shall we say, sentient spirit that seems quite…taken with him."_

" _A dead person has fallen in love with Sheik?"_

" _It's a bit more complicated than that…"_

How was this even possible? When had Sheik been possessed by this…spirit, and how come Link hadn't? They had been together at all times in the Shadow Temple, where dead spirits floated around in the thousands, and they had never left each other's side afterwards… It was all too complicated, Link decided. Maybe Sheik had been playing the spirit's host for years, but hadn't noticed it. Or maybe the spirit hadn't awoken until now? Maybe all Sheikah had spirits inside of them, like their deceased ancestors, or something. After all, the shadow folk _did_ practically worship their forefathers…

He threw another piece of wood on the fire. How trees were even able to survive in this place was beyond him, but they provided excellent firewood. He had felt slightly guilty as he chopped down the obviously still-living tree, but it was either him or it, and the tree hadn't wielded a magical sword forged by the Goddesses. His inner Kokiri was dying slowly by the day, he knew, and his inner Hylian was taking over.

He didn't feel any different than he had when he first realised he had suddenly aged seven years, but after Navi died in the Water Temple, he sometimes caught himself thinking thoughts that were incredibly negative and pessimistic. He was sure Sheik had noticed it as well, considering the more subdued their conversations had been before the Spirit Temple.

He shook his head. He was doing it again! He kept thinking about his own problems, but forgot that Sheik was basically going against the code of his people, insulting his ancestors and soiling his legacy in the process. How the shadow warrior had been able to keep his professional attitude in the face of _that_ was staggering.

A cry from above caught the Hero's attention, and he smiled slightly. _There_ was a friendly face, at least. Or beak, anyway. Kaiza fluttered down, landing on a rock next to him. She looked around expectantly, finally settling her eyes on him with a look that could convey a thousand words, but settled with "Where?"

Link swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat. "He's gone," he said. "I don't know if he's dead or alive, just that he's not here."

Kaiza seemed to process these words for a few seconds, which Link spent admiring the falcon's intelligence. He had never seen a bird that could understand human speech, or one that obediently carried and took messages from all across the land. But then, Kokiri only lived in one part of the forest, and they had never seen the necessity for a way to communicate with the outside world.

Kaiza seemed to make up her mind and fixed him with a look. She then held out her leg, on which a small scroll was tied. Link looked at it, and then at Kaiza, who was still staring at him with her piercing eyes. She made a small, subdued, shriek-like sound. Link took this as a non-verbal "Go ahead," and gently untied the scroll and unfolded it.

_**S,** _

_**Four weeks have passed by, and not a single word from you. K has returned several times from searching for you and I am growing more and more trouble. Please, if you receive this message, reply as soon as possible.** _

_**I also have an update on the current situation in Hyrule. Ganondorf has stepped up his search for the princess; and our hiding place has been compromised. We have relocated to the second line, you know where it is.** _

_**The people are suffering, and unless we do something now, all will be lost. Please, S, come back as soon as possible.** _

_**P.** _

Link looked up from the scroll. So this was the messages Sheik had received. Zelda had an incredibly beautiful way of writing, all curves and circles. He noticed Kaiza was still staring at him, her leg held out.

"What?" he asked. When her gaze did not shift, he realised it. "You're waiting for a reply? Sheik isn't here, Kaiza, and I don't know what to write." Just as he was about to tear up the scroll and throw it in the fire, he could _feel_ the glare he was receiving from the falcon, and he sighed. What had Sheik done when he replied to these messages? He looked at the fire.

"Coal, right," he mumbled and fished out a burning twig. He blew out the flame and waited for the ember to cool down. He scratched his improvised pen a couple of times against the scroll to see if it worked. It did. He then began writing, inwardly thanking Saria for teaching him to read and write.

_**P,** _

_**This is L. Something happened in—** _

He looked up, wondering exactly how he could convey what had happened in the temple without revealing too much. He had caught a glimpse of Sheik's replies once, and he had seen how terse and little detailed they had been. Zelda also wrote like that, albeit more refined, he supposed. He then thought of what to write.

_**P,** _

_**This is L. Something happened in the God of the sand, and S has disappeared. I am not sure where S is, nor whether they are alive or not. I am making my way home, and I would very much appreciate what to do now.** _

_**L.** _

He wrinkled his nose, frowning at what he had just written. It had sounded so much better in his head than it did on paper. But he had used up the available space with his big letters and indelicate writing, so there wasn't much he could do but hope that Zelda understood and gave him some advice on what to do next. This was also a concern that had haunted him the past few days. He had tried to contact Saria and the other sages to see if they had any advice, but Saria had not answered to her song being played, and neither had the others.

He did his best to tie the message around Kaiza's foot again, noticing how clumsy his fingers were compared to Sheik's, who had been able to do it within seconds. It took Link five minutes, and by the end, he just wanted to tear that damnable piece of paper into a thousand pieces and burn it all with Din's Fire.

Apparently satisfied, Kaiza gave him another shriek and took off, disappearing among the clouds, leaving Link alone again. He sighed and settled his attention on the fire again, poking it every now and then with a stick to shift some material that hadn't caught fire properly. He could feel the chill trying to reach into his robe, and a roaring fire would be quite important unless he wanted to freeze to death.

Some hours passed. It was mind-numbingly boring without someone to talk to, as he had learned during the past few days. Even a look from Sheik was enough to keep a conversation going, but now he didn't even have that. When he had finally had enough of the silence, he rolled out the makeshift mattress (which consisted of another robe) next to the fire and laid down, trying to make the next day come faster.

* * *

"Any ideas yet?" asked Speil, his breath coming in laboured gasps. The spell was gradually breaking him down, and Sheik could see that he was struggling to keep himself together, desperate not to revert back to his non-solid form. Sheik didn't know whether Speil's intelligence and empathy would devolve along with his body, but he didn't want to find out. He searched through his brain, desperately trying to find something, _anything_ that could be of help. All he could remember were spells that did the exact opposite of what he was trying to do, and it didn't help that Speil's hand—which he had taken to holding in order to keep the shadow awake—kept twitching and loosening its hold on his.

"No," Sheik replied, his eyes closed. Not receiving any visual stimulus helped him think, but he also knew that he had them closed because he didn't want to see Speil's eyes, how they were loosing their brilliance and fading away slowly. "I can't think of a single spell that could possibly help."

"Then…maybe…it's just as well…that I die," said Speil, coughing. The drainage was taking its toll on his body, damaging it internally. "Too bad I never…got to face My Light again…though."

"Don't be ridiculous," said Sheik. "You _have_ to face him, or else Hyrule and the entire world will be lost." Sheik had given up on stopping the reflection from facing its mirror image, understanding that Link truly needed the power Speil had…stolen? Received? The power the Master Sword had transferred to him during their fight in the Water Temple. And if Link was to regain that power, then a fight between the two needed to happen again. The only question was when this would happen.

"Maybe…his power…will leave me and…go back to him when I…die," said Speil, his hand twitching once again. When the grip didn't loosen, Sheik opened his eyes and looked at Speil. "Pet…no, Sheik," he said, his breath rasping. "I'm…sorry…"

Sheik slowly moved closer to Speil, looking into the faded red orbs of his eyes…and slapped the dark counterpart hard.

"Shut up!" he yelled. "You're not dying. You can't die! Not now! I will find a way to stop this!"

 _He used my name,_ he thought. _He actually used my name for the first time…has he truly changed from the primal beast I first saw and fought in the temple so long ago?_ And then something clicked into place, and he gasped.

"I remember it now!" he said excitedly to Speil, who smiled gently.

"Is that…so?" he asked.

"Yes," said Sheik and drew a dagger from his wrist bandages. "It's actually a spell to remove a curse, but I think it will work." He stuck the dagger into the ground, drawing the Sheikah symbol in the dirt around it, mumbling the arcane words he had learned from one of the spell books under his mouth. He could have sworn he saw the edges of the dagger glinting for just a fraction of a second. He pulled it out, feeling that a substantial weight had been added to it.

"May…I ask…just…what you're…going to do…now?" asked Speil, looking at the dagger.

Sheik leaned over Speil, looking into his eyes again. "I think you know," he whispered. "It will hurt."

Speil coughed. "Do it," the shadow said resolutely.

The dagger wavered over Speil's heart for a few seconds, Sheik's hand shaking. The Sheikah couldn't believe it. He had never been hesitant like this before, and no matter what he did, he couldn't bring himself to stab down.

"What's wrong?" asked Speil, panting. "Just do it! Isn't this…what you've…wanted to…do for a long…time?" Receiving no answer from Sheik, he continued. "I thought…you hated me…and wanted to—mmmphhhhh!"

Speil couldn't say anymore, for Sheik had suddenly locked his lips with the shadow's and, at the same time, stabbed downward, penetrating the flesh beneath Speil's tunic. A ghostly light issued from the wound, growing brighter every second. Speil's screams were muffled by Sheik's lips, and the Sheikah had closed his eyes to avoid looking at the shadow's eyes, which were filled with unimaginable pain. The last thing Speil saw was Sheik's blond bangs and the night sky, and then only darkness…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 33  
**

* * *

The sight of the bridge across the river filled Link with a feeling he couldn't quite name. Relief? Happiness? Certainly not happiness, he was sure. In any case, the broken bridge still clung onto the edge of the cliff, threatening to plunge into the river below. Luckily, the Hero had his Longshot, which he used to cross the chasm. He tried his best not to think about the first time he crossed this river, when Sheik had protested quite strongly against using said instrument. The climate seemed to be more temperate now, and he could now walk around without his robe, which he rolled together and put inside his pack.

He looked around, hoping to catch a glimpse of a certain pair of equines, which he didn't. He sighed and pulled out the Ocarina of Time. He put the mouthpiece to his lips, felt the euphoric sensation once again, and gently played Epona's Song, the notes echoing through the mountains. He opened his eyes and spied around, confused. Usually, when he played the song, Epona came running like the world was about to end unless she reached her master first. But now…

He smiled in relief when he heard the familiar whinnying and the sound of hoofs trampling on the ground coming from the pass. Two pairs of hoof sounds, he noticed. Epona came around the bend, her white mane shining in the sunlight. She spotted Link and immediately changed course, seemingly charging at the youth. The Hero did nothing, knowing exactly what was going to happen. Then Maladict rounded the bend. He was heavier than Epona, being a stud, and his hoof claps reminded Link of thunder, the ground shaking slightly as the pair of horses came closer and closer.

When Epona was a few feet away from Link, she stopped. There was no intermediary stage between full gallop and stop. Link suspected there was some sort of magic about his equine partner, not only because of her erratic start-and-stop-habits, but also because she seemed unable to get hurt, no matter what happened. They had been ambushed on their way to Lake Hylia, he remembered, by a group Tektites, which Epona had simply ridden through, taking no heed of the insect-like enemies' bites and jumps. She even trampled some of them, crushing them beneath her hooves.

Maladict, unlike Epona, seemed to be just a normal horse and had to do his best to stop, skidding the last few feet, and coming to a stop right next to Epona. His eyes, which were just as black as the rest of him, swivelled around. He was looking for Sheik; Link realised this and patted him on his muzzle.

"Sorry," he said. "Sheik's gone. It's just me."

He didn't know whether or not horses could understand the Hylian tongue, but he was sure that Maladict knew what he meant, for his ears dropped slightly, and the entire being that was Maladict seemed to sag. Epona rubbed her muzzle to his, which seemed to cheer the stud up for a bit, but not by much. Link smiled at the display.

"So we're not the only ones who like each other, huh?" he asked and prepared to swing himself into Epona's saddle. "Figures," he mumbled and adjusted his quiver so it wouldn't smack him in the face as he rode. He grabbed Epona's reigns and turned her about, a movement Maladict mirrored completely. This pleased Link. He was afraid that he would have had to tie Maladict's reins to Epona's saddle in order to take him with them, but if the equines were…involved, then there would be no such problems.

The ride through the pass was as pleasant as it could be. Link decided to take it a bit slow, mostly because he wanted to enjoy riding again, an activity he had sorely missed while dealing with the Gerudo and Spirit Temple, but also because of his rather sore back, a reminder of the rocky ground he had slept on.

Dark clouds were approaching from the north, currently passing over Death Mountain. He could see the small patches of the clouds lighting up briefly, signifying a storm was underway. The first of the fall storms, which could do quite a bit of damage to villages and cities alike. The only part of Hyrule that was never disturbed by these storms was the Kokiri Village, apparently, for it was under the protection of the Great Deku Tree. Was the Deku Sprout powerful enough to shield the forest children from it, though? He made a note to check up on his friends later.

The constant cloudy skies over Hyrule Castle were coming into view, now. And they seemed even more vicious than when Link and Sheik had left for Gerudo Valley. Streaks of red lightning now erupted every few minutes.

"Ganondorf's power is growing," Link said to himself as the storm clouds from the north moved to obscure the sun. Once again, the Hero found himself praying for his lover's safety. Anywhere was better than with the Evil King. He was coming into the massive plain that dominated the area in front of Castle Town, and Link saw immediately that something was wrong.

The entire area seemed…dead. The grass, which had been vibrant and green, was now a mottled, grey colour. The trees had shed all their leaves, far too early even for fall, and were drying up. Small rivers and streams had dried up, and the air itself was heavy and full of dust. A plume of black smoke rose to the north-east, which filled him with dread.

"The ranch…" he said slowly as he watched the smoke rising. The plume was high, which indicated that the fire had gone on for quite some time. Without thinking, he kicked Epona's side, urging her into a full gallop. Epona went from a slow trot to full speed almost immediately, leaving Maladict slightly behind, but the stud quickly caught up. Link readied his bow and arrows, hoping that nothing serious had happened, that Talon and Malon were merely burning old furniture and things from their attic. It was highly unlikely, he knew, but hope was something he could not give up on, despite the bleak situation the world was in.

His hopes were indeed squashed as he finally reached the stone wall that surrounded the ranch. It had apparently once been a fortress which had fallen into disrepair. Disrepair was not a word that could describe it now. Destroyed, seemed far more apt. Something had broken the wall, tearing it to shreds and scattering debris all over the plain. The buildings were burning, the barn mere cinders.

"No…"

Link dismounted Epona and beckoned her to stay, which she apparently nodded to, though Link had his doubts. He put away his bow and drew his sword and shield, the Mirror Shield glinting in the light from the fire. An orange glow had fallen over the area, and the air was filled with ash and smoke, making the Hero cough and breathe heavily.

There was no point in exploring the remains of the barn. There was nothing left of it. It would have been completely unrecognisable had it not been for its position relative to the main house or the bovine remains. Link saw them and wrinkled his nose. The poor animals had still been tied up, it seemed. He turned away from the remains of the barn, focusing on the main house, which still hadn't been completely consumed by the flames. A good part of the cuccoo-building remained, and the living area was still intact. Link kicked open the door. He was met by a wall of smoke and hot air, which blew past him and into the world.

Coughing, the Hero tore a strip from his tunic and tied it around his mouth, forgetting the most important part of the mask: soaking it in water. He ran inside, sheathing his weapons. He did not even have to look at the cuccoos to know that they had all suffocated, for he felt the lack of air just as he entered. First things first, he thought and ran up the stairs. It never occurred to him to open the door the normal way, preferring instead to land another powerful kick to it, which sent it off its hinges. The frail wood crashed to the floor, and Link ran inside, his eyes raking around for the familiar corpulent form of Talon or Malon's petite frame.

No one. No one was inside the kitchen or living room. Link stormed out, running down the stairs and into the guest quarters. The wall of the cuccoo building was now catching fire, and he had little time. There was no one there, either. Just as he exited the building, the roof of the cuccoo building came crashing down, igniting the rest of the house in the process. He covered his eyes as the dry timber caught fire and lit up the area.

"What happened here?" he asked himself as he slowly walked through the ruined ranch. The horse pen had been ripped to shreds, the equines gone. He was about to step outside the wall when he noticed something by the storage shed close to the breach. A man. He ran over to him, thinking it to be Talon. It was not. Link had never seen this one before. He was dead, a crossbow bolt shot cleanly through his forehead. Link remembered having seen a crossbow on the wall in the main house before. He shook his head and studied the man closely. He was wearing what could best be described as a mix of armour and rags. Leather scraps here and there covered essential areas and a rusted breast plate covered his torso. The man was filthy, even with the blood that had flowed from his head.

The shed door creaked slightly, bringing Link to full alert. He drew the Master Sword and pulled it open. It was dark inside, the little lamp having gone out. Link took out a deku nut, stopped for a second to ponder on how Sheik managed to teleport with them, and threw it inside. The flash lasted a mere half-second, but that was all Link needed to see. The only thing inside the slightly burnt structure was the decomposing body of Ingo, propped up against a crate with a sword. An arrow poked out of the body's chest, and Link noticed the dead man outside had carried a bow, judging by the quiver on his back.

Shaking his head, Link departed from the ranch, not looking back. The ranchers were not there. That much was obvious. As he mounted Epona again, he looked to the east. Kakariko Village had a similar plume of smoke rising from it. His eyes widened, and he spurred Epona on.

What in Hyrule was going on?

* * *

Sheik was leaning against a tree. There was something strange about the place, even for the Lost Woods. There seemed to be a slight shimmer to everything, and things seemed to move in the corner of his vision, only to be revealed to be stationary when he turned to look at them properly. He rubbed his chin, trying to work it out. He wanted to go explore the area further, but the form lying next to him could not be ignored for such an endeavour. He leaned down again, lifting the bandage on Speil's chest. The wound was gone, which was a good sign. He had been unsure whether or not he had prepared the spell properly, but he was now confident he had done it right.

He studied Speil closely. The counterpart's skin had darkened somewhat, and his hair seemed to be…cleaner, he had no other word for it. It had been hanging in clumps and been generally filthy, but it now seemed as clean as Link's had.

 _Link…_ he thought. _Where are you now? Do you think I'm dead? Or are you looking for me? Are you even alive? The witches were strong…but you were stronger, surely? Or does Speil possess the bit of strength you needed to defeat them?_ He banished the thoughts to the back of his head. He could not afford to be distracted by Link right now. They were apart, and now had different purposes to fulfil.

He really wished he had a deku nut. He was worried about the princess. Something in his stomach told him that something major was happening in Hyrule, and he was stuck here with the near-comatose dark counterpart of the Hero of Time.

 _I kissed him…_ he thought suddenly. Where the thought came from, he didn't know, but the phantom feeling of Speil's lips and the shuddering that had gone through his body as Sheik stabbed him in his heart…it tried to sneak up on him. _Why did I kiss him? I hate him. He has caused nothing but trouble since he came into existence!_

These thoughts were also abandoned when Speil suddenly groaned, red lights flickering as he blinked rapidly. Sheik was by him within a second, helping to prop him up.

"How are you feeling?" asked Sheik, wondering why he was concerned.

"Like shit, literally," said Speil. He yawned, but stopped mid-motion, his eyes focusing on Sheik. "You kissed me. Voluntarily, I might add."

"Think nothing of it, I merely did it to distract you from what I was about to do," said Sheik, pulling slightly away in case the shadow was going to try anything.

"I highly doubt I would have been able to do something even if you didn't," said Speil. He felt around his chest. "I shan't be stabbed like that again, just so we are clear."

"I would like nothing more," said Sheik.

"I am sure you would not," replied Speil. He slowly stood up, working out kinks from his back. "Either way, I believe your spell worked. I can feel my strength returning."

Sheik noticed something. "Your weapons are gone."

"As are yours," said Speil. "But I do not need a blade to fight."

"Me neither," said Sheik. "Judging by your wording, you seem intent to have an altercation with me. Is that your intention?"

Speil smiled and shook his head. "Not really. It was more a statement to assure you in case we run into trouble."

"I am more than able to take care of myself, thank you very much," said Sheik. _Bloody hell, now_ this _one underestimates me as well!_

"In the real world, perhaps. But not in this one."

"What?"

* * *

Kakariko was the same, a burnt-out husk of its former self. The windmill had collapsed, blocking off the path to the graveyard. Impa's house, the potion lady's house…all gone. The watchtower too was close to crumbling. A rockslide had blocked off access to Death Mountain. The house of the Skulltula-cursed family was the only building that remained—miraculously—untouched. Further inspection, however, revealed that it was empty.

Walking down the stairs to the plain, Link wondered what had happened while he was gone. Had Ganondorf finally marched his massive army out to deal the final blow to the Hylians? But what harm could a bunch of villagers and former city-folk pose to a king possessing almost ultimate power?

"What's going on?" he asked for the hundredth time, this time directing the question to Epona, who fixed him with her usual intelligent stare. She seemed to be just as confused as he was, and he noticed that she had started to hang her head just before leaving the ranch, as if knowing that something had happened to her former owners.

He was just about to climb into the saddle when Kaiza's cry caused him to look upwards. The falcon landed on Epona's saddle and presented him with another message. He unrolled it and read.

_**L,** _

_**Ganondorf is on the move. He has attacked several villages and cities in Hyrule. He is trying to snuff out the last resistance. Hundreds have died already, and Kakariko is being burned to the ground as I am writing this.** _

_**I am sorry to hear about S, but we cannot afford to be distracted by our losses now. We must regroup and gather our strength if we are to stand a chance against Ganondorf. We desperately need your strength, L. Please, come to your former home. It is the only safe place left in Hyrule. We will be waiting for you.** _ **I** _**will be waiting for you.** _

_**P.** _

He was about to look for something to write a response with when Kaiza suddenly took off, leaving him alone with the horses again. He took that as a sign that no reply was expected. Just as well, he supposed, considering the careless wording in this message. The writing was also less elegant and curvy as before. Maybe she was under extreme stress and pressure when she wrote it.

Either way, the princess had summoned him, and his "former home" could only be one place.

"To Kokiri Forest, then," he announced to himself and spurred Epona on, closely followed by Maladict.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 34**

* * *

As far as Sheik was concerned, Speil was insane. Not that he had to think hard to come to that conclusion, all things considered. The very fact that he had killed a fairy and consumed her blood in order to stay alive was enough for the Sheikah to file the dark entity under "Mentally Damaged" right away. But at the moment, the shadow did not seem to be joking around or "jerking his chain" as he had once heard it be described as.

"You see," Speil said and motioned to the forest around them. "There is something quite strange about this place."

"This is the Lost Woods," said Sheik in a deadpan. "The ambient magical energies make it a strange place by definition." He shook his head and turned his back on Speil. "You can abandon whatever tomfoolery you're embarking on, I am not in the mood for games."

"I am quite sure that I am not the only one who has noticed that this forest is beyond any magical energies found in Hyrule," said Speil, studying the dagger Sheik had stabbed him with. The blade had corroded, and the metal crumbled away as he stroked a finger along the now dull edge. "Although I probably have the advantage of having communicated with the entities in this forest myself."

"Entities? Communicated?" asked Sheik. "From what you've told me, you only woke up a few minutes earlier than me, and then you were incapacitated by the witches' spell. In what period of time have you communicated with _anyone_ but me?"

"While I was unconscious, naturally," said Speil, his teeth shining in the weak light that was starting pierce the morning air. The drab colour still had not lifted, despite the rapidly approaching day. Noticing the Sheikah narrowing his eyes, Speil cleared his throat. "I realise just how impossible and quite frankly silly it sounds, but as an inherently magical being, I am attuned to…shall we say, the environment around us."

"Environment?" asked Sheik and snorted. "Not even a minute ago you said entities."

"Entities, environments, your mother, whatever you want to call it," said Speil, his crimson eyes carefully watching Sheik.

It seemed to have the desired effect, for mirth clearly covered the shadow's face when Sheik's furious gaze turned upon him. It only seemed please him more when he found himself slammed into the tree behind him, Sheik's face inches away from his.

"What did you say?" asked Sheik, his voice dangerously low. The Sheikah could feel the many layers of his patience and understanding being stripped away every second he was with Speil, and there were just some things you _didn't joke about_! When Speil's smile only widened, Sheik punched him in the stomach. "Answer me!"

Speil wheezed and pushed Sheik almost effortlessly away. The Sheikah was reminded of just why he had not been able to beat him back in the temple. Speil was Link's mirror image, and just as strong—if not stronger after their fight in the temple—as he was. Sheik prepared himself for a fight, wondering if he'd gone too far. But Speil continued catching his breath and staring at Sheik.

"Good punch," said Speil after a while. "A bit harder and I might just have passed out." Suddenly, he had his hands around Sheik's throat, pressing down on the Sheikah's Adams apple. "But I do wonder if you have forgotten just what I am." He gave a squeeze and released Sheik, who backed away, gasping for breath.

"For the record," continued Speil, "I was trying to get a reaction from you. I meant no offense with my comment."

"Bullshit," said Sheik loudly and glared at Speil.

"I'm being truthful," said Speil. "Anyway, I really must bring us back on track. I have…spoken to the living beings that inhabit this place, and I have both good news and bad news." He brushed some imaginary dirt from his shoulder, where the dark copies of the Master Sword and Hylian Shield were noticeably missing. Only the sword's sheath remained. "The question is: which news do you want first?"

"Bad news," said Sheik simply. He was being cautious now. It was painfully obvious that he was only alive right now because Speil wanted to. Why in Hyrule he had bothered to save the dark counterpart was beyond him. "Let's hear it."

"Very well," said Speil. "We are not in Hyrule; or in any part of the world as we know it."

"You have already told me this," said Sheik, "and I still don't believe you."

"I could not care less whether you believe me or not," said Speil while rolling his eyes. "I can only tell you the truth; it's up to you to interpret it."

"Fine, let's say that I believe you," said Sheik and crossed his arms, wishing that he was wearing his cowl. Speil was reading his face. He noticed that the shadow had been studying his face closely as he talked. "Where are we, then?"

"We are currently in some kind of parallel dimension to Hyrule," said Speil, again motioning to the forest around them. "But unlike Hyrule, light does not prevail in this place. I am sure you have noticed that the rising sun has little effect on the gloom around us."

Sheik nodded, indeed having noticed that. He was steeling his face, not wanting to give anything away.

"Good," said Speil. "Instead of trading between the light of day and the dark of night, it exists in perpetual twilight."

Something fell into place in Sheik's train of thought.

 _The realm of Twilight…_ he thought. It had always been a legend among the Sheikah, a legend of a realm of constant shadow and twilight, the birthplace of their people. Of course, Sheik had never believed in such a thing. Sheikah were merely another people inhabiting Hyrule, just like the Hylians. Creation myths had never truly interested him, not even when Impa told him about Twilight with enthusiasm. He didn't know if his aunt believed in it, but he could now confirm that it existed…if Speil was telling the truth, of course.

Speil smirked. "I can see in your eyes that you have heard of this place. If I am not mistaken, this is where your people originated from, correct?"

"Where my people _believed_ they originated from," Sheik corrected him.

"Judging by your words, I am to take it you don't believe it?" asked Speil.

"Superstition is a dangerous thing," said Sheik. "I find it easier not to contemplate creation at all. Especially since no proof exists."

"Despite the fact that the Sheikah people have only ever been found in Hyrule and nowhere else?"

 _How does he know these things?_ Sheik thought. _He was born barely three weeks ago!_

"Yes," he finally replied. "I stand by my statement."

"Well, I believe that your convictions are in for a severe shaking," said Speil. "Continuing with the bad news, it also appears that time runs much slower here."

"What do you mean?"

"You and I have been here for nearly…hm, I think a day, perhaps?" He seemed to think about this for a few seconds. "Anyway, we have not been here for long, but almost a week has passed in Hyrule."

"What?!" asked Sheik. "A week? What has happened to the Hero, then?"

"Why are you asking me?" said Speil. "The spirits were not especially…cooperative with me."

 _Despite being a creature of shadow…_ thought Sheik bitterly. He looked around. If a week had passed already…then Link was surely out of the desert by now, _if_ he had defeated the witches. And if he was out of the desert, was he now on his way to Hyrule Castle to defeat Ganondorf. He cursed mentally. _He doesn't know that he's lacking in power! If he tries to attack Ganondorf, then he…_

"I know what you are thinking," said Speil. "And I can assure you that My Light has not embarked on such a stupid endeavour."

"And how do you know that?" asked Sheik, noticing a certain quiver in his voice. Not even a day and the place was already getting to him…or maybe it was his fellow traveller at the moment. "How could you possibly know what he is up to if we're in a completely different world than he is?"

"Because I am him, and he is me," said Speil calmly as he approached Sheik. The Sheikah tried to get away, but Speil cornered him as Sheik felt his back collide with a tree. Speil put his hands on the trunk on either side of Sheik's head, trapping the Sheikah. "I know for a fact that he will not give up on searching for you before he goes after the Evil King." He rested his forehead to Sheik's. "And frankly, I don't blame him."

* * *

The true extent of Ganondorf's march across the land became more and more obvious as Link raced across the plains. Every now and then, he passed by a burned-down village or caravan. Strangely enough, no matter how much he searched, he never found bodies. The idea that the proud villagers of Hyrule just giving in to the Evil King without a fight felt foreign to Link, and the fact that he in some places found splotches of blood on the ground knocked that theory right out.

The strangest thing was how quickly all this had happened. Nothing indicated that such a thing was happening before Link and Sheik left for Gerudo Valley. But here he was, and almost the entire plains area seemed to be in a decline. And he knew why the environment looked so lifeless. He had figured it out as he rode. Ganondorf's magical power must have increased to such a degree that he was twisting the world around him into his ideal vision of how it should look.

As for where the king was at the moment, he found out just as he cleared another hill. He was too far away to see any individuals, but the number of torches and shining armours clearly told him what kind of people were travelling to the west, towards Lake Hylia. He made Epona stop, and observed the army as it marched steadily onwards. He could see the Lost Woods from where he was standing. Curiously enough, the army seemed to have been on their way there, but veered off the path just before hitting it, marching to the lake instead.

"The Deku Sprout," Link said out loud. It was quite powerful already if it had managed to repel Ganondorf. And the princess was currently under his protection. Maybe all wasn't lost after all.

* * *

It was raining by the time he reached the tree line to the Lost Woods, and he was quickly soaked to the bone. By the time had fumbled out his robe, there was no point in putting it on. Annoyed, he thrust it back into his pack and dismounted Epona, leading her by the reins into the forest with Maladict on their heels. There was something off about the woods, like he was being watched. This was, usually, a regular occurrence in the Lost Woods, but the eyes watching you usually belonged to Skull Kids who, for the fun of it, allowed you small glimpses of them in order to make you annoyed. These eyes, however, belonged to someone who didn't want you to see them.

Link stopped walking and let go of Epona's reigns. His fingers found their way to the sword hilt on his back. Without a sound, he drew the Master Sword and Mirror Shield. He then took a few steps forward, keeping an eye on his surroundings. Whoever was hiding from him were good, but Link had grown up in this forest, and he knew just what to look for. He could see where pieces of armour awkwardly jutted out from behind trees or from bushes, and he could hear bowstrings tighten and groan in protest.

He had been careless, he realised when he took his fifth step. There had been another line of ambushers, and they were now slowly making their way to his right, trying to surround him. Something snapped to his left. He ducked and rolled, avoiding the arrow that buried itself into the tree trunk next to him.

"Hold your fire!" someone called.

"Surround him, dammit!" someone else shouted.

All at once, the woods came alive, and several tall, armoured warriors emerged from their hiding places. It really was unavoidable. By the time he had noticed it, he was too far inside their line of defence to get out again.

"Drop your weapons!" exclaimed a hooded warrior. After Link did so, he stepped forward, pulling back his hood. He was young, probably not much older than Link, and the pathetic attempt at a beard made him look like a tool. He studied Link with a glare as another warrior collected Link's weapons. "So," said the young warrior, "you thought you could sneak your way inside, eh?"

"Colin!" shouted another warrior suddenly, an older, more wizened-looking one. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Apprehending an agent of the Evil King, sir" said Colin proudly as the older man came to stand next to him. He regarded Link with a fearful look. Then he punched the younger man so hard he fell to the forest floor.

"You fool!" exclaimed the older man. "Can't you see who this is?" When Colin just gave him a confused and annoyed look, he grabbed his long, Hylian ear and pulled him to his feet. "Look at his sword! He is the Hero of Time!"

Colin's eyes widened and turned to Link. "Oh, bloody hell…"

* * *

"I am so sorry for Colin's stupidity, Sire," the older warrior, who Link eventually learned went by the name of Rusl, kept repeating as they walked through the forest. "He is young and impatient and meant no harm. We are all on the edge, and we're not thinking stra—"

"Captain Rusl, please," said Link and smiled reassuringly. "I am not angry. I completely understand why your son did as he did. I probably would have done the same if I were in his shoes."

Rusl seemed relieved at this. "Thank you, Sire. My son still has a lot to learn."

"And please stop calling me Sire, Captain. I don't like titles applied to me."

"Yes, Si—"Rusl stopped himself. "Erm, what can I call you, then?"

Link smiled. "Just Link will be fine."

"You cannot expect me to call the Hero of Time by his first name? That's sacrilege."

"I will be more offended if you call me Sire, Captain," said Link. He looked over his shoulder toward the back of the small convoy, where Colin was leading Epona and Maladict, his punishment for insulting the Hero of Time. "What rank does your son have?" he asked.

"Sergeant, Si—Link," answered Rusl. The man learned fast, Link had to admit. Faster than Sheik, at least.

"And how old is he?"

"Twenty."

"Isn't he too young to possess that rank?"

"Usually, yes," said Rusl. "But we have lost so many good officers and men during the last few months that we've been forced to appoint the younger generations for the ranks. Don't take me wrong," he added hastily when Link looked at him; "Colin has proven more than capable for the rank. He has lead several successful operations against the Evil King. He's just a bit hot-headed, if you understand."

"Of course, Captain," said Link and smiled again. There was something familiar about the man, but he just couldn't place him in his memory. "Where is the princess?" he asked.

"She has taken up residence—on _their_ request, of course—in the Kokiri Village," said Rusl.

"On the Kokiri's request?" asked Link, surprised. From what he remembered of his first eleven years of life, the forest children had been quite averse to strangers and outsiders. Only too often did he remember the many times the other children had teased him about his not having a fairy, and how many times Mido had been cruel to him. " _They_ wanted her there?"

"And a large element of the army," said Rusl. He noticed Link's perplexed expression. "I believe they are as worried about the future of Hyrule as we are, Link."

"Probably," mumbled Link.

He was unable to withhold a gasp as they crossed the last drawbridge into the village. There were tents everywhere, and at least a couple hundred soldiers were standing guard or idly wandering around the village. As they slowly walked through the village, Link caught glimpses of a Kokiri or two as they ran around and asked the soldiers questions. The army men hardly seemed bothered by this and were happily answering or entertaining the forest children.

He saw the triplets, who were looking with wide eyes at the sparring soldiers close to their house. One of the blonde girls (he realised that he could hardly remember any of their names) was shyly talking to a young boy in armour who could hardly have been older than fourteen or fifteen.

"Link," said Rusl suddenly. "I think the princess would like to know that you're here right away. If you'll follow me, please."

"Of…of course," said Link and followed Rusl. They passed by Colin, who were tying Epona and Maladict to a tree close to the other horses. The young sergeant quickly turned to Link.

"Hero, I apologise profoundly for insulting you—"

"It's alright, Sergeant," said Link. "As I told your father, I probably would have done the same in your shoes. So don't worry about it."

The reassurance, as well as the use of his rank, seemed to perk the young man up, and he saluted to Link. "Thank you, Hero!"

"Oh, and call me Link, eh?" said the Hero and continued following Rusl.

"Alright…Link," said Colin to himself and finished tying Epona to the tree.

It was amazing just how much an army could change the appearance of the little village. Well, not amazing, Link had to admit. It was more that he never could have imagined outsiders even being allowed inside the village, ever. The only reason Link had been allowed to stay was because of the Deku Tree's decision. But here he was, surrounded by the Royal Army.

None of the Kokiri seemed to recognise him, however, as they turned to look at the young man in green clothing remarkably similar to theirs. As they passed his old house, Link noticed that no light shone from his windows, and a rope had been tied between the poles at the top of his ladder to prevent anyone from getting in. So they didn't want anyone to disturb his house in case he came back? Or was it some other reason?

"The princess is waiting inside," Rusl said and pointed at a very familiar house. Link blinked and looked at Rusl, who nodded. "I'll be waiting here," he said as the Hero approached the entrance, where two of the Royal Elite, Zelda's bodyguards, stepped aside as they recognised him.

Her Highness the Princess Zelda was currently studying a map that had been pinned on the wall, on which several pins had been set in place. They were coloured differently, and their significance and meaning were lost on Link. Zelda didn't seem to notice him despite the amount of noise he made whenever he walked.

"I didn't expect to find you in Saria's house," he said.

All things considered, Her Highness handled the surprise well. Instead of jumping (like Link would have done), she merely…jerked the tiniest bit, and her breath seemed to hitch for all but a second. She turned around, and Link saw just what this war was doing to her.

She looked tired, that was all there was to it. She was pale, and she had dark bags under her eyes, which didn't seem half as vibrant and lively as they had done when they had first met in the Castle Courtyard so many years ago. She did not wear a dress, but a loose-sitting suit of leather armour, and her long, blonde hair had been tied into a ponytail not unlike Sheik's. She looked quite ordinary, the only thing signifying her importance being the diadem around her head, which shone in the torchlight. It was warm inside the house, and he could feel his clothes finally starting to dry ever so slightly. The rain had lessened somewhat, but the men outside hardly seemed bothered by the falling water.

"Link?" Zelda asked.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 35**

* * *

Sheik was zoning out. Speil's explanation of just how this realm could exist was eloquent and articulate…and extremely dull. The Sheikah was sitting against a tree, listening to the shadow as he spoke about magical energies and beings far more powerful than anything in the "real world", as Speil kept referring to it as. The sun, or what passed for one in this realm at least, was rising higher and higher, yet kept giving off little to no light. In fact, it seemed to get darker and darker. Shadows were growing longer, and the forest was starting to feel more and more threatening.

Speil had stopped speaking and was looking at Sheik with an inquisitive expression. "What do you think?" the shadow asked.

"I don't know," replied Sheik, relying on his tried and tested reply he had learned to give whenever Impa had asked him a difficult question. His aunt had never appreciated the response, and he had lost count of how many times she had simply sighed deeply and walked away. It had left him somewhat disheartened, but how was he supposed to know the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow? It was useless knowledge to him, especially since he had been under the impression that the extent of his duties—in the peacetime, at least—would be to act as the royal family's body guard.

Speil sighed in an eerily similar manner to Impa. "You didn't hear a word of what I was saying, did you?" he asked, smirking slightly. "So much for the rapt attention of the Sheikah."

"I stopped listening because your information is of no use to me," answered Sheik and stood up. "The bad news is that we are in another dimension. That much I have gathered. How this realm works and what creatures inhabit it is useless to me. You said you had good news in addition to the bad, so let's hear it."

"You really are an impatient one, aren't you?" asked Speil as he too stood up. He drew level with Sheik, and then rose another few inches, reminding the Sheikah of the infuriating height difference between the two. And Link, for that matter. "You're not interested in learning about the legendary birthplace of your people at all?"

"Not while there is a war going on in my real home," said Sheik. "A week has passed, and much could have happened in that time. You are wasting even more time. Now tell me the good news so we can start trying to get out of here."

"Fine," said Speil and rolled his eyes. "Everything for my pet." He grinned when Sheik started glaring at him. "The good news is that, as a once native of this place, you should already have the key to leave this place."

"I have never been a native of this realm," said Sheik, "and neither have the Sheikah. It was all a ridiculous myth and pseudo-religion that we abandoned hundreds of years ago. I have never believed in it, and never will."

"Even though your aunt did?" said Speil, his eyes lighting up.

"How do you know that?" said Sheik, feeling a spike of rage ramming into his stomach. "How do you know half the things you do?"

"I'm not sure," replied the shadow. "I am quite sure I have told you this once before, but knowledge like this…just pops up in my head. I have no idea why I know that your aunt believed in the legend, and I sure don't know why new words I have no idea what mean suddenly show up in my vocabulary."

"Good news," said Sheik. "Now."

"I already told you, pet," said Speil, smiling widely. "You're the only one who can get us out of here. It's up to you to find out."

"So none of the 'entities' told you, then?" Sheik snorted. "So much for your help in this."

"If I hadn't been here, you still would have thought you were in Hyrule."

His annoyance fuelled by the shadow's renewal of the humiliating title for Sheik and his insistence that he was responsible for getting them out, Sheik stalked off in the direction of the waterfall that had been his original destination, growling as he heard the shadow's snicker. Out of the clearing, he slowed down and trotted along the path, wondering if the Realm of Twilight was an exact copy of Hyrule since these woods were remarkably similar to the Lost Woods, or if it was an entirely different place altogether. It was hard to determine, both because of the low lighting _and_ the lack of anyone sensible to discuss it with.

It didn't take long for Speil to catch up with him, although Sheik noticed that the shadow kept a respectful distance away from him, ten paces behind him. It suited Sheik perfectly, although he would have preferred to be completely alone. He knew Speil was enjoying this, he could practically feel the smile directed at his back. That, and the gentle snickering gave him away.

The waterfall was not far away. The place was surprisingly scenic, and it finally convinced Sheik of the existence of the Twilight Realm. Mostly because he had never seen a place like this in the Lost Woods. The path they had followed opened up into another clearing, which gave a magnificent view of the gigantic waterfall that he had heard. It was a marvel, easily outclassing the one that blocked the entrance to the Zora's Domain. The water fell at least several dozen feet before crashing to the bottom of the gorge, foaming. The river below stretched for miles, it seemed, painting a thin line in the landscape below them.

"Now that is something you don't see every day," said Speil. He had suddenly appeared at Sheik's side, still a foot or so away from the Sheikah. "It's beautiful. Like you."

The comment was not unexpected. Speil seemed to possess several personalities. Either that, or he had a mood like a rubber ball, bouncing around all over the place. Twenty minutes ago, he had had his hands around Sheik's neck and told him just how easily he could kill him, and now he was telling the Sheikah that he was beautiful. It was tiring to be around the Hero's shadow, physically _and_ mentally.

Sheik shrugged and let the comment slide. "If you say so." They stood in silence for a couple of minutes, both watching the small rainbow that was formed in the waterfall by the twilight. "What exactly am I supposed to do?" he finally asked.

"I have absolutely no idea," said Speil. "It really is something you need to figure out by yourself, apparently." He looked around. "There's something else that bothers me more than our imminent escape from this place."

"Which is?"

"The lack of ambient life. The lights we saw in the clearing back there…were not fairies."

Sheik snorted. "Then what were they?"

"Spirits…dead things," answered Speil. "They may have looked like fairies, but they were not alive."

Sheik walked over to the edge of the cliff overlooking the waterfall and bent down, peeking over the edge. There was only more forest below, and no paths led down there. He stood up and looked behind them, the way they had come from, and noticed something. Smoke was rising above the treetops. He made Speil aware of this as well.

"Local natives?" the shadow asked. "Perhaps…Sheikah?" He winked at Sheik as he said this, which earned him yet anther dirty look. "I am just going by what I have been told of this place."

"Whoever they are, they can surely help us," said Sheik and began walking back to the clearing. Several paths had opened into it, and one of them would surely lead the duo to the campsite or whatever was giving off that smoke.

"Are you sure that's such a wise idea?" asked Speil, jogging slightly to catch up with Sheik, who had adopted a brisk pace. "What if they are hostile? We are not exactly equipped to fight them if they have weapons…"

"I thought you said you didn't _need_ weapons to fight," said Sheik and continued walking, not sparing the shadow a glance.

"If the opponents are unarmed as well, then yeah," said Speil quietly.

 _And there we have another mood swing,_ Sheik thought. _Now he is suddenly afraid of a confrontation with an unknown party. Quite unlike the fearless monster I met in the temple, methinks._

The campsite was not far away. They had barely left the original clearing when they spotted the firelight among the trees. It was a stone circle of some sort, they realised as they drew closer. A small fire had been lit in the middle and cast an eerie glow on the stones, which shone with wetness despite it not having rained. Symbols were scrawled all over the stones, and Sheik recognised some of them. Some of the symbols were from ancient languages no one knew how to speak anymore.

"Well, this looks familiar," Speil said suddenly and pointed at the largest stone, which looked more like a pillar. Sheik recognised this one too. How could he not, since the same symbol was emblazoned on his tabard. The bleeding eye. He reached out and touched the stone. The eye had been carved deep into the stone, but it was obvious that the carving had been done a long time ago, the wear and tear of wind and rain had already started to erase the mark.

"You're late," said a voice behind them, and the pair both whirled around, ready to battle whatever foe had snuck up on them.

A man was sitting cross-legged against the stone opposite of the one they had been studying. He was wearing a dark purple, loose-fitting robe which went all the way to his ankles. His hair was long and dark, and covered his down-turned face. A sword with a scabbard similar to Kazuya's rested against the stone next to him.

"Who are you?" asked Sheik, warily observing the newcomer as he raised his head.

"That is a question to which there is no simple answer," said the man. As his face came into view, it became obvious that he was young, probably not much older than Link—or Speil. His eyes were closed. A wicked scar ran across his left eye. While the question of whom he was remained unanswered, the unspoken question of _what_ he was became apparent just as he opened his eyes. Crimson met crimson as the young man's gaze met Sheik's.

"Welcome home, Sheik."

* * *

Link had expected a certain level of familiarity with the princess. They were, after all, co-conspirators in a plot against Ganondorf, though the success of said plot could be debated. What he did _not_ expect, however, was for the princess to throw her arms around him and envelop him in a tight hug. Zelda was shorter than he was, her face barely coming to level with his chest, he noticed. After an awkward pause, he returned the hug and wrapped his arms around her.

As they separated, Zelda roamed her eyes all over the Hero, making him feel a bit like a piece of meat.

"It's so good to see you again, Link," Zelda said. She seemed to have perked up a bit, the bags under her eyes not so severe-looking now. Her eyes focused on the top of his head. "You've stopped wearing your cap," she said. Before Link could answer, she continued: "That is good. You were cute with it when you were a child, but I think it would look quite silly now that you are an adult."

"Not by choice," Link said, remembering the circumstances that caused the absence of his cap. "I lost it in the Shadow Temple."

"A blessing in disguise, then," said Zelda and smiled. She noticed that he was slouching, and blushed. "You must be tired," she said and gestured to a pair of chairs next to a table covered in maps and books. "Please, take a seat."

Link sank gratefully into the closest chair, now noticing just how tired he was. Riding Epona was a surprisingly exhaustive affair, despite the horse's gentle behaviour and gait.

"Can I offer you something to eat or drink?" asked Zelda, suddenly the very definition of a polite and friendly host.

"No, I'm fine," said Link. After Zelda had seated herself on the other side of the table, he smiled. It was good to see her again, despite the little time they had had together seven years ago. "You look good," he said.

"Hardly," said Zelda and scoffed. "I bet you expected to find me wearing one of my dresses or something similar."

"Well…" said Link and trailed off.

"A dress hardly seems practical in these times," said Zelda and gestured to her attire. "These are some of the best clothes I have ever worn. It does not constrict my movements, which allows me to fight easier."

Link choked. "Fight?" he asked incredulously.

The princess fixed him with a stare. "You expect me to sit and watch as the land is overrun by Ganondorf's"—she spat his name—"armies? I have a duty to my people, Link, and I would not be able to live with myself if I did so."

"I understand," said Link, wondering if he had just put his foot in his mouth yet again. He had done the same the first time they had met as well. He did his best to repress the memory. "What is going on?" he asked finally. "What happened to Lon Lon Ranch and Kakariko? Where are all the people from the villages?"

"They are either dead, captured by Ganondorf or in one of our refugee camps," answered Zelda. She pulled out a map from the bottom of the pile on the table and gave it to him. Several circles had been scribbled over the Lost Woods, all the way to the border. "The circles represent where we have put up camps," Zelda explained.

"What about…Talon and Malon?" asked Link, fearing the worst.

"The ranch owners?" asked Zelda. "They are safe, I can assure you. They are living with the other refugees from Kakariko here." She pointed at the circle closest to the Kokiri village. "As for what happened," she continued, "Ganondorf has finally awoken the last of his power, and is marching across Hyrule to end the war once and for all. My hiding place was the first to be overrun. Many men lost their lives in order for me to escape. We were able to send messenger birds to both the ranch and Kakariko, though the others were intercepted." She looked down in her lap. "I don't know how many people have lost their lives this past week. And it's all my fault."

"No, don't blame yourself," said Link, reaching across the table. He took her hand in his and squeezed comfortably. "This is all Ganondorf's fault, and he will be punished."

Zelda smiled sadly. "Thank you, Link." A couple of minutes passed by in silence. Laughter and shouts from outside woke them from their stupor. "The Kokiri are putting on their show again." Seconds after she said it, child-like voices started to sing. It was impossible to make out the words as the language was ancient and only understandable to magical beings. Zelda stood up and looked out the door. "The soldiers always enjoy their singing."

Link too stood up and went to her side. "They have always been wary of outsiders," he said quietly.

"They were afraid of us when we first arrived," said Zelda. "But after I spoke to the Deku Sprout, he explained everything to them. I have never felt so welcomed in all my life." She smiled softly.

"It's not every day the princess and future queen of the land shows up in their village, I guess," said Link. He raised an eyebrow at Zelda. "You never answered what I said when I came in."

Zelda turned her head to look at him. "The part about using Saria's house? It was actually her idea."

"You've spoken with her?" asked Link.

"Sometimes," replied Zelda. "Ganondorf has done something in the castle. I was not able to hear all that Rauru had to say, but it seems Ganondorf has erected barriers inside it, preventing the sages from doing anything. And it's all because of the Triforce."

Link's eyes widened. "He has the Triforce? But Rauru said he hadn't been able to obtain it!"

"He does not possess the Triforce in its entirety," explained Zelda. "He only has one part of it. The Triforce of Power." She lifted her hand, showing the back of it to Link. He could barely see the markings of three small triangles on her skin. Suddenly, the lower left triangle lit up, shining clearly. "I possess the Triforce of Wisdom." She then took Link's left hand in her own and unbuckled the silver gauntlet. "And you have the…" she trailed off, her eyes widening when she saw the unblemished skin on the back of his hand.

"What?" asked Link, confused.

"It's…not there. You don't have it!" she exclaimed, thrusting herself away from the Hero, storming over to the table. "This isn't right!" she said as she started to rummage among the papers. She found what she was looking for and studied another paper closely. "If the one who makes a wish upon the Triforce is not in harmony with the three goddesses' powers, the Triforce will split into three and find hiding places in those chosen by destiny." She looked at Link. "The Hero of Time is supposed to be the bravest warrior to have ever lived. Link, you are supposed to possess the Triforce of Courage!" She stormed back over to him and looked at his hand again. "There is not even a mark upon you!"

"Does it really matter?" asked Link, clearly seeing the princess' distress. "I have conquered all the temples, I don't need the Triforce—"

"Yes, you do!" Zelda nearly shouted. "Ganondorf's power is almost equal to that of the goddesses! If you are to defeat him, you need that Triforce! If it hadn't been for Sheik—" She cut herself off, remembering what Link had told her in his message.

It was too late, however, for Link's face fell as he remembered his lover, lost somewhere, alone and unarmed.

"Link…" said Zelda. "What happened? What happened to Sheik?"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 36**

* * *

An extremely long silence stretched on. Sheik was unable to break the eye contact that had developed between him and the mysterious youth. He had the exact same eyes as Sheik, although his left pupil was slightly miscoloured, probably because of the wound that had left the scar. Sheik had almost gasped when he had first seen the eyes, for as far as he knew, there were only two people left apart from himself who possessed them.

Speil was uncharacteristically quiet, his eyes darting from Sheik to the youth, a neutral expression on his face. A smile was spreading on the youth's face, growing wider and wider as the unofficial staring contest went on and on.

Eventually, it was Sheik who gave in and looked away. "What do you mean, 'home'?" he asked, glaring at the young man. "And how do you know my name?"

"It means exactly what I said, Sheik," said the youth and stood up, a fluid movement that seemed to have no start or stop. He had perfect control of his body, Sheik noticed, only using as much strength and muscle power to get him to a standing position. The youth flashed his teeth in a grin. "You have finally returned home." Receiving no answer from Sheik, he continued: "And the knowledge of your name…well, I have been watching you. From the moment you were born, I have watched over you."

 _A guardian angel, then?_ thought Sheik and laughed internally at the very idea.

"No, not a guardian angel," said the youth. He chuckled as Sheik's eyes widened. "And before you ask: no, I cannot read your mind. Your face is just very easy to read."

 _Again with the face reading,_ Sheik thought angrily. _I have tried so hard to make myself unreadable, yet these two clowns manage to do so without any difficulty whatsoever!_

"And," continued the youth, "you really shouldn't let it get to you. The reason I can read you so well is because I've known you for your whole life. The reason the shadow can"—he pointed to Speil—"is because he is a magical creation gifted with many abilities."

Speil practically lit up as he was described by the youth. "This one knows me better than I do," he said and grinned.

"Enough!" yelled Sheik and stomped over to the youth, seizing him by his robe and pulled him close, glaring. This one was taller than Sheik as well; a fact that only fuelled his anger. "Tell me who you are, what you're doing here and why the hell you have been watching me!"

"I'll gladly do so," said the youth with an eerie calm. "If you would just put me down first." He nodded downwards, his eyebrows rising slightly as he stared at Sheik's hands, which were gripping large fistfuls of cloth. Not taking his eyes off the youth, Sheik let go and stepped away, ready to spring at his throat at the slightest wrong movement. The youth merely brushed away imaginary dust from where Sheik had seized him. "Now, as I instructed the shadow, you surely know what this place is."

"Instructed?" asked Sheik and looked at Speil, who whistled innocently.

"I _did_ say that I spoke with the entities of this realm, did I not?" asked the dark counterpart, winking at Sheik. "He is actually quite charming."

It was all too much. Everything seemed to be happening behind his back lately, which was preposterous considering his profession as a spy and assassin. It was his _job_ to make sure everything happened _in front_ of him, not the other way around. Speil had spoken to this…impostor, who had _apparently_ been watching Sheik from the day he was born, which was impossible since the youth could hardly be much older than Link, which meant that he had been watching Sheik as a toddler himself… The air around him was so thick, and the world was spinning.

Speil was quick enough to catch him as he fell backwards, gently lowering the Sheikah to the ground.

"Are you alright?" asked the shadow with concern in his voice, which Sheik decided to ignore. Speil had been acting strange since they had arrived in Twilight Realm, and he did not feel like humouring the personality that was currently in control.

Whatever snarky response he was about to give was interrupted by another face coming into view above him. The youth had tied his hair back now, revealing the full extent of his face. Another scar went down his right cheek, terminating just above his lower jaw. His crimson eyes—Sheik's eyes—were also filled with concern and worry.

"Sheik? Are you feeling sick?" he asked.

_That's just what I need…care from a Sheikah impostor who will probably slice my head off with his sword._

He had just noticed that the sheath had found its way to the youth's back, and the grip looked strangely similar to Kazuya's. Speil and the youth were staring down, waiting for an answer, apparently.

"No, I'm not feeling sick," said Sheik and tried sitting up, but had to give up when the trees began spinning around him again. He laid back down again a bit too fast and hit his head on a small rock on the ground. "I think I am losing my mind," he said.

"I won't have any of that," said Speil and looked at the youth. "You said he would take well to your presence." He pointed at Sheik, whose mouth was rapidly drying up. "Look at him! It's because of you he is like this!"

The youth looked from Sheik to Speil and back to Sheik. "It's normal to feel a bit under the weather after crossing into this dimension," he snapped. "Sheik, listen to me, you need to breathe normally. The nausea will stop, and it helps to close your eyes as well."

"I'm not closing my eyes on either of you," growled Sheik, cursing his body for this sudden bout of weakness and lack of cooperation. "I don't trust you!"

"Me or him?" asked Speil, pointing at the youth.

"None!"

"Right, he hates us both. Good show," said Speil and smiled at the youth. "How come he wasn't like this when we arrived?"

"His body is adjusting to the way time flows here," answered the youth. A bottle of water had suddenly appeared in his hands, and he was wetting a bit of cloth, quickly putting it on Sheik's forehead, where the blond Sheikah could imagine it sizzling. "It puts quite a stress on his body when it suddenly realises it's in somewhere else."

"How come I'm not sweating and panting on the ground then?" asked Speil, a grin splitting his face when he realised what he had just said. "Heh, reminds of the Gerudo Fortre—"

"The reason you're not like him," interrupted the youth with a grimace, "is that you are not a real person, and therefore not subject to the physical laws."

"I _am_ still awake, you know," said Sheik weakly. A black spot had suddenly appeared in his vision, and it was growing at an alarming rate. Speil was almost completely blocked out, now. "And I think I'm going blind."

"It is quite normal, Sheik," cooed the youth. "Your body is adjusting."

"By making him blind?!" asked Speil, his voice reaching a higher pitch than Sheik had ever heard before. "And what do you mean, 'not a real person'?" he continued.

* * *

It was hard for the Hero to retell the events of Sheik's disappearance yet again, especially since the details were imprinted firmly in his mind. He remembered the look on Sheik's face just before the spell had struck him, the surprised, shocked and—and this surprised Link greatly—scared expressions. He had seen Sheik when he encountered an unexpected bump in the road, yet never like that.

He noticed that he had begun to look at the floor just as he reached the part where they fought the possessed Nabooru, and as he finished his story, saw that Zelda was doing the same. When she raised her head to look at him, he saw that tears had gathered in the corners of her eyes, and remembered that Sheik had once told him that he and Zelda had been friends from childhood.

But the future queen of Hyrule rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands and wiped away the threatening tears. "We shouldn't worry, Link," she said, a weak smile on her lips. "Sheik is far too strong to give in to such a spell. Impa taught him everything she knew, and at her prime, Impa could not be touched by any spell, no matter how strong the caster."

The Hero had left out what Ayla had told him about Sheik's unwanted passenger, not wanting to burden her with more bad news. He nodded, forcing a smile as well. "Sheik's tough," he said. "He probably broke free from the spell and is on his way here as we speak."

Silence settled over them as they both tried to be optimistic about Sheik's fate. If he _had_ been captured by Ganondorf, surely the Evil King would have made some sort of ultimatum—like Sheik's life for control of the Triforce—or showed off his prisoner as a sign of his power.

But neither of the things had happened, and all they could do was hope that the Sheikah was alive and well.

"I…" began Zelda, pausing for a few seconds. "I forgot to ask you two…if the Gerudo are willing to help us in our struggle." She looked at Link with eyes so hopeful that he wouldn't have had the heart to tell her no.

Luckily, such a thing was not necessary, and a smile—a real one this time—tugged at his lips. "As a matter of fact, Aveil, the new princess of the Gerudo, is organising a rebellion against Ganondorf right now, if she hasn't already done it," he said. "She gave me her word, and honour is a thing of great value for them."

The look of joy that came over Zelda's face seemed to brighten the room considerably, and the rain outside was slowly stopping, he heard.

"Really?" asked Zelda. "You're not telling me this to cheer me up?" At Link's nod, she pulled a blank piece of paper close and started scribbling on it with ferocious speed. The inkwell almost toppled as she viciously dipped the quill into it.

Suddenly on the sidelines, Link tried to get a look at what she was writing, but her hand was in the way. "Erm," he said. "What are you writing there?"

The attention span of his girl was as strange to him as Sheik's humour. One minute she had nearly been in hysterics about his lack of a Triforce mark on his hand, then practically crying after being told about Sheik, and now she was brimming with joy at the prospect of help from the thieves of the desert.

"A treaty," she said curtly and continued writing. "As much as I hate it, Princess Aveil must sign it so we can start working together immediately."

"Can't you just…you know, cooperate right away?" asked Link, not very keen on the subject of politics and red tape in general.

"As I said, I do not like it," mumbled Zelda as she scanned the many lines she had written in the past few minutes. "But it must be done, especially if the soldiers and civilians are to accept it. We have been on and off at war for the last three centuries, and all those years of hate will not simply evaporate without an official document that confirms our alliance, temporary or not."

Link, lost in the world of bureaucracy, simply nodded. "I see," he added. It was strange, in Sheik's presence, he easily saw his short-comings in the tactical department, but had never felt stupid as his lover had always acknowledged his own shortcomings in battle. But here, around Zelda, he _did_ feel stupid. Politics was not something he found very interesting, he had decided from early on.

Zelda stamped her seal onto the parchment and rolled it together. She then whistled loudly, surprising the Hero. Just as he was about to ask what was going on, a loud, rasping sound came from one of the windows. There, on the windowsill, sat the largest eagle he had ever seen. It was completely white, with a small crest of feathers around its head. It looked very…regal, he decided.

Zelda put the rolled-up parchment in a small bag, the strap of which she then gently put over the eagle's head. She then turned to Link.

"Link, I want you to meet Anaruteir," she said and gestured to the eagle, which was looking at Link with an uninterested expression. "She is the pride of our entire messenger bird force. We use her for messages of the greatest importance."

"What's wrong with Kaiza?" mumbled Link, feeling unnerved by the large eagle.

"Kaiza is not strong or fast enough to carry this message," she answered, although the slight regretful tone revealed to Link that she too would rather have the trusted falcon bring the message. "Anaruteir can fly much higher and faster than Kaiza, and the bag protects the treaty from the weather."

"I see," said Link for the second time, raising an eyebrow at the eagle, which seemed to give him the avian equivalent of a glare. "She's beautiful," he said. It was a fact, he had to admit.

"I could not agree with you more," said Zelda and buckled the last strap of the bag, making sure it was properly attached to Anaruteir. "Hopefully the Gerudo will think so too." She whistled again, and the eagle took off, quickly disappearing into the darkness.

"I'm sure they will," said Link, staring after the bird. He then got an idea. "About Kaiza…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 37**

* * *

He didn't know for how long he had passed out. As the ominous black dot had grown, Speil and the youth's voices had gradually merged into a single noise, one which was impossible to block out or ignore. He heard snippets of conversations, the occasional word, but the full extent of what their conversation was about was lost on him. The heat was getting worse, and he could feel sweat trickling down his face. From time to time, the soothing sensation of the youth's cold, wet cloth was felt on his forehead, though these were too few and far between to make him feel much better. His stomach was lurching uncomfortably, and he was sure that he was going to be sick at any minute, though he did his best to fight the bile down.

Then some time passed, apparently, for the other two's voices had faded completely, and the only sounds he could hear were those of the forest. It was strange, and it felt wrong, somehow. Forests were supposed to be full of life, singing birds and scuttling creatures. The only thing he could hear of _this_ forest was the constant wind whistling through the trees and _something_ stomping around, which he highly suspected was anything but a fuzzy woodland creature that was curious.

Something thumped into the grass beside him, and he heard the youth sigh. "I know you're awake. How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Like…death," answered Sheik. This was really how he felt. It really wouldn't have bothered him if the all-consuming darkness had done so while he lay there. Another wave of nausea came over him, and he turned his head to the side so he wouldn't choke himself if something decided to make a return trip. It didn't. He tried to look at the youth, but the very act of opening his eyelids proved too taxing, and he groaned. "I can't even open my eyes."

A sharp intake of breath, and Sheik knew something was wrong. He voiced this concern, but the youth did not answer. "What?" asked Sheik finally, sick of the silence.

"I am afraid…that your eyes _are_ already open, Sheik," said the youth slowly. Sheik was about to ask why he was talking like that when he heard the steady thumping in the grass approaching quickly.

"Is he better?" asked the voice of Speil.

"I'm still blind," stated Sheik, not surprised.

"What? You son of a—"

A sword was slid out of its sheath, and Speil stopped talking.

"Finish that sentence, I beg of you," said the youth. His voice had taken on an edge previously unheard, and it silently promised death if the shadow said the wrong thing. "That's what I thought," he said, and then the sword was put back in its place. "Sheik," he began, "I don't think your body is adjusting correctly. Temporary blindness is common, but they only last for an hour or two. Three at the most."

"And how long has it been now?" asked Sheik. It was strange, not being able to see. It was impossible to figure out what time it was, and calculating where sounds were coming from became quite a challenge.

"Eight hours," answered Speil, his voice subdued. He was standing farther away now. "This bastard kept saying it was normal, but it's obviously not!"

"Have you ever heard of the term 'subjective', Shadow?" asked the youth. "Different people react differently, understand?" He made a tsk-sound. "Though this _does_ worry me. If it had just been the nausea, then all would be well…but blindness…"

"So, what will we do?" asked Sheik, surprised at how calmly he was handling this. He had just lost his eyesight, the very thing that had saved him on more than hundreds of occasions... But it was oddly relieving, not having to look at the constant twilight around them.

"There really is nothing we _can_ do except wait for you to get better," said the youth. "But we cannot even do that."

"Excuse me?" asked Sheik, interrupting Speil as he heard the shadow draw a breath. "What do you mean, running out of time? _Hyrule_ is running out of time, _I_ am running out of time, not you!"

"I am afraid I must disagree with you in the highest sense of the word," said the youth, his voice reassuming the edge it had had when he had threatened Speil. "Everything does not revolve around the Kingdom of Hyrule or you. There are far more important things at stake, here."

"Such as?" asked Speil, faster than Sheik this time.

"The fate of both our realm, for example," said the youth.

* * *

Zelda had to think about Link's suggestion for a few minutes. She had rather strange ritual when it came to this, he learned. She walked in circles. He could actually _see_ a small indentation in the floor from where she had contemplated large matters. Quite a feat since they had barely been there for a week.

But then he'd realised that it was actually _Saria's_ indentation when he remembered that his childhood friend had done the exact same thing when she had been deep in thought. But the princess of Hyrule was clearly contributing to it, for the heels of her boots had razor-sharp blades hidden inside.

"Alright, it's worth a try," said the princess and clapped her hands, mirroring a certain thief from the desert. She whistled a completely different tune than the one she had when calling for Anaruteir. Within seconds, Kaiza landed on the windowsill, shrieking when she noticed Link.

"Hey, Kaiza," he said, earning him a smile from Zelda. He shrugged. "I care about animals, what?"

"Kaiza isn't…very popular among my men," said Zelda and giggled. "She doesn't like making friends with Hylians, apparently. This makes you the third person that she hasn't tried to peck the eyes out of."

This made the Hero of time nervously glance at the falcon on the windowsill. Kaiza seemed to understand what he was thinking, and gave him a smug look. "That's…good, I guess," he said.

"It's very good," Zelda said and went over to Kaiza. She caught the bird's gaze. For half a minute, the princess and the falcon stared each other down, making the Hero wonder if they had both suffered a breakdown. "Find…Sheik," Zelda suddenly said, drawing out the order. "Find Sheik," she repeated.

Kaiza shrieked and took off, just as Anaruteir had done.

"Think it'll work?" asked Link, joining Zelda by the window.

"If anyone can find him, it's her," replied the princess, looking at him. "But that's her job now. We have other matters to focus on."

"Like…?"

"The missing Triforce piece," she said. "This is a serious problem." She walked to the table and picked up the paper she had read from after the lack of a triangle on Link's hand became apparent. She gave it to him.

"Er, I can't read this," he said after an embarrassing minute of trying to make out what the chicken scratchings on the paper said.

"It's ancient Hylian," said Zelda and took it back. "I can't read it either. The only reason I know what it says is because of Impa and Sheik." She put it back on the table. "As I told you, it says that the Triforce will have split into three pieces, each of which will have found a hiding place in those who best embodies their ideals."

"Right," said Link. "Power with Ganondorf, Wisdom with you…"

"And Courage _should_ have been with you," finished Zelda. "Link, has anything happened to you that could have…separated you from the Triforce piece? Have you been hit by a spell or anything of a magical nature?"

Link shrugged. "Not that I can think of. The only spells that were even close to me were those witches, but I dodged all of those or absorbed them with the Mirror Shield," he pointed at the shield on his back. Then a thought struck him. "The Water Temple…"

Zelda nodded, urging him on. "What happened there?" She remembered that he had been seriously injured. "Do you think that your injuries have something to do with it?"

The Hero shook his head. "Not the injuries themselves…but what did that to me in the first place."

"Sheik told me vaguely what happened…something about a shadow," Zelda stated.

"It happened in a large room inside the temple…there was an island, and a lot of fog," he said. "I turned around at the door, and something happened. I felt a shiver, and my reflection in the water disappeared." His eyes rolled around, trying to remember everything. "The first thing I noticed was two glowing eyes on the island, and then I was suddenly fighting myself."

"Yourself?" asked Zelda, something occurring to her. She started fishing through the pile of papers again, making Link wonder just how disorganised she was. "Aha!" she exclaimed and pulled out a document that looked even _older_ than the previous one. "Look at this," she said and pointed at a sketch of the small island on Lake Hylia. Notes in the same unreadable language were scrawled underneath the sketch. "These notes tell of an ancient test of manhood which all the peoples of Hyrule flocked to a long time ago. The test was the temple, but a struggle against one's own self is also mentioned. That must be what you faced in the temple, Link."

"It fought exactly like me, anyway," said Link. "He was so strong, but I managed to trick at the end."

"Did he hit you during the fight?"

"No, he didn't. I thought the fight was over, but he ambushed us in Morpha's chamber. He…" He had to stop for a second, remembering Navi's scream as she tried to warn him. "Navi saw him first, tried to stop him."

Zelda remained silent.

"He had gotten stronger; I could barely keep hold of my sword when he struck it. I don't know how many hits he got on me before I was finally able to break his defence…" Link shook his head. "By the time I managed to kill him, I was half-dead myself. The only reason I'm standing here today is Sheik, who was waiting for me when I teleported outside."

The princess looked thoughtful. "Are you absolutely _sure_ that you killed the shadow?" she asked. "If it was an exact copy of you, fighting style and all, then perhaps the Triforce thought that he would be a better place to hide in than you."

"No, Sheik told me it was dead and gone," said Link, shaking his head. "He went back inside and made sure." Why it had not occurred to him just what had happened to his lover before then was unknown, but several pieces clicked into place just then. His eyes widened, and his stomach gave a lurch. "Of course…how could I be so stupid?"

"What? What?" asked the princess.

"This is going to take some time to explain…"

* * *

He could say as much as he'd like about being in the presence of Speil, but at the moment, Sheik could not complain. He was, after all, acting as his eyes. The only annoyance at the moment was the shadow's insistence to pull Sheik close whenever Speil thought they were about to hit a difficult patch…which happened every ten seconds, apparently. The shadow, naturally, denied that he was taking liberties, but this was Speil, and Sheik knew where he had him. Most of the time, anyway.

The youth had tied a cloth over his eyes to prevent dust and other things getting into them since it was impossible to Sheik to know whether or not he had them closed.

"So, let us go over this again," said Speil as he helped Sheik over a large boulder. "You need our help because…?"

"First of all, I don't need _your_ help, shadow," said the youth from somewhere ahead. "I need _Sheik's_ help."

"Because?" prompted Sheik, feeling left out. He stumbled over… _something_ , and would have fallen if Speil had not supported his weight. The Sheikah pulled slightly away, but murmured a "Thanks" even so.

"I'm sure you have noticed the lack of ambient life in this forest," said the youth. Upon hearing the agreeing sounds of the other two, he continued. "This is not natural, not even for this place. I discovered why just a few days ago, and also that I would not be able to stop it by myself."

"I can't help but notice you're being quite vague in your explanation," said Sheik. He didn't feel nauseous anymore, but his inertia was still there to some degree, and his sight was nowhere to be found. "And you still haven't told us who you are."

"I told you who I was," replied the youth curtly.

"No," said Sheik. "All I know is that you have been watching me for all my life and that you can read me like an open book. I saw your eyes. You're a Sheikah, but there's something wrong with you."

The other Sheikah's footsteps stopped, and Speil pulled slightly on Sheik's arm to make him do the same. The ground was quite even here, and Sheik pulled away from Speil and advanced in the direction he thought the youth was.

"A bit to the left," whispered Speil.

"Quiet, you," said Sheik and corrected his course. "Are you going to answer me?" he asked.

"I am trying to come up with a good one," said the youth. "Could you…specify what you wish to know?"

"Your name, for one," said Sheik.

The youth chuckled, and Sheik could hear him stepping right in front of him. "My name…is Terra."

"Terra…Terra…that means 'earth', doesn't it?" said Sheik after searching through his vocabulary. "It's an old Sheikah name."

"Correct," replied Terra.

"And why are you here?" continued Sheik.

Terra remained silent, but somehow, Sheik knew he was thinking.

"I am unsure if I can truly give you the answer you wish for," Terra finally said. "To be honest, I do not think I am truly aware of it myself."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 38**

* * *

"Okay, this is getting ridiculous," said Speil gruffly and seized Sheik by the arm, tugging him away from Terra. "You told me that you would properly explain everything, yet you keep trying to steer the conversation away from the explanation, tell us that you have no idea why you're here, and you _still_ need Sheik's help?!"

"Shadow, this is none of your concern," said Terra in an even voice. "I suggest you stay out of it."

"Stay out of it? How can I when you keep confusing him like this?" asked Speil, undoubtedly pointing at Sheik, who was beginning to feel like a rag doll in a tug-of-war. "Now, unless you're going to properly answer the following three questions, then we're leaving!"

Terra sighed, an incredibly tired sound that seemed much older than the one who uttered it appeared to be. "Fine, ask."

Sheik tried to say something, to protest, but Speil cut him off.

"Number one: Who are you?"

"I have already told you this, my name is—"

"I don't want to know your name," interrupted Speil. "I want to know _what_ you are, and why you have such an interest in Sheik."

Sheik heard Terra pace around. "I am…what you could call a collective."

 _Collective?_ thought Sheik. _What's he on about?_

"Explain," demanded Speil.

"It's hard to do so, but I will try," said Terra and took a deep breath. "I am not just one person who goes by the name of Terra. I am every single Sheikah who has ever lived and died unburied. I am you, your family and the entire clan. When a Sheikah dies and is not entombed in your House of the Dead, their spirit is not shackled to your realm and is free to wander. The greatest freedom after a lifetime of servitude, some might say."

"So," said Sheik, trying to understand. "You're not…real?"

"I am just as real as you, Sheik," said Terra, his voice coming closer. A hand found its way to Sheik's shoulder. He could hear Speil growling at the back of his throat, but the shadow remained remarkably civil. "Othewise I would not have been able to touch you like this."

"Spare us the emotional blabber," said Speil.

"Fine," said Terra and removed his hand from Sheik's shoulder. "After some time, the spirit grows weary and tired of your realm and is invariably drawn here, to the Realm of Twilight, our first and true home. As more and more spirits found each other, it was decided that uniting into one being would be more…beneficial in the longer run. Plus, with our added powers, we were able to create this physical shell. We named it Terra."

Sheik was unsure if Speil had noticed, but within a heartbeat, Terra had gone on to describe himself in plural. "So when we speak to you, we are actually speaking to many?" he asked.

"Indeed you are," replied Terra.

Emotional impact was something that did not come to Sheik, who could only settle for silence. If Terra was being truthful, then he was now in the presence of a large part of the Sheikah population. His ancestors, not more than a few feet away, were speaking to him from beyond the proverbial grave. It felt…oddly anticlimactic.

"I know what you are thinking right now, Sheik," said Terra. "You are disappointed."

"Could you, _please_ , settle on saying 'I' or 'we'?" asked Speil in a drawl. "Not to be a mood-breaker, but it's really annoying."

"I merely said those things to prove a point," said Terra. "Right now, I am a single person. The others are…locked away so I can think clearly."

"So which one of them are you?" asked Sheik.

"None," answered Terra.

Speil growled. "That's it, we're done with you. Come on, Sheik, we'll find our own way out of here," he said and jerked Sheik after him. The blond-haired Sheikah tried to resist, pulling away from the shadow, who only tightened his hold on his arm. "This guy, or _these guys_ , are obviously insane."

"You never allowed me to continue my explanation," Terra called after them. "And there are still two more questions you wanted to ask!"

"To hell with the questions!" Speil shouted back.

"Speil, wait," said Sheik, tugging at the other's hold. "I want to hear this."

"Pet, this is—"

It was easy enough to hit Speil by aiming for his voice. The fist collided with his face with a smack, and the shadow finally let go of Sheik and stumbled away. Sheik huffed. "Let's get two things straight: I am not your damn pet, and I definitely won't be ordered around by _you_ , of all people!" He turned around and did his best to go back the way they came, easier said than done when all but a small twig could be a deadly adversary at this point.

"I am glad you don't allow the shadow to control you," said Terra as he came closer. "We Sheikah are the masters of shadows, not the other way around."

"In his words: spare me the emotional blabber and continue," growled Sheik, not in the mood for pleasantries, only answers. "You have explained what you are, but _who_ are you? Which Sheikah is currently in control?"

"Terra, naturally," said Terra. "When this shell, or body, was created, it became obvious that there could never be more than one spirit in control as it confused the body. As you can probably imagine, the spirits started arguing about who should be in control. They could not come to an agreement, and eventually settled on creating a separate identity for the body: me."

"So you are your own person, yet play host to the many others?" asked Sheik. "You are not a true Sheikah?"

"I play host to them, yes," replied Terra. "But I must insist on being a true Sheikah as I was created in their ideal image of what a Sheikah should be. And I have the final say in discussions." Terra sighed and apparently leaned against a tree. "The spirits are old, Sheik. They are growing weaker by the day, and will eventually disappear."

"And you will cease to exist," said Sheik.

"Yes," said Terra. "Without the sustaining magic of the Shadow Temple, they will dissipate…as will I. But I do not intend to let this happen without doing one last service to this land."

"Which is?"

"Remove the corrupting influence that is killing the Realm slowly but steadily. These woods were once filled with life, yet right now it is empty."

 _Didn't he just tell me ten minutes ago that he did not know why he was here?_ Sheik thought.

"And you need my help to do this?"

"Yes," confirmed Terra. "Will you help me?"

 _I cannot trust this figure,_ Sheik thought. _It's hard to believe everything he has told me, yet our bond as Sheikah cannot be denied. And why has he watched over me? He has avoided that question as well. I must be careful around this one…_

"I suppose I don't have any choice," said Sheik. "But on one condition: send us back once it is done."

"Of course," said Terra. "Hyrule needs you and the shadow. I would not dream of depriving the land of its only hope of salvation."

It was all too much to take in at once, Sheik decided. Here he was, in Twilight, where time ran slower than in Hyrule, where at least a week had already passed since that day in the Spirit Temple. He was currently talking with deceased Sheikah spirits whose bodies had not been entombed in the Shadow Temple. The spirits had migrated to this realm, which they claimed to be their original homeland. _That_ explanation was something Sheik did not wish to hear, but what other choice did he have?

_Link…_

He was unable to think of anything but the Hero of Time. What was he doing at this moment? Was he looking for Sheik? Or was he on his way to defeat Ganondorf, which was apparently an exercise in futility as long as Speil was still alive? He wanted to go back to Hyrule so much, yet he could not reject a plead for help from his own people.

"Can you…tell me…the origin of our people?" he finally asked. If he was going to help save this realm, then he truly wanted to know if the legend was true.

A spot of light had appeared in the corner of his vision.

* * *

"Why didn't he tell you?" asked Zelda, again walking round in circles. "Why didn't he tell _me_? This…shadow could have compromised the entire quest!"

"Ayla said he didn't want us to worry about him," said Link. He had been forced to sit down while telling the princess about the unwelcome passenger that had accompanied Sheik in the past few weeks.

Zelda stopped and stared at Link. "Why wouldn't he want us to? I'm his _friend_ , Link, and you're his lover. Of all the people in the world, he should have told you!"

What she said rang true in Link's head, he had to admit. He wondered why Sheik hadn't told him. If it had been any other creature, he was sure the Sheikah would have let him known immediately. He felt…betrayed. But then it occurred to him that maybe the shadow had threatened him, or anyone he knew, if he told someone about it. It was hard to imagine Sheik being cowed by _anyone_ , but Link's shadow was probably something that could.

Zelda was taking his relationship with Sheik surprisingly well, he realised. He had forgotten to leave out this detail in his story, but when he had gotten to the desert part of the story, she hadn't even raised an eyebrow. Had Sheik told her about it before?

Zelda sighed and sank down in her own chair. "This is a disaster," she said. "We have a Hero of Time without a Triforce piece, a Sheikah spy with the Hero of Time's shadow possessing him, both of whom are lost somewhere…and Ganondorf is purging Hyrule of all who oppose him." Her brow suddenly creased as she began thinking again. Link felt for her, he truly did. Nothing had worked out as the princess had planned, and he was not exactly helping matters by revealing more and more crushing information. She fixed him with a stare. "I know where the Triforce of Courage is," she said slowly.

"The shadow," said Link, having worked this out seconds before she had said it. "He stole it."

"I don't know if he did so on purpose or not," said Zelda. "But yes, he is the best candidate for possessing it."

"What can we do?" asked Link.

"Until Kaiza finds Sheik, we can do nothing apart from waiting," said Zelda. Night had fallen, and a silence had spread over the Kokiri Village as the soldiers and Kokiri had gone to sleep. "But time is not a luxury we can afford at the moment. The Gorons managed to escape from Death Mountain through the hidden tunnel to the Lost Woods, the Zora likewise. The only places that have not been sacked yet by Ganondorf's armies are the villages around Lake Hylia..."

"And his army is marching there right now," said Link.

"If only Father hadn't welcomed that man into his court," said Zelda. "If only he had believed me when I told him of my dream, then none of this would have happened." She looked at Link with tired eyes. "It's late, and I'm sure we could both use some sleep. Your old house has remained untouched since you left seven years ago, apparently."

Taking the hint, Link stood up. "I just hope the bed isn't too small," he said, smiling when Zelda giggled slightly. Before he knew it, he was being hugged again, a gesture he returned. Zelda looked up at him.

"It's good to see you again, Link," she said.

He nodded and went outside, noting the silence. The rain had silenced all the forest critters, and the only sounds he could hear was the slight clinking of the armour of the sentries and the wind blowing through the woods around them. The princess' personal guards nodded to him as he went off, taking a right instead of a left at the first junction. He had something else in mind than bed.

The small corridor hadn't changed, and neither had the large field in which the mighty Deku Tree had once stood proud and tall. The ashen trunk and falling leaves were invisible in the dark. A torch had been set up next to the Deku Sprout, and he slowly approached it, wondering if trees actually slept slept.

"Link, my boy," said the smiling sprout, its facial features creaking as its mouth moved into a smile and eyes went up. "How good it is to see you again. It has been too long since we spoke last."

Link smiled back, finding it hard to be in any other mood around the Deku Sprout. He still remembered the jolt he'd gotten when it had first sprung out of the ground after he had conquered the Forest Temple. "It really has, sir," he said.

"Why are you calling me 'sir', Link?" asked the sprout. "You never bothered with such titles before."

"I don't know," admitted the Hero. "It just feels…proper."

"I won't have any of that," said the sprout. "I want you to call me Sprout, or Deku Sprout…that is all. None of this silly 'Sir' business."

Link found himself smiling wider. The sprout's predecessor had been stiff and dry in his speech, but the Deku Sprout was all but. Perhaps it was because it was still young. "Fine, Sprout," he said.

"There we go," said Sprout. His smile faded a little. "Something troubles you, Link. What is it?"

"It's…uh…" said Link, unable to come up with anything to say.

"You're worried about your lover, aren't you?" asked Sprout, his voice taking on a concerned tone.

"Yeah," said Link. "I just…I can't get it out of my head that he's wounded or injured somewhere, screaming for help with Navi's murderer skulking around in his head." He sat down in the wet grass, his face level with Sprout's.

"You shouldn't worry," said Sprout. "I'm sure he is well. I have met this young man once before, and he did not seem like the type to give up easily."

"You've talked to Sheik?" asked Link incredulously. "When?"

"After you left my grove, of course," said Sprout. "He appeared in a flash and wondered if there was anything he could do to help. I told him no, of course. The forest will heal on its own time. But I could see what kind of person he is, and he is strong. I don't think he will let a small matter such as a dimensional barrier stop him."

Link's eyes widened. "Dimensional barrier?" he asked. "What are you talking about?"

Sprout stared at him for a second. "Oh dear, I said that, didn't I?" it asked, his smile twitching.

"You know where he is?" asked Link, suddenly on his knees in front of the Sprout, gripping the small twigs that grew on its sides. "Tell me!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 39**

* * *

Despite his fatigue, sleep did not come easily to the Hero. He tossed and turned in his bed, unable to calm his restless mind. That the bed was originally built for an eleven-year-old did not help either. His presence in his old home was not as comforting as he had expected it to be. But then, he did not consider the Kokiri Village as his home any more. In fact, he didn't know _where_ he considered home. He sighed. Yet another item to add to his list of worries.

But that was not his biggest worry. Far from it. It was his conversation with Sprout that kept repeating over and over in his head.

* * *

" _I am afraid your lover is quite out of reach for now, Link."_

" _What do you mean? Where is he?"_

Sprout had sighed, his wooden features seemingly aging to match those of his predecessor, the one that loomed behind him, forever watching and judging his successor's actions.

" _I am unsure of the details as my powers have yet to fully mature. The only thing I can do for now is to keep the Wicked Man of the Desert away from the forest. As for what happened, something pulled him out of this realm."_

" _Out of this realm? Who?"_

" _That, I do not know. I can only assume that the residents of the Realm of Twilight are in need of his help."_

" _Realm of Twilight?"_ Link had asked, truly confused. Sheik had never spoken of the place…or any other realm besides this one.

Sprout had sighed again, but a small smile found its way to its lips. _"I suggest you sit back down, Link. And please let go of my future branches, if you'd please"_ Link had done so, grimacing when he'd realised that a couple of leaves had come loose when he'd shook the branches. _"Do not worry about them, Link. They will grow back. It was the branches themselves I was worried about."_

" _Sorry,"_ the Hero had mumbled.

" _Forget about it,"_ Sprout had said. _"Now, there is something you should know about the Twilight Realm. It is the birthplace of your lover's people, the Sheikah."_

" _Sheik's from there?"_ Link's eyes had widened at that point. Sheik had always spoken as if Hyrule was his home, not this new realm.

" _No, he is not. His_ people _is. Please, my boy, pay attention to what I say,"_ Sprout had said. For a moment, it looked as if the miniature tree was rolling its eyes. _"You never were one to pay attention to details,"_ it said and chuckled. _"The Sheikah is not a people native to this land, nor this plane._

" _Thousands upon thousands of years ago, the Sheikah lived and prospered in the Realm of Twilight, coexisting peacefully with another people known as the Twili. What exactly happened to disrupt that peace is unknown, but a violent power struggle erupted between them. The Sheikah, masters of shadows, had the upper hand as the Twili were shadows themselves. The winds of favour blew in their direction for most of the war, but something happened just as they were about to deal the final blow to their foes. Suddenly, the Twili were unaffected by the Sheikah's magic._

" _Despite what you may think, the Sheikah were always partial to the use of magic. They are renowned for their skill and discipline in the martial arts in_ this _realm, but at the time, they predominantly relied on their powerful spells to fight their enemies. The Twili were_ also _skilled in magic, but truly excelled in melee combat, easily overpowering the physically weaker Sheikah._

" _No one but the Twili knows exactly what happened, but the tables had now turned, and the shadows were winning. The Sheikah numbers were also dwindling rapidly, and the shadow masters soon found themselves pushed to the brink of extinction. Had it not been for the Twilight Princess, they would have been wiped out."_

" _Twilight Princess?"_ the Hero had asked. _"Who was she?"_

" _Again, her origins are unknown,"_ Sprout had answered. _"It is believed that she was a hybrid, as she displayed qualities and attributes found in both peoples, including the red eyes of the Sheikah and the grey skin and red hair of the Twili. I believe her name was…"_ Sprout had looked embarrassed right then. _"I'm afraid I cannot remember. It began with an M and ended with an A. That is all I can recall. But I digress._

" _The Twilight Princess, while fierce and unstoppable in battle, was also compassionate and friendly to the dwindling Sheikah. Under a temporary ceasefire, she offered to leave the Sheikah in peace, provided they would leave the realm forever, as the losses and sorrow created by that terrible war had left both sides unable to live together peacefully. The Sheikah, while proud and somewhat arrogant at the time, did not wish to see their race disappear entirely and agreed."_

" _They went into exile?"_ Link had asked. Did Sheik know this? He couldn't remember if his partner had talked about this.

" _Willingly, of course,"_ Sprout had answered. _"Well, as willingly as a people threatened with total annihilation would do. To their credit, the Twilight Princess helped them search for a new home, and this humble realm was the one they deemed most habitable. The first people the Sheikah encountered in their new home was the Hylians and the Kingdom of Hyrule. At first, the Hylians were not trustful of the shadow masters, but the king was willing to give them a chance. In return for being allowed to stay in the kingdom, the Sheikah agreed to serve the Royal Family of Hyrule as their spies, assassins and bodyguards. I can see that you disapprove of this action, Link."_

" _I just don't understand why they would willingly become another people's slaves…"_

" _You must keep in mind that the Sheikah were severely weakened from the war, Link. They could not possibly survive another, which would surely have been sparked if they had not agreed. The Hylians did not like their new countrymen."_

" _They still don't,"_ Link had muttered, remembering what Sheik had said about what would happen after Ganondorf was defeated. The Hero of Time would get all the credit, and the Sheikah would forever be shunned, despite having a big hand in the outcome of the quest.

" _Yes, unfortunately there still lingers a certain feeling of distrust for the Sheikah in the hearts of the Hylian race. The Goddesses could only look with dismay as their creation did not act with compassion and friendliness. And then Hyrule's first war with the Gerudo broke out, which left a deep, searing hatred between the Sheikah and the Gerudo. After this, a series of lesser wars between the two_ _minorities pushed the Sheikah once again to the brink of extinction, the result of which you can see today. There are only three fully fledged Sheikah remaining in this world, one of which has ascended as a sage. Another has forever forsaken the ways of his people and chosen a life of politics. The last—and the youngest—is currently back in the realm his people was originally banished from. A sad end for a tragic people."_

Link had remained silent after that. He had not imagined that the history of the Sheikah had been _this_ bad. He had thought that the red-eyed shadow masters had been distantly related to the long-eared Hylians and just dwindled naturally and gradually—with the help of a feud with the desert thieves—become a minority. He had spent a lot of time thinking about this as Sheik had always seemed reluctant to speak of it.

" _So you see, my boy, I believe your lover is quite safe."_

" _How?"_ Link had asked. _"He's back in the realm where he is hated by the people. How do you know if he's not being hunted down right now?"_

" _The Realm of Twilight is dealing with its own problems right now, and the presence of a Sheikah could not possibly be prioritised as a problem. In fact, I would be willing to bet—not that I have anything to bet with, mind you—that it was the Twili who brought him there."_

"… _can you take me there?"_ Link had asked, looking at Sprout with determination. _"Can you show me a way to Twilight Realm?"_

Sprout had sighed, and shook in what seemed to be his own version of shaking his head. _"I am afraid not, Link. It is beyond my power as of yet, and even though I could, I would not be allowed. I am bound by rules, just like everything else in this world."_

" _Whose rules? Who the hell dictates what you can do? You're the most powerful being in Hyrule!"_

" _The Goddesses, of course,"_ Sprout had said. He had then smiled sadly. _"I am sorry, Link. You should get some sleep. Your quest is still not over."_

* * *

Link turned over in his bed, his face grimacing. "How can I finish the quest when I don't have the Triforce?" he mumbled to himself. It occurred to him suddenly. He really had no _wish_ to finish the quest. Not alone, at least. The time he had spent with Sheik had made realise that his entire drive after the incident in the Water Temple was the younger man, the Sheikah.

Giving up on the ever-elusive sleep, he threw his legs over the side of the bed, sitting up. His lay on the table along with his pack and clothes except his leggings and the white shirt he had underneath his tunic. His lack of a cap never bothered him anymore. He rubbed the side of his head, remembering the ring that had suddenly appeared in his ear after the seven years he spent sleeping in the Temple of Time.

"Where _did_ this thing come from, anyway?" he asked himself as he tugged on it for a bit. "Did Rauru do it?" He chuckled at the mental image of the ancient monk suddenly deciding to pierce the sleeping Link's ear. It seemed to be the only explanation, though. He decided to look out for the elderly man in case he decided to do something _else_ to him, like a tattoo, or… He blushed. The image had popped up out of nowhere. He wasn't even sure it was _possible_ to pierce that particular…area.

He pulled on his boots and stepped out on his porch, which gave him an excellent view of the village slash camp. Somehow, the place seemed much bigger now that the many tents had been set up. Now and then he could hear the tired yawns of the sentries. He didn't understand why the soldiers were forced to do this. Sprout was keeping Ganondorf and his armies out of the forest, so there was no need for any armed guards.

"Force of habit, I guess," he told himself. He sighed, realising he was now fully awake again. After debating with himself for a bit, he decided that the little rest he had gotten in his bed was enough for now, and donned his tunic and weapons. Climbing down his ladder, which creaked and tweaked under his weight, he saw that someone was waiting for him on the ground. He remembered a similar image seven years previous, just before he had embarked on his quest.

"Can't sleep, huh?" asked Colin, his short, blond hair glittering in the light from the torches. It seemed that he wasn't aware who he had talked to, for when Link came close, his eyes widened and he lowered his head. "I'm so sorry, Hero."

Link rolled his eyes and patted Colin on the shoulder. "What did I tell you about that title? Call me Link, and I'm glad you're up. I need someone to talk to."

"What?" asked Colin. What could the Hero of Time possibly have to talk about with him?"

"Are you on guard duty?" asked Link, ignoring the question.

"N-No," said Colin, cursing mentally when he realised the stutter he had worked so hard to get rid of during his childhood always seemed to return whenever he was around the Hero. "I-I couldn't sleep, a-and I came here to think."

"Alright, then," said Link and started walking down the small path created by the tents. "Come with me."

The Hero led Colin to the small hill above the village, right above Mido's house. Link wondered what the diminutive, self-proclaimed chief of the village thought about the Hylian invasion of his home. He noticed that the gossip stone, an artefact that had forever confused the forest children, had been destroyed, its pieces spread all over the hill. He sat down on the edge of the small cliff jutting out from the hill, beckoning Colin to join him. The young sergeant did so, albeit reluctantly. He was still wondering what the Hero wanted to talk to _him_ , of all people with.

"You're nervous," said Link suddenly.

"Y-Yeah," answered Colin, stroking the down on his chin, a nervous habit he had acquired over the recent years.

"Why?"

"B-Because you're the H-Hero of Time."

Link didn't have anything to say to that. His title did not want to be avoided, it seemed, following him wherever he went. He hated it. He truly hated it. "I hate it when people only see _what_ I am instead of _who_ I am," he finally said, looking at Colin.

Colin did not know what to say. He had expected a tongue-lashing, or maybe a serious discussion of tactics or fighting styles. He had _not_ expected the Hero to suddenly open up to him about his dislike of his role in life. Realising that Link was waiting for an answer, he did the only thing he could come up with. He grunted. It was a neutral response, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"I mean," Link continued, "I know that things look grim and that everyone needs someone to look up to…but why _me_? Of all people in the world, why was _I_ chosen for this?"

"That's not for us to know," said Colin, blinking at what he had just said. "O-Only the Goddesses k-know for sure."

"Yeah…goddesses," said Link and spat. Noticing Colin's light gasp as he did so, he shook his head. "I do not hold them in high regard, like you probably just noticed. A bit of a contradiction, since I'm apparently their chosen one, eh?" He sighed deeply, something he seemed to be doing a lot these days. "Where are you from, Colin?" he asked, plastering a smile on his face.

"O-Ordon," replied the sergeant.

"Ordon…Ordon…where's that?" asked Link, not remembering a village by that name.

"I-It's a bit south of Lake Hylia," Colin explained. "It's kinda h-hidden in the w-woods."

"Tell me about it," said Link in earnest.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 40**

* * *

Sheik had never been so glad to see a scar as he was when Terra's face slowly became clearer and came into view. The spot of light that had suddenly appeared in his vision had slowly started to grow as Terra told Sheik the tale of the Sheikah. At first, Sheik wanted to snort and voice his scepticism to the legend, but a little, hissing voice in his head kept him silent, telling him that there was nothing wrong in _listening_ , as well as take things into consideration. What did he have to lose on hearing the story? After all, _he_ was the one who had asked Terra to tell it, and it was hard to ignore the evidence that was all around him. It was...difficult to dismiss it all as a dream.

Terra let out a sigh as he came to the part where the Sheikah had first agreed to serve Hyrule, as if the fact that the once mighty Sheikah had been reduced to mere servants. Sheik didn't know whether to agree with that sigh or not. As far as he knew, the Royal Family had treated the Sheikah with nothing but kindness. It was the general population that had looked at them with scorn.

He already knew the rest of the story, the many wars and feuds with the Gerudo, the slow decline of the Sheikah as more and more of their able and young warriors were claimed by the fires of war, and the old ones who died with all their children and grandchildren dead, waiting for them in the Shadow Temple. This continued for generations until all that remained of the once proud and numerous people were Sheik, Impa and…the other one.

And Terra, apparently, if what he said was true. There was a facet of the story he found tremendous interest in, however, and he interrupted Terra mid-sentence with a raised hand. It felt heavy, and even though his dizziness and fatigue had dissipated somewhat, it was difficult to keep his mind focused on what he was trying to ask.

"Tell me about this…Twilight Princess," he said. He blinked rapidly as the last traces of blur disappeared from his vision, finally giving him a full view of exactly where they were. They were sitting in the outskirts of a large field filled with black flowers, a kind of which Sheik had never seen before. A small, bare circle stood embarrassingly out in the middle of the field.

Terra looked surprised as Sheik craned his neck around in order to look around. "Your vision has returned?" he asked. At Sheik's nod, he smiled. "Good, we were worried."

"You and the spirits?" Sheik asked.

"No, the shadow and I," said Terra and pointed behind Sheik. Sheik twisted his head painfully around, and saw Speil standing at the edge of the forest, his eyes glowing in the darkness within. "He has been standing there ever since you punched him. I believe he is quite angry with you."

"Good," said Sheik and turned back to look at Terra. "He has been a major problem for me ever since we met."

"Yet, he is absolutely vital in order for your home to survive the rampage of the lunatic currently in possession of the Triforce of Power," said Terra, quirking his mouth in a sardonic smile and waving at the glowing eyes, which disappeared behind a tree. "But back to the princess of Twilight." The dark-haired Sheikah looked around, as if checking if anyone was listening to them. "Her name is not allowed to be spoken out loud for respect," he said.

"She doesn't want her name to be said?" asked Sheik, surprised. This was a benevolent ruler? One who made it illegal to speak her name?

"No, her fanatical followers are the ones who made this a law," said Terra. "Luckily, there doesn't seem to be any of them around. Her name is Midna." He paused, looking expectantly at Sheik, who knew what he was waiting for.

"I have never heard that name before," he said, to which Terra nodded.

"Good, then her existence has been kept secret from your realm."

"Why is this important?"

Terra looked bothered. "If the Evil King was to become aware of her existence and power, he would stop at nothing to hunt her down and take her with him back to your realm, where he would assimilate her powers. Midna's presence is the only thing that is keeping this realm together at the moment, and her disappearance or death would be catastrophic." He sighed. "I know what you're thinking right now. If she was the one who banished our people, why should we save her realm?"

"Right," said Sheik, having prepared to ask just this question.

"Because we owe her as much, Sheik." Terra stood up and walked back and forth in front of the still sitting Sheik. "If it had not been for her, the Sheikah would have been wiped out. She singlehandedly saved us all, Sheik."

"Not that it mattered in the end," muttered Sheik.

"She bought us time, though," said Terra, glaring at Sheik. "She gave us the chance to live through another golden age before fading into obscurity."

"But if she's so powerful that Ganondorf would come after her if he knew where she is, why can't she deal with this threat herself?" asked Sheik, also standing up. His legs felt wobbly, but he pushed Terra away as the other came closer to help him.

"Do you really think she has not already tried?" asked Terra, unperturbed by Sheik's push. "She tried to eliminate it by herself a week ago, but it overwhelmed her, weakening her so much that she had to assume a completely different form."

"Then how are _we_ supposed to be deal with it if _she_ cannot?"

"I was hoping you would ask that," said Terra and smiled, his eyes warming considerably. "The corrupting influence is not a creature of this realm, and therefore cannot be harmed by entities of Twilight. And before you ask, no, the Sheikah are no longer considered entities of Twilight. We have been separated from this realm for too long."

Sheik stared at him. "You have no idea how ridiculous this story sounds," he said and folded his arms, settling his face into a neutral expression. "And to be honest, I feel more inclined to follow Speil and find our own way out of this place."

"But Midna is counting on your help—"Terra began.

"If Midna is so dependant on me, then she can ask me herself," countered Sheik, narrowing his eyes. Something was watching them; he could feel their gaze on him, and the hairs on his neck stood up. "And if I'm not wrong, she is not that far away."

"You…" said Terra, his voice trembling slightly. "…are not wrong."

It happened so quick that Sheik did not even see the rapidly approaching dot in the flower of fields before a gigantic, orange fist slammed into the ground between him and Terra, leaving a large hole. A tree fell, the vibrations shaking it apart. Dirt was flung into the air, casting a brown fog over the field.

Then something smacked into Sheik's stomach, knocking the breath out of him. He slowly folded, kneeling on the ground and clutching his midriff, gasping for air. He heard a high-pitched giggle above him, and looked up. His eyes stung as the falling dirt got into his eyes.

"Are you sure this one is strong enough? He's kinda scrawny-looking," said the voice. "Couldn't even take a punch from _me_ …"

"Midna, please," said the voice of Terra. Sheik felt hands under his arms, and he was slowly helped to stand up. "He is still weak from the crossing. He'll be at full strength in a couple of hours at the most, and punching him is _not_ going to help."

Sheik was finally able to clear the offending grains from his eyes, and was able to see the one who had punched him. It was not…human, nor what he expected to see after imagining the Twilight Princess in his mind. She was…small. Most of her face and hair was obscured by a large, cracked helmet, the only thing visible being her one red eye, which was looking at him with disapproval. Long, pointed ears stuck out from the helmet, and her mouth, from which an incisor poked out, was quirked in what seemed to be a fiendish smile.

She floated above the ground, and her skin colour seemed to be divided into equal proportions, some parts white, some black. Tattoos, glowing with a ghastly green light covered her right arm and left leg.

All in all, the most powerful being in Twilight looked like a small imp, a monster used to scare small children in bedtime stories.

She noticed Sheik looking at her, and smiled a bit wider. "So, just gonna take my punch like a girl and lay down, eh?"

It was a purely automated reaction, one which Sheik had never expected his body to do. His first and second punches missed, and his kick hit only air. Midna kept warping around him, always out of his reach. She giggled every time he missed, which only fuelled his anger.

"Stop it, you two!" shouted Terra and stepped in between them, his hand on the handle of his sword, ready to draw. "Time is wasting, and Twilight will go under if we can't work together!"

"I'm not working together with this…this, _boy_!" exclaimed Midna. "He can't even hit me!"

Sheik glared at her and turned around. "Fine, then I'm leaving." He began to walk, aware that the Twilight Princess was coming after him, her magical presence looming closer and closer. He had just reached the tree line, intent on finding Speil, when Midna struck. He could hear the air being displaced by the gigantic fist, knowing he would not be able to dodge it. He didn't have to. He could hear the impact, and was surprised when he heard something metallic being struck.

"You did _not_ expect me, did you?" said Speil, his shield bending under the strain of Midna's blow. He pushed her away, drawing his sword in the process.

Midna smirked. "Now _this_ is more like it!"

Sheik looked at the weapons in Speil's hands. "Where did those come from?" he asked.

Speil didn't turn around, keeping his gaze on the floating princess. "It is amazing what sheer willpower can accomplish in this realm," he said. "Especially when it is fuelled by anger and annoyance."

"Terra!" Midna shouted. "You didn't tell me about this one!"

"I did not expect him to follow him through the portal," said Terra, coming up on them, his sword drawn as well. He looked at Speil wearily.

"I could not help myself," said Speil. "The prospect and allure of killing and murdering in another dimension was too strong."

Sheik didn't know if Speil was joking or not, but his tone of voice was completely level, and the fierce look on his face made it impossible to read him.

"The question is," continued the shadow, "do I get to kill a princess today?"

* * *

The sun had begun to rise, and Link and Colin were still talking. The village was just beginning to stir, the guards changing shifts, fires being started to cook breakfast for the soldiers and civilians.

"…and that's really the reason for why I joined the military along with my father," finished Colin. "I just wanted to…to be someone else, you know? Talo and Malo kept pestering me about a coward, and when father announced that he was going back to the army, I asked him to bring me along, just to shut them up."

"You joined the military just to shut to childish bullies up?" asked Link, eyebrow rising. "Seems kinda…rushed."

Colin looked embarrassed. "That's what I thought when I went through the training, but after I was assigned to the princess' battalion and I got to know the others…I couldn't imagine ever going back to Ordon. At least not before this war is over. I'm a sergeant now, and I have men who depend on me."

"Sense of duty, eh?" asked Link and looked at two of the three brothers emerge from their house. They still looked like gnomes, in Link's opinion. "I wish I had that."

"You don't?" asked Colin, looking shocked. "But…what about the quest? The mandate from the Goddesses?"

"I _did_ have the desire to finish the quest at first, when I was young and had not yet gotten the Master Sword…" said Link. "But now…well, there is only reason I'm doing it right now, and he's not even here."

"He?" asked Colin.

"Sheik," said Link quietly. "He…is my companion, my partner." He was being careful, trying not to give too much away. Who knew how the young sergeant would react? "We have gone through a lot together, but we were separated in the Spirit Temple by a spell from the pair of witches infesting it. I think he's alive…but I just don't know where he is." He looked down at his lip, feeling his eyes water.

He felt Colin's hand on his shoulder, appreciating the comforting gesture. "I'm sorry," said the sergeant. "I'm sure he's okay. If he was able to accompany you on your quest, I'm sure he won't give up that easily."

Link looked at Colin, smiling. "You're right," he said. "Sheik's tougher than a bag of nails, that's for sure. And he's much smarter than me to boot!"

Colin was about to answer, but a familiar voice from the camp interrupted him.

"Sergeant! Where the hell are you?!" Rusl shouted. Link felt Colin go rigid beside him.

"Oh no, Dad—I mean, the captain is looking for me," Colin said, his voice trembling. He rose to his feet, his armour clanging all the while. "I have to go!" he exclaimed and took off running, quickly disappearing among the tents.

Link smiled, amused at the authority father held over son, which was only strengthened by the rank and file of the military. He looked at the Mirror Shield, wondering how it was possible to make a shield so strong, yet so light. And its surface… He noticed a guard sleeping on his post…sleeping _and_ standing no less. The sun was creeping over the trees, and the first rays were hitting the hill he was sitting on. He got an idea, and smirked.

The sleeping guard got a face full of focused sunlight, and the ensuing spectacle was quite amusing.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 41**

* * *

The shadow and the princess both stared at each other, neither of them blinking or moving an inch. Speil's face was set in a grim expression, while Midna's was a mix of curiosity and excitement. The large fist, which seemed to be her primary weapon in her current form, turned out to be formed by her fiery red hair, which, when not pulled into a fist of death, reached her lower back. The helmet, seemed to be made of stone, did not bother her at all, apparently.

Sheik and Terra stood some distance away, both unsure of how to react to this situation. It was Terra who had suggested they move away, telling Sheik that when Midna wanted to fight, there was no stopping her. Sheik had then admitted that he was quite sure Speil felt the same way.

"Princess, please, cease this madness!" Terra feebly called to the Twilight Princess, who only made a dismissing sound, not deigning to look at him.

"Speil, I order you to stop right now!" Sheik then called, hoping that the shadow would obey. He was sure that he had put himself in a position of respect with Speil now, having defied him several times, not to mention saved his life.

"Sorry, pet," Speil called back, also not ceasing the staring contest with Midna. "I'm not really in the mood listen to you right now!" He moved his feet, digging his feet into the ground, cementing his stance and position. He tightened his hold on the dark copy of the Master Sword. "So, how would you like your death? Fast and painless, or slow and excruciating?" A wicked grin replaced the serious expression. "I can do both."

Midna didn't answer, but she was obviously annoyed judging by the way her fist clenched. It moved with surprising agility and speed, going from clenched and still to flying toward the shadow within the span of half a second. To Sheik, it seemed that time slowed down, clenching his jaw as he saw Speil slowly start to twist himself out of the way of the sheer wall that was heading for him. It clipped him in the shoulder, but Speil didn't seem to notice as he immediately went on the offence, launching a flurry of strikes and thrusts at the floating princess.

It was obvious from the start that Midna was playing with him. From Sheik could see when she dodged Speil's attacks, she could fly much higher than she did now, just above the shadow's head. And from her smile, he could only deduce that she was enjoying the fight immensely, which puzzled him considering her land was slowly being corrupted and destroyed.

He had not been able to gauge much of Speil's strength when Sheik had first faced him in the Water Temple. All he knew was that the sheer power he commanded in his muscles and skill in brandishing his blade was enough to outclass all but the strongest of fighters. Sheik had certainly learned this lesson. But what he was seeing now, was unlike anything he had ever seen before. The only one he could possibly compare Speil with was Link…although Speil carried himself with much more grace, and his attacks were far more subtle and unpredictable.

Then something happened. Speil's silhouette seemed to grow darker for a second, and suddenly, he was moving much faster. Midna was caught by surprise, and she gritted her teeth, doubling her efforts in dodging the shadow's sword. She swung her fist, aiming low and upwards. And then Speil surprised all three of them—Sheik, Terra and Midna—by back-flipping, a movement so fluent and seemingly natural to him that it didn't seem to take any effort whatsoever from him. As he landed on his feet, he struck forward with an overhead swing which nearly took Midna's helmet off. But he was not finished; he used the momentum of his swing to throw himself forward, raising his shield.

The crash was louder than expected. Steel and stone collided, producing an all too-familiar sound, which made Sheik shiver. The Twilight Princess was sent flying, rolling along in the black flowers, sending roots and tufts into the air. She did not rise up again.

Terra acted quickly, taking off toward the small crater that had formed around where Midna's skid along the ground had ended, Sheik hot on his heels. As they ran, Terra drew his sword, revealing its blade to Sheik for the first time. It was completely identical to Kazuya's, except that the symbols looked far older and worn out, and the edge itself looked impossibly sharp. He looked up and saw that Speil too was racing toward the fallen princess, and tried his hardest to speed up.

Terra reached her first, assuming a fighting stance Sheik had never seen before. He held his sword with both his hands, low and pointing backwards. From the stance, he would probably be able to block any strike from almost every direction. Some of his hair had come loose from the ponytail, and his bangs covered his face. He made no effort to brush it out the way. Sheik was still running when he realised that someone's death would be inevitable if Speil continued on the path he was going. The shadow made no sign of stopping. If anything, the glee on his face seemed to increase tenfold. He gripped the dark Master Sword with both hands, preparing to do a move Sheik had seen Link do many times: the Jump Slash.

"Speil! Stop!" Sheik yelled, veering off his path toward Midna, aiming to intercept Speil's path. His lungs burned, and his vision was swimming. The strain of running so soon after the crossing was too much, and he could feel his legs threatening to give away beneath him. Speil was getting closer and closer.

 _Now or never,_ Sheik thought and jumped, throwing himself forward with every single ounce of strength he had left.

He felt himself collide with the shadow's midriff, wrapping his arms around him, pulling him to the ground. They both rolled in the flower field, grunting and moaning as various pieces of weapon and shield alternatively stung and poked them. Then something happened. Sheik had expected Speil to give up after being thrown to the ground by the object of his desires, as much as the Sheikah hated to admit, but he suddenly found the shadow's hands around his neck.

He was thrown on his back, and Speil straddled him, fingers desperately trying to crush the Sheikah's windpipe. Sheik tried to pry Speil's hands away, but the shadow held his throat in an iron grip. He looked up, and saw pure murder in the shadow's eyes, the shadow snarling and growling, the very image of what he must have been like when he ambushed Link in the Water Temple. In short, he looked every bit the monster he really was.

Sheik felt his strength leaving his limbs as the lack of oxygen took its toll on his body. His vision grew blurry, and for a moment, Sheik thought he was going blind again, that darkness was once again going to descend upon him, except that this darkness would be permanent…and silent.

Sheik had never been afraid to die. He had been _taught_ not to be afraid to die. But now, he could feel a spike of fear driving itself into the pit of his stomach. He couldn't die now; there was so much to do. Hyrule had to be saved! Link was waiting for him.

_Link…_

He felt around him, his fingers closing around a heavy rock. Unable to focus enough to aim, he swung. The stone cracked against the side of Speil's head, and the shadow muttered a quiet "ugh" as he fell sideways of Sheik. Knowing he could not waste any time, Sheik climbed on top of Speil, reversing the position they had just been in. But instead of strangling Speil, he merely pinned the shadow's arms above his head, doing his best to keep Speil's flailing legs at bay.

"Let go, you piece of shit!" growled Speil, his eyes rolling around, still reeling from the blow to his head. "I'll fucking kill you!"

 _This isn't right,_ Sheik thought, his head clearing up. Speil was freakishly strong, and holding him down was incredibly difficult. What Sheik did next was not planned. He drew his head back, and slammed his forehead into Speil's, hitting the shadow right on the bridge of his nose. A shiver-like convulsion went through Speil, and the shadow stilled. His eyes were clenched shut, a scream threatening to erupt from between his equally clenched lips. Lips which looked…so tempting.

_What?_

Sheik leaned down, all the while wondering what he was doing but unable to stop himself.

_What the hell am I doing?_

Before he knew it, he was once again kissing Speil, wondering why it felt so… _right_ to do so. The shadow's response was instant, his hands breaking out from Sheik's restraint, moving to wrap around the Sheikah's middle. He rolled them over so Speil was on top again. Sheik felt the shadow's tongue probing at his lips, and found himself unable to resist, opening his mouth and welcoming the invasive muscle. He briefly tried to fight back with his own, Speil was so overbearing, and was clearly of the opinion that Sheik's role in this was to lie back and be ravished, which the Sheikah found himself, to his surprise and shame, all but willing to comply with.

Then Speil drew back, panting. Sheik opened his eyes (he hadn't even noticed closing them), and saw that the shadow was looking down at him, confused.

"P…pet?" he asked. He hissed and tenderly felt the spot where Sheik had head butted him. "What…what's going on?" he asked. A thud suddenly sounded from behind Speil, and the shadow's eyes went blank, his body collapsing on top of Sheik.

Terra rolled Speil off of him, looking worried. "Are you alright?" he asked, helping Sheik to his feet. He helped steady him when Sheik swayed, threatening to fall. "I'm sorry for not helping sooner; I had to make sure Midna was well."

 _Oh, sure, help the one who is_ not _in immediate danger of being murdered by an insane and furious copy of the Hero of Time,_ Sheik thought. He touched his throat, feeling exactly where bruises were going to form. "It's alright," he managed to croak. "How is she?"

"She's fine, just surprised at how strong it was," Terra said and glared down at the unconscious Speil. "What happened? He seemed so docile just a little while ago…" He drew his sword again and rested it lightly against Speil's throat. "Perhaps it's better to just—"

"Put it away," said Sheik, gripping Terra's wrist, slowly applying pressure until the dark-haired Sheikah pulled the blade away.

"Why are you defending it?" asked Terra, grimacing. "It nearly killed you!"

"I…don't know," answered Sheik, bending down. He remembered the sheer murder in Speil's face as he had stared down at him, and then the look of surprise he had had after Sheik kissed him. "He's not normally like this…"

 _No, he's just as vicious, just far more polite and eloquent,_ he reminded himself.

* * *

Link had barely been able to grab himself some breakfast from one of the soldiers' tents before one of Zelda's guards had approached him and told him that the princess wanted to see him right away. He was reminded of his exhaustion as he strolled along the small streets formed by the tents. He probably shouldn't have talked with Colin for so long, he thought, but the young man had been…fun to talk to.

He happened to pass the young sergeant at that very moment. Colin gave him the barest of nods as he and the rest of the soldiers in his company followed Rusl, who didn't seem to notice Link. They were equipped with cloaks and bows, surely marching out for another border patrol, like they had done when Link arrived the day before.

In the morning light, he noticed how many of the soldiers and occasional civilians stared at him with reverence, eyes widening and jaws dropping. The news of his arrival had apparently not spread very quickly. He hated it. Just for a minute, he wanted to be just another face in the crowds, to not be known to and respected by everyone just because he wore the Master Sword on his back.

He rounded a corner and, upon seeing Saria's house, decided to make a small detour into his house. He had been in such a hurry in racing across Hyrule that he didn't notice if he still had Sheik's lyre with him. He quickly climbed up the small ladder, growling when one of the steps broke under his weight. Pulling himself onto his porch, he stood up and marched inside. His pack lay innocently on the table, and Link could see one of the… he wasn't sure what to call it, but one of the "horns" of Sheik's instrument poked out of it.

He sighed in relief, not wanting to experience his lover's wrath when he came home only to find that Link had lost his favourite instrument. Back outside, he climbed down and continued on his way to Zelda's headquarters. He stopped when he saw someone exiting the house, a face he had not seen since he went in search of the Forest Temple. Mido was angry, it seemed. He stomped along, not even bothering to look at Link, disappearing among the tents and soldiers. Link shrugged and continued.

Zelda was already in full activity, reading and writing messages. Several messenger birds of every kind stood on the window sill, waiting for Zelda's parchments. She attached one to the leg of a proud-looking magpie, which took off with a caw. This was the first time he had ever seen one of the mischievous birds actually put to good use.

The princess didn't notice him, and Link felt awkward where he stood. After five minutes of nothing, he knocked on the doorframe and coughed slightly.

Zelda jumped, accidentally tearing down a large pile of paper that had steadily grown since Link had entered. The Hero of Time found himself snickering, not feeling ashamed at all. It was the lack of sleep, he concluded. It was getting to him.

"Link!" exclaimed Zelda. "Look what you did!"

"Well, excuse me, Princess," he said in a non-caring way. "I didn't expect to be kept standing here for five minutes when you called for me."

"Huh, never mind," Zelda said and ignored the flying pieces of paper around them. "Something is happening in at Lake Hylia."

"Ganondorf?" he asked, his irritable mood quickly being shoved into the back of his head.

Zelda nodded. "He has razed all the villages around the lake, but he's doing something…strange to the water itself. My spies tell me it has turned red and thick, like blood." She shook her head and started walking in a circle again, the heels of her boots gradually grinding down the wooden floor. Link could _see_ a groove starting to form. "Link," she said and topped, looking at him with worried eyes. "We are dependant on the water from Lake Hylia to make healing potions. If Ganondorf poisons it, then we won't be able to get back to full strength! I need you to go there and stop it."

"Whoa, whoa, wait a second," exclaimed Link, eyes widening. "Are you telling me that I'm supposed to go to the lake, where _Ganondorf_ and his _army_ are currently rampaging? You told me that I wouldn't stand a chance against him without the Triforce of Courage!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't explain it completely," said Zelda, picking up what seemed to be a report from one of her spies. "Ganondorf and his army have actually left and are heading back to the castle, but he has left a small contingent of soldiers and lesser warlocks to guard it. I don't know what he's planning, but it needs to be stopped, or all is lost."

"How big is this contingency?" asked Link, wondering why he knew the word as he had never actually heard it before now.

"Fifty soldiers and five warlocks," said Zelda, holding up a hand to silence Link's subsequent outburst. "You won't be going alone. Twelve of my spies are standing by, ready for you to lead them."

"Thirteen people against fifty-five soldiers and magicians?" asked Link.

"Link, my spies are handpicked among the soldiers, and each of them is able to take on entire garrisons by themselves," said Zelda, approaching him. "They are more than capable to take care of the soldiers. But the warlocks…"

"Let me guess, they're not trained to handle magic-suing foes?" said Link, rolling his eyes. "And you need me, the Chosen One, to take them down?"

Zelda blinked, surprised at his accuracy. "That's…exactly right, Link."

The Hero sighed. "When am I leaving?"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 42**

* * *

As they walked, Sheik saw the signs of the corruption that Terra had spoken of. Trees and plants were dying, withering slowly and turning brown. The animals were simply gone, not a sign of their existence left behind. They were on their way to the place Midna had encountered the enemy, a small ruin close to the field of black flowers, which was apparently used for training purposes. Neither Midna nor Terra knew what the ruin was, as it had been old even when the war between The Twili and the Sheikah had been raging.

Sheik, to his surprise, found himself liking the Twilight Princess, even though her personality could honestly use an adjustment. He found it hard to believe that _she_ was the one who had saved his people from certain doom. She had revealed her ability to jump in and out of shadows to him just after the fight with Speil, which she used to annoy Sheik. She especially liked to suddenly appear right in front of him, the single visible eye of hers crinkled in amusement. Though he could sometimes see something else in her eye…she seemed to be studying him, analysing his very being. He found it quite unnerving at times, but then she started to giggle and started talking about something or other.

Terra kept quiet, partly out of respect for the other two and partly out of annoyance at having to carry the unconscious Speil, who had been trussed up and thrown across Terra's shoulder. It was strange the way he so easily carried him, despite the shadow's great amount of weapons that he had been able to summon back. Sheik was carrying his sword, however, just in case, which was a task he did not take delight in. While the sword wasn't very heavy or difficult to grip, it had a menacing aura, and Sheik could feel the pure hatred that radiated from it.

They passed under a crumbling stone arch, and Midna pointed out that it meant it was not long until they would reach the ruin. However, Terra announced at this point that he needed a break, and the other two complied, knowing that he did not wish to rest because of his burden. Well, Sheik _assumed_ that Midna knew, but he was certain of the reason for Terra's wish.

The dark-haired Sheikah dumped Speil unceremoniously on the ground and sat down on a stump that stood handily by the side of the road. His forehead was shining with sweat, and Sheik noticed he had a certain slouch to his posture now. He turned to Midna, but found that the princess was no longer there. Shrugging mentally, he went to Terra.

"You're not tired from carrying him," he stated, sitting down on the ground next to Speil, keeping an eye on the unconscious shadow.

"You are correct," said Terra.

"And I assume it has something to do with the corruption around us," continued Sheik, gesturing to the dying nature around them. The ground beneath Sheik was dry, and moving around produced small clouds of dust that rose to the air.

"Again, you have proven to be a sharp observer," said Terra and smiled. He removed his sword from his back and put it on the ground next to the stump, close to Sheik. "I…we…have started to weaken much faster than we expected, and the creature waiting for us in those ruins is only making things worse. I fear it will not be too long until we fade away."

Sheik didn't know what to say. What _could_ he say? His ancestors were dying, for a second time, and yet their avatar did not seem too bothered apart from feeling fatigued. "What happens when the creature dies?" he asked finally, noticing the awkward silence.

"I, we, do not know," answered Terra. He loosened the tie that held his robe together. The robe fell open, revealing an exoskeleton very similar to Sheik's underneath, except this one was dark green in colour. He too wore a white tabard, but the red Sheikah Eye had been crossed out by diagonal line. He noticed Sheik looking at it. "It symbolises that we have been separated from our people by death," he explained. Sheik nodded in understanding, not really understanding the necessity for crossing out the eye, but kept silent. Terra stood up, shaking his head. He walked into the middle of the path, bent down and started to draw in the dust.

Curious, Sheik stood up and walked over to him. It took some time for him to notice it, but Terra was drawing a complex star-like symbol, its arms intersecting and fading with the ring that surrounded it. Sheik's eyes widened when he recognised it. He had seen it in one of the books in the library in Kakariko, the ones concerning Sheikah magic. It was usually used for summoning things.

"What are you doing?" he asked, noting the intent look on Terra's face as he finished the circle.

"Your lack of a weapon must be remedied," the dark-haired one said and leaned slightly back, inspecting his design. Nodding in content, he looked at Sheik. "I highly suggest you step back."

Doing so, Sheik watched in anticipation. He had never been able to try out the spells in that particular book, but now he had an opportunity to watch a real Sheikah do it. He made notes of every single movement and word uttered by Terra as he chanted. Sheik did not recognise the words, but memorised them just the same. Opening his shut eyes, Terra suddenly slammed his hand into the middle of the star. The circle lit up, and a strong wind started to blow all around them. Dust was kicked into the air, shrouding the path in a mist of dirt.

Something glowed in the middle of the ring as the dust settled, and Sheik stepped closer in order to get a good look at it. Terra turned to him, holding in his hand a sword identical to his, which again looked similar to Kazuya. Terra held the sword out wordlessly, and Sheik took it as a sign to take it. It was light, even more so than Kazuya, and the blade shone in the weak light from the eternally-in-twilight sun.

"It is an exact copy of my own," said Terra, standing up, swaying slightly as he did so. "It…will disappear when we do, but it will serve you well until then."

Something about that sentence struck Sheik as an incredibly sad thing to say. He was so...resigned to his fate, so ready to just disappear. He helped Terra back to the stump, felt a jolt in his chest when the other Sheikah sighed. "Are you alright?" he asked.

Terra shook his head. "Not really. The corruption is growing stronger, look," he said and pointed at a mighty-looking oak, which was shrivelling and dying before their very eyes, its trunk shrinking, its leaves falling off. "If this evil is allowed to go on, the entire realm will be like this in a couple of days. He looked at Sheik with a fierce look of determination. "I will not allow it… _we_ will not allow it!"

Sheik nodded. While he personally felt no personal attachment to this strange realm, it was obvious his ancestors did so, and he would honour them by helping out as best he could. And if the story was true, he _did_ , he supposed, owe it to Midna.

"Aw, aren't you just adorable?" asked a voice right next to his ear, startling him. He turned his head, and found the grinning face of Midna. "You feel like you owe it to me?"

Pushing away, he focused his attention on the shadow lying blissfully unaware of the corrupted land around them. "How did you know that? Can you read my mind?" he asked.

"Indeed I can, kiddo," said the princess, suddenly floating in front of him. "When I'm riding in your shadow, I can hear everything you think." She grinned even wider. "And I must say that you don't put a lot of faith in this little expedition of ours."

"How can I?" asked Sheik, noticing that Terra had fallen silent. "This…creature that is inhabiting the ruins easily managed to defeat you, who are supposedly the strongest person in this realm, what can I do? All I have is this sword—"he drew the sword again, flourishing it—"and this one," he finished and nodded to Speil.

"I explained it to you," said Terra. He was tying his robe, standing up. "As Sheikah, you and I are the only ones who can hurt it…and I suppose that one," he said and motioned to Speil, "would be able to as well."

"For some reason, I highly doubt he would be willing to help you," said Sheik dryly. "But I am still sceptical to what we can do against it." He turned to Midna, who seemed to be dozing off. "First of all, I do not even know what it looks like."

Midna opened her eye (or eyes, presumably), and righted herself in the air. With yet another insufferable—and oddly endearing—she settled herself onto Sheik's shoulder. "Well, I _could_ tell you…but that would rob you of the surprise when you first meet it, wouldn't it?" She did not seem too bothered by the fact that she had not been able to deal with the creature. It was as if she was actually looking forward to seeing it again. "But I guess you're not man enough to handle it without being able to recognise…how old are you again?"

"That does not matter," said Sheik coolly and tried to push her off his shoulder. He changed his mind about her that instant. He did not like her, but did not hate her either. "And I would prefer that you did not read my mind, thank you very much."

"Aw, you're no fun," Midna whined. "But I'll tell you anyway. It looks like…like a man from your realm. I did not get a very good look at it before it overwhelmed me, but it is _not_ a living, breathing man," she said, looking at Speil. "I suspect _he_ will recognise it on the spot."

"Recognise what on the spot?" asked Speil, suddenly sitting up. The shadow looked around, his eyes wandering. "What is happening? Where are we? And why am I tied up?"

Had it not been for the magnitude of the situation, Sheik would have laughed at the sheer confusion that was plastered all over the shadow's face. He started to walk toward Speil, but Terra got to him first.

"You attacked and almost killed the princess of this realm, shadow," Terra said, glaring down at Speil. "You are lucky that Sheik stopped you, or you would not be alive."

Speil glared right back at the dark-haired Sheikah. "Is that…a threat I hear on thine lips?" he asked slowly.

Terra shook his head. "No threat, only a reminder of what could have happened." He stepped away, leaving him to Sheik, who leaned down. Midna and Terra walked away, leaving them in peace. Vaguely, Sheik could hear Midna complaining about Terra saying she'd nearly been killed by Speil.

"Pet, what happened?" asked Speil, lowering his voice.

"You mean you do not remember?" asked Sheik, ignoring the "pet" part of Speil's sentence.

"The last thing I remember is a searing pain on the back of my hand, and that I suddenly had my weapons again…and then I saw her punch you…and then, nothing," said Speil.

 _Searing pain? Oh, no…_ Sheik thought as he remembered something he had read many years ago. _They will find hiding places in those chosen by destiny…_

He stood up; drawing the sword Terra had given him. Speil looked at him, his eyes widening.

"Pet…what are you doing?" he asked.

"Stay still," Sheik bade him, aiming carefully. Then he struck, cutting cleanly through the ropes binding Speil's wrist. For a second, he wondered just where Terra had acquired the rope, but shook his head. Mission accomplished, he stuck the sword in the dusty ground and helped Speil unravel the thick rope. "Now, take off your gauntlet," he said, tugging at the straps of Speil's left gauntlet.

"Alright, alright, I will do it myself," said the shadow, huffing. He undid the clasps and straps that held the protective garment in place, and pulled the gauntlet off. Immediately, Sheik turned his hand around, feeling the back of it. There was no mistake about it. A small mark was there.

He looked at Speil, suddenly wondering what to do. "Think about this spot," he commanded the shadow, pointing at the place of the mark. "Concentrate on it."

"What are you on abo—"

"Just do it!" Sheik snarled. Speil, taking the not so subtle hint, tch-ed and closed his eyes, his face screwing up in concentration.

Slowly but surely, the outline of a golden triangle appeared on Speil's hand, and Sheik's eyes widened even further.

 _So_ this _is the power he stole from Link…_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 43**

* * *

They marched on in silence. Midna and Sheik walked at the front, while Terra and Speil took up the rear guard. Terra was getting noticeably weaker, and his skin was paling. The forest around had them turned ashen grey, and if they accidentally brushed against a bush, it would go up in a cloud of dust. The ground was a cracked mess, great slabs of dry earth crunching underneath their feet (with the exception of Midna, of course, whose feet never touched the ground). Old streams had dried up, and in some places been replaced by pools of tar, the origin of which none of them could explain.

All in all, it reminded Sheik of a nightmare he had once had when he was young, just after entering the service of Princess Zelda after escaping from the castle at the age of ten. Impa had told him one evening of what would happen if either Sheik or Link failed in their respective tasks, that the evil Ganondorf would literally suck the land dry of all life. It did not help that Impa had never reassured him that it wouldn't happen as long as he performed his tasks. It had been hard to shake that nightmare off, and he highly suspected that this experience would only serve to reawaken it in his dreams.

But that did not matter at the moment. The aforementioned silence that had fallen over the group did not exist because of the lack of trying from a certain princess, whose off-topic and light-hearted banter fell on deaf ears. Speil didn't answer out of defiance, as he did not like the Twilight Princess one bit. Terra failed to reply out of exhaustion, only opening his mouth to tell her that he needed to conserve his strength for the coming battle. Sheik…well, Sheik was too deep in thought to answer the, apparently, deep question concerning his age. In the end, Midna had given up on engaging the other three in conversation, and started to sulk.

As for Sheik's thoughts, they revolved around the matter of a certain triangle, which did not belong to the one who was currently bearing it. How the Triforce of Courage found it a better idea to hide within a copy of its destined wielder was a mystery, one which Sheik wished to get to the bottom of as soon as possible, but Speil was just as clueless as him when confronted with questions. According to the shadow, he had never noticed it until their encounter with the Twilight Princess, and it had only served to launch him into an almost unstoppable rage, which had required Sheik to once again do something he didn't want to do.

 _You're lying to yourself,_ Sheik's thoughts tended to echo in his head whenever the subject of the rage-calming kiss surfaced in his head. _You like him as well…there's no question about it._ At this point, all he wanted to do was to hurl the shadow from the highest cliff in Hyrule, preferably the Death Mountain crater, for causing so much trouble.

The ground was starting to turn black as they walked, signalling their imminent arrival at the epicentre of the corruption. And oddly enough, Sheik did not feel worried. He didn't know if he no longer cared for such confrontations considering the many odd things that had happened in the past month or if something else, but he was happy it would soon be over. He wanted to go home, back to Hyrule as soon as possible. Back to Link, back to Zelda…back to what appeared to be a "normal" war after everything he had learned and witnessed in the Twilight Realm.

All that stood in his way happened to be a creature of immense power that could corrupt the very world it stood on just with its presence, and it liked to imitate a man from Hyrule. If Link had been there, Sheik was sure that the Hero of Time would declare it a "piece of cake" and just swish and flick his sword around, and they'd be back by dinnertime.

Unfortunately for them, the Hero of Time was _not_ with them, only his shadow, which happened to be in a frightful mood at the moment. A mood which they could thank the Twilight Princess for. If anything, Sheik expected Speil to sit back and watch Sheik and Terra fight the creature on their own, laughing whenever one of them would get hurt.

 _It would not be beyond him,_ Sheik thought.

A hill rose in front of them. A weatherworn stone flight of steps led upwards, terminating in a path that continued in amongst what appeared to once have been mighty oak trees, which were mere shadows of what they had once been. The stairs cracked and broke beneath them, eliciting curses from the three surface dwellers. Midna found this highly amusing and pointed this out by giggling and laughing.

At this point, Sheik wanted to grab the princess by her stone helmet and throw her as far away as he could. Her realm was dying, and all she did was make sarcastic comments and laugh at the others' misfortunes? It was despicable. And he was somehow, very distantly related to her because she was half-Sheikah?

At the top of the stairs, they stopped for a moment so Terra could win back his breath. His crimson eyes, which had been so brilliant and full of life mere hours ago, were now dull and dead-looking, and his entire being had been so terribly reduced. He still carried himself with an air of pride, but the illusion was repeatedly broken by his coughs. The Sheikah spirits inside him were probably doing their best to keep him alive, but it was obvious they were fighting a losing battle.

"Let's sit for a while, I'm tired" Sheik said, unable to watch the other Sheikah in this state. He helped Terra sit down against one of the dead oak trees, which creaked threateningly as he leaned against.

"Thank you," wheezed Terra. "But we cannot waste much time…not if you want that sword to last longer than five seconds," he said and pointed at the copy of his own sword that Sheik was carrying.

"Hopefully, we won't need more than four," said Sheik and walked back to the staircase. At the top, the hill gave them what would have been a beautiful view of Midna's realm had it not been for the decay and corruption plaguing it. In the distance, he could see some parts of the realm that had not yet been tainted. He could see tall, spiky buildings, but not much more. Again, the little natural light in the realm did little to help. Speil gave him a confused look as he kept looking. Sheik noticed him and jerked his head to where Terra was sitting. "Keep him company, will you?" he asked.

"So now you are the one who gives the orders, pet?" asked Speil, grinning. Uncharacteristically enough, that was it, and Speil went over to the other Sheikah, striking up a conversation Sheik could not hear. Raising an eyebrow at Speil's sudden change of personality, he shrugged and turned back to the view.

"Hey, kid," said Midna, suddenly floating behind him. Sheik didn't turn around, but acknowledged her with a grunt. She didn't say anything for a few seconds, as if she was thinking about what to say. She slowly floated in front of him and surprised the Sheikah with the sombre look she had on her face. Her little incisor, which was always on proud display, could no longer be seen. In fact, every single bit of cheerfulness and mirth that had continually been plastered all over her face was gone. She cleared her throat. "Listen…I'm sorry I've given you such a hard time…"

"It is alright," answered Sheik, remembering that despite the silliness and annoyance she had been directly responsible for, she was still royalty. However, it was not in earnest that he said it.

"No, really," she said and flew extremely close to his face, forcing him to look at her. "I know that I can be…annoying, and I know I pissed you off when we first met…"

 _Indeed you did, Princess,_ Sheik thought, hoping that her mind-reading ability only extended to when she was hiding in someone's shadow. _Punching me in the stomach definitely added to it…_

"It's alri—"Sheik began.

"Shut up!" Midna yelled. And now Sheik saw that moisture was gathering in her eyes. "I'm trying to apologise, and you're not even taking me seriously!" She noticed that Speil and Terra had turned their heads to look at them, and sighed. "Please, follow me," she said, pleading. Sheik did so. Midna led him in among a couple of trees which gave them at least a semblance of privacy. "I know you don't think much of me," she said, facing away from Sheik.

"I can…confirm that," said Sheik, wondering why he suddenly felt so guilty. He supposed it was the ingrained loyalty and submission for his betters. If this was supposed to extend to royalty of different planes of existence, he did not know.

"I'm not…usually like that," continued Midna. "I…I've just been feeling so helpless…and being stuck in this form has only made everything worse…my own subjects don't recognise me anymore, I can't do magic more complicated than this," she said and formed her hair into that giant fist which Sheik had come to fear. It had left quite a bruise on his midriff. "I…the only thing I could do was to sit and watch as more and more of my home was swallowed up by that thing in the ruins…"

To his surprise, Sheik found himself sympathising with the Twilight Princess, despite having not been able to care less about her five minutes earlier. "So you put on a brave front?" he asked quietly.

"I wasn't even able to do that until I met Terra," she said, turning to face the Sheikah. Tears were freely making their way from her eyes now. "I didn't even know the Sheikah still gathered her before two weeks ago…he—they—were so forgiving, despite what I did to them so many years ago…"

"How could they not?" asked Sheik. "Had you not sent them away, our race would not have survived."

"But I sent them away from their home," said Midna. "How could they ever forgive me for that?"

"Again, had you not, they would not have been here to do so," replied Sheik. "If you hadn't…then I wouldn't be standing here right now. I never would have existed. I should actually be thanking you…so, thank you." He smiled at her.

The look of appreciation on her face would later serve him well for comfort.

* * *

"So… _those_ are the ruins?" asked Speil, gaping, yet another thing Sheik had never seen him do.

His drop of jaw was well justified, considering the sheer size of the unknown ruins that seemed to stretch on for miles. Sheik had expected the ruins to be an old dilapidated fort of some kind, perhaps an old Sheikah stronghold. What he had _not_ expected, however, was for the ruins to be those of an entire city.

The crumbling structures covered an areal at least equal in size to Castle Town, including the Hyrule Castle. The buildings were of a design similar to the ones he had seen from the top of the stairs, but less refined, apparently. In the middle of the city, a fort stood proudly. Or, it _would_ have stood proudly, had it not been for the walls that had long before collapsed…along with at least half of the fort itself. Midna had pointed, and simply said: "There."

"No one answered my question," continued Speil as they walked through the ancient streets, aware that bricks and stones could be hailing down on them any second. This was a characteristic that every building in the city seemed to share: being extremely and ridiculously tall. The only reason they had been able to see the fort from the edge of the dead forest was because the ones that would have otherwise blocked the view had long since fallen.

"I guessed that it would be too obvious to require one," answered Sheik, stepping over a hole in the cobbled street. It was hard to distinguish what kind of people that had once inhabited the city. It featured all the regular things one would expect to find in a city of this size; fountains, what had once been parks, shops and a large marketplace. What he couldn't see were symbols that marked whatever religion the people had followed, what kind of legends they believed in.

"I do not appreciate sarcasm," said Speil, coming up alongside Sheik. "Especially not from you."

Sheik looked at him, not really surprised at the change of tone. "I would be very careful in your choice of words right now, shadow," he said. He was about to continue with an addendum to his threat, but was silenced by Speil kissing him. He struggled slightly, but Speil pulled away quickly, flashed him a grin, and continued walking, leaving the Sheikah in the dust. Terra came next, shaking his head to Sheik in sympathy.

"He truly is an insufferable being, is he not?" the other Sheikah asked rhetorically.

"I hate him," said Sheik. "But I…kind of like him at the same time…no, I _appreciate_ his presence. Like is too strong a word."

"That is not what I saw yesterday," said Terra and pulled on Sheik's shoulder to get him to walk. "The kiss that calmed him down seemed to be quite…loving." Sheik didn't answer, and Terra smiled to himself. "And the one he gave you just now…seemed just as affectionate."

At that moment, Sheik would have given anything for Midna to appear with a sarcastic comment which would take them off-topic, but the princess had chosen to ride in Terra's shadow at the moment, and she did not seem interested in adding to (or derailing) the conversation.

"I understand," said Terra after a long, drawn-out silence. "You do not wish to talk about it." He looked upwards, studying the crumbling structures. "Would it have something to do with the shadow's very existence and…its real counterpart?" He smiled when he heard Sheik miss a step. "Let me guess…the Hero of Time is unaware of his dark mirror image?"

"He thinks he's dead," said Sheik, looking at the back of Speil. The shadow seemed very interested in the architecture. That, and kicking stonewalls so they fell apart, but Sheik chose to ignore that particular aspect of Speil's explorer ways. "Link thinks he killed it when he first encountered it in the Water Temple."

"And you are worried that the Hero will find out that you have been hiding the shadow's existence from him all this time?" Terra asked.

Sheik stopped. "I thought you said you have been watching me ever since birth."

"I have," said Terra.

"Then how come you do not know about this particular…situation?"

Terra looked bothered for a second. "To be honest, there have been periods of time where my eyes have been…unable to gaze upon you. In the light of this recent crisis in Twilight, I have missed everything that has happened in Hyrule after the Hero of Time entered his deep sleep."

"So you've been lying to me," said Sheik and continued walking, suddenly feeling less than impressed with his ancestors. Sheikah lying to one another was one of the cardinal sins, if there had been such a thing. The Shadow Warriors were silent and secretive to anyone but themselves.

"Not lying as such," said Terra as he struggled to catch up with Sheik. "Merely…bending the truth a little."

* * *

The walk to the fort took longer than they thought, as several buildings had inconsiderately decided to collapse and block their way through the most convenient streets. Because of this, it took them over two hours to finally find a way to the fort, and they ended up on the wrong side, the only side where the wall had not fallen.

Luckily, they were able to squeeze between two buildings and circle around until they suddenly stood in front of the imposing fortress, which seemed much larger now that they were there.

"Does…this creature have any minions?" asked Sheik, wanting to take every threat into consideration. "Are there any dangerous animals?"

"Boy, the only other danger here beside the creature itself is that the fort falls over on top of you," said Midna, her brash attitude back. She was sitting on Terra's shoulder, holding on to the Sheikah's neck so she wouldn't fall off when he moved. "And the structure took a lot of damage when I tried to deal with it last time."

It was a simple design. A wall, a keep and a pathway straight to the main hall. The walls creaked as they walked through the shadowy corridor, which made at least two of the four travellers gulp as they remembered the princess' warning.

The corridor terminated at a large door made of some kind of wood. It seemed to weigh a ton, but was actually very light and swung inward, revealing the darkness within. The creak of the un-oiled hinges echoed in the main hall. A single torch at the end of the hall provided a bare minimum of illumination, casting weak light over what seemed to be a throne with its back turned to them.

Slowly entering the hall, all four travellers suddenly became aware of just how much noise they produced when walking…well, three of the travellers, anyway. Midna still floated. They had barely gotten ten feet away from the door when it suddenly slammed shut on its own accord, producing a bang so loud that some plaster fell from the ceiling and hit Sheik on the head.

As one, Sheik, Speil and Terra drew their weapons. At the same time, a deep, reverberating laugh issued forth from the throne at the end of the hall. Now that they were a bit closer, Sheik could see that someone was sitting in it.

"Hm-hm-hm-hm-hm-hmmm," the throne said. "You are back, Princess. Surely you learnt your lesson last time?" The voice was deep, clearly male.

The voice was familiar; Sheik realised, but struggled with placing it somewhere. Speil had gone completely rigid next to him, a sign that he felt the same.

"Yeah, well, this time I've got more firepower!" Midna yelled, surprising the other three, who could only look at her slight outline in the dark.

"Ah, yes, I felt _their_ presence as well. Especially my kindred's…" said the figure on the throne. It snapped its fingers, and two long rows of torches on either side of the hall lit up, bathing it in light. Sheik saw the figure's arms, which were clad in armour.

_Black…armour…_

Suddenly, it all became too clear to the Sheikah. The taint itself had seemed familiar to the one Link had vanquished so long ago…but it couldn't be right. Not this one. The figure rose from the throne and revealed itself to the four, and Sheik inwardly groaned.

Ganondorf's Shadow smiled evilly. "Once again I face the Great Hero of Time."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 44**

* * *

The ride across the plains on the way to Lake Hylia was, in Link's opinion, the most depressive thing he had ever done. Ganondorf left nothing but destruction and death in his wake. The villages along the road had been burned down, their populations either put to the sword or taken away. The remains of the atrocities committed by the Evil King left nothing but rage in the Hero's heart, and his mind was occupied with thoughts of the many ways he would pay Ganondorf back for all he had done.

The ride took the better part of a day, and the sun had set when he finally reached the large fence that blocked off access to the small valley in which the lake lay. Or, the remains of it, anyway. The once mighty cast-iron poles and spikes had been melted into an unrecognisable mass, and had then been pulled apart, leaving a gaping hole through which Ganondorf's army could march. The small path flanked by grass on both sides had been completely destroyed by the army's feet, and Link knew that nothing would ever grow here again judging by the grey colour the surviving grass had taken on. Even the dirt itself looked lifeless, which was quite a feat for dirt.

As he rode down the path, Link felt a bit guilty for leaving Maladict behind in the Kokiri Village. The stud had made quite a fuss as Link had taken Epona with him away from the improvised stables. It had taken seven soldiers to restrain him, and the whinny he had given when he realised there was no way he could catch up with Epona had left a heavy impression in Link's conscience. He had made a vow right then to let the two equines have a bit of time to themselves after this was done.

Just before the path opened into the massive vista that was the lakeside, he slowed Epona down and dismounted, slowly leading her along. If he was lucky, Ganondorf was so confident in his domination of this region that he had neglected to position guards at the valley's entrance. If not…well, he had his bow and fire arrows. It was because of this that he discovered a path he had never noticed before that upwards, into the hills that surrounded the lake. Seeing no tracks made by heavily armoured soldiers, he took the chance and headed upwards, into the cover provided by the surprisingly still-vibrant pine trees there.

It was obvious that the trees were planted because of the rows they stood in, and they were mostly of the exact same size and age, but Link didn't care that much as long as they hid him and Epona from the prying eyes of the soldiers by the lake. Fifty soldiers, and five warlocks, obviously of high rank since Ganondorf left them alone. Link _really_ hoped that Zelda had been honest about her men.

Speaking of which, he still had to find them after finding somewhere to hide Epona. For a few minutes, he considered just releasing her and letting her run free on the plains, but he was deathly afraid of her being captured by the Evil King's minions. He remembered what the late farmhand Ingo had told Link when the Hero had won Epona from Ingo in a bet several months ago, that he was going to give Epona to Ganondorf as a sign of gratitude for giving him control of Lon Lon Ranch. If Epona was to come into the Evil King's hands…he didn't even want to think about it.

Therefore, he found it best to tie Epona to one of the trees closest to a cliff wall, where she would be shielded from all eyes by the trees around her and the sheer rock wall behind her. She bumped his muzzle against his shoulder as he finished tying what he called the Ultimate Knot, a knot that only _he_ knew how to untie. Of course, he often forgot the secret of the Ultimate Knot himself, but that was not the point. He fondly stroked her neck, hand coming up to tousle her pure white mane.

"Easy, girl," he whispered. "It won't be for long." She snorted and bumped into his shoulder again with more force, a sign that she would accept it for now, but would definitely hold this to him at a later time. The months they had spent together, both when they were young and now, had taught Link very rapidly how to interpret the fiercely proud horse's body language. All those months…and those fiercely sharp teeth of hers. Epona was not slow to signal her dislike of something Link did.

Smiling, Link fished around in the saddlebag Zelda had provided him with. Smiling wider when he found what he was looking for, he withdrew his hand. He waved the object in front of Epona's nose, who immediately focused on it.

"Behave now, and I'll plenty more carrots for you," he said, chuckling when Epona all but inhaled the orange vegetable, both because it was amusing to watch his horse eat something she liked, and because it meant there was one less vegetable for _him_ to eat. While the Hero of Time did not have much against vegetables themselves, carrots had always been a personal nemesis of his, along with any other milk than the one he had gotten from Lon Lon Ranch. Saria had been quite frustrated with him on that point, continually yelling at him for not drinking his milk and growing tall and strong. Well, he _was_ tall and strong now, a point he had planned to rub in her face after he woke up again.

The prospect of more orange goodness snapped Epona's ears to attention, and it seemed to Link that she tried not to stamp the ground so hard. Patting her on the muzzle, he turned around, wondering where to start looking for the twelve spies that relied on him to take care of the warlocks.

The question was answered for him when an arrow buried itself into the _cliff wall_ behind him. Only the feathers of the arrow were visible, the rest of the projectile having dug firmly into the stone. He drew his sword and shield, falling into his usual fighting stance, sword pointing behind him while covering himself with the shield. At the moment, the Mirror Shield's polished surface would do little good as the sun was gone, but it's surface was still hard as diamond.

"Who's there?" he asked aloud. "If you hurt my horse, I swear I will not rest until every last one of you is dead," he added when he noticed just how close to Epona the arrow had hit. The equine herself didn't seem to have noticed, munching happily on the remains of the carrot.

"Shit, it's him!" whispered someone loudly among the trees. It was truly remarkable how they were able to conceal themselves among rows of trees. "Hold your fire!"

"Come out!" Link commanded, stabbing the Master Sword into the ground, drawing his own bow and notching an arrow onto the string. The tip of the arrow burst into flame as he used the magical energy one of the Great Fairies had imbued him with. "Or I'll burn down every single tree until I find you."

"Alright, alright, Hero," said the same voice he had heard. "We didn't know it was you." Three figures clad in gray jumped down from one of the trees, all landing in the exact same position and grace Sheik had done the many times he had decided to surprise Link after the Hero had conquered a temple. The comparison almost made his heart skip a beat as he suddenly remembered what was happening to his lover, but remembered a second later that he would worry about Sheik later, as this mission was of the highest importance to Zelda's continued war effort.

The three men—and they were men, Link noticed, judging by their broad shoulders and heavily muscled frames—stood up, revealing that they were all wearing face masks that only revealed their eyes through small slits. They slowly approached him, making Link wonder how it was possible for men of such stature to move so gracefully. Sheik or Impa must have had a hand or two in the training of these men, there was no doubt about it.

They were all heavily armed, each carrying broadswords on their backs, much like Sheik did, and one of them had a bow on his shoulder. He did not have a quiver, however. Link was about to give them another warning, still unsure, when all three dropped to their knees in the grass in front of him, heads bowed low.

"O Hero of Time," said the apparent leader, "we are honoured that you have chosen to grace us with your prese—"

"Yeah, yeah, don't do that," said Link and waved a hand tiredly. "I'm so sick of people doing that. Get up on your feet so we can introduce ourselves properly."

The three spies looked surprised at that, but they all slowly got to their feet and approached came up to him. When they were a few feet away, Link became aware that these men were much taller than him, something he had not expected. For some reason, he just as tall as or taller than most of the men in Zelda's army. But these spies literally dwarfed him.

But, he persevered and smiled. "My name's Link." The leader began to talk, but he held up a hand, silencing him. "I'd like to see your faces, please."

Without a blink, the spies took off their masks, revealing much older men than Link had expected. From what Zelda had told him before he left, he had thought them to be in their mid-twenties or early thirties, but these men were at least in their forties or fifties, reminding him of just how young he was himself. They were all covered in scars, and one of them was missing an ear. The one in the middle, the leader, was the most disfigured of all, lacking an eye as well as several teeth. Despite all this, their faces were smiling at him, not quite unlike the smiles Talon had given him whenever he helped him with something difficult at the ranch.

"Hero," said the leader, his voice deep and gravelly. "It is, as I said, truly an honour that you have come to help us in our task. My men and I are all at your service." With that, the three once again dropped to their knees, the two others echoing "At you service!"

Blinking, Link found himself only able to say one thing: "Weren't there supposed to be twelve of you?"

"Yes, sir," said the leader, whistling. Nine more grey-clad men appeared from the trees, falling behind their fellow spies, and, much to Link's embarrassment, _also_ fell to their knees, echoing their servitude yet again.

Link sighed, putting away his bow. "Listen, if we're gonna do this, you all need to stop referring to me as "sir" and "Hero". Just "Link" will do, alright?"

"That's hardly proper—"began the leader.

"Screw proper," said Link. "I'm a soldier, just like you, and we have a job to do. I'd rather be on first-name basis with the ones I will be fighting with. If that is okay with you, of course," he added.

The leader looked conflicted, looking at his men for advice. When none were forthcoming, he turned back to Link. "Well, the princess isn't here…do you promise not to tell you we addressed in such a disrespectful manner?" he asked.

"Naturally," said Link and grinned, holding out a hand. "As I said, my name is Link. What's yours?"

"Mugen," said the tooth-lacking leader. He grinned, an act Link wished he wouldn't do so much after that.

* * *

Link had never been good with names, and being introduced to twelve identical-looking men at the same time played havoc with his short-term memory. While most of the aging, scarred men dismissed his apologies, claiming that just being in his presence was enough, he couldn't help but feel very guilty when he had to ask a man for his name for the twentieth time. The only he remembered was Mugen's, and even that slipped from his mind every now and then.

They were gathered in the small camp the spies had set up among the trees close to the cliff walls, a location that gave them a perfect look-out over the enemy camp while providing just enough cover to make them invisible. Link and Mugen had crawled to the edge, currently observing the activities going on below them. The strange professor's house had been set on fire, and the small vegetable patch, where the strange scarecrows Pierre and Bonooru had once stood, had been raided. There was no sign of either scarecrow. The small fishing pond where Link had once caught a prize-winning loach seemed to remain untouched.

Then he noticed something on the islands. The old tree, the one that looked so much like a charging soldier, had been chopped down, most likely to fuel the large bonfire many of the enemy soldiers were gathered around.

Unable to look at the soldiers without feeling a spike of rage, Link turned his head to Mugen. "So what kind of training have you guys gone through, exactly?" he asked, genuinely curious to how a bunch of middle-aged men had been assigned to something as important as this.

"Regular army life, Hero—er, Link," said Mugen, correcting himself when Link raised an eyebrow. "We've been handpicked from the battalions to serve as the princess' hands, each soldier a finger."

"Zelda has twelve fingers?" asked Link, grinning.

"Never you mind the mathematics," said Mugen without looking at Link. Unlike many other people, this one seemed quite comfortable with treating Link as any other person. "Who knows? Maybe royalty have a few extra limbs. Stop snickering."

"Sorry."

"Anyway, as I said, we are all military men by profession, and we have excelled in our duties, which lead to us being selected for these honoured and glorious positions."

"And what do your duties include?" asked Link, watching as one of the soldiers, presumably a warlock, started to doing a spell, lighting up the area in front of the bonfire with a ghostly, pale light. The light formed into small spirals in the air, and the rest of the soldiers clapped.

"That's one of your targets," said Mugen, pointing at the warlock. "Our duties include missions behind enemy lines, such as the one we're on right now, sabotage, assassinations and bodyguard duties."

"Bodyguard?" asked Link, making mental note on how the warlock looked like. He wore pretty much the same spiky and vicious-looking armour the rest of the soldiers wore, but seemed to have more decorations. He also wore what looked like a small crown. "I thought that was the Sheikah's job."

"Yes, it _was_ ," said Mugen, his voice filled with utmost respect, which gave the man five plus points in Link's book. "But now that they are…how can I put it…more or less gone, the king saw fit to train their successors. Impa the Great was responsible for training us."

Link nodded, his inkling confirmed. "What about Sheik?" he asked. "Have you ever met him?"

"Met him?" asked Mugen. "Hell, he accompanied us on several missions last year. It is not for nothing that he is the princess' personal bodyguard," he said. "He has proven himself invaluable to our cause." Mugen seemed to think for a second. "Speaking of which, I thought that he had been assigned to assist you on your quest. I kind of…expected him to join us."

Groaning mentally, Link shook his head. "No…he disappeared last week. No one is really sure where he is."

"I'm sorry to hear that…I guess all we can do is hope he has not fallen into the hands of Ganondorf, the bastard," said Mugen and spat after saying the Evil King's name.

"I'm sure he's just preoccupied with something," said Link, careful not to mention anything about dimensional barriers and other things Sprout had told him. He didn't know who could be listening. "He probably got secret orders from Zelda and is off executing them right now." It was oddly comforting to lie like this, probably because he almost believed it himself.

"Yeah, that sounds like him," agreed Mugen. "He might be young, but he outclasses each and every one of us—you excluded of course—in tactics, combat and stealth." He seemed to recall a fond memory. "I remember when I first sparred against him…I was so sure I'd be able to beat him within seconds, especially since the only weapons he had were those daggers of his…that was the last time I ignored Impa's advice on never underestimating one's opponent…"

Link smiled, recognising himself in Mugen. Link too had been sceptical to Sheik's fighting ability at first, mostly because of his lithe frame and frail-looking form. But he had been proven quite wrong.

They remained silent then, just observing and noting the enemies' behaviour and routines.

"It needs to happen tonight," said Mugen, pointing at the blood-red water that filled Lake Hylia. "They're poisoning the lake, and if it goes on uninterrupted, we will be stuck without water to make potion with."

"Got a plan?" asked Link.

"Yes," said Mugen. "We would have executed it hours ago had it not been for the snag of the warlocks."

"Tell me," demanded Link.

"Well," began Mugen. "These cliffs give us the perfect opportunity to snipe the bastards to kingdom come. Our longbows can easily take them out. If some of them slip by our defences, we can form an impenetrable line at the path you came up. That's the only way up here."

"But the warlocks will put a stop to that, I guess," said Link.

"That's right," said Mugen. "These warlocks are some of the strongest in Ganondorf's army, and they could easily tear this cliff down."

"So what we've got to do is get rid of the warlocks first," said Link, an addendum to Mugen's plan forming in his head.

"That would be the ideal thing," agreed Mugen. "If the warlocks are gone, then we can easily take the rest of them out."

"Mugen," said Link and looked at the older man. "I think I know just what to do."

* * *

Link grinned as his feet touched the ground at the bottom of the cliff. It was almost too easy. The soldiers were really too confident in themselves, not leaving any sentries anywhere but at the entrance to the valley itself. He had snuck down from the very end of the beach area, close to the entrance to the fishing pond, briefly wondering if he should check in on the pond. He had been good friends with the owner when he was eleven. Deciding against in the end, he moved forward, slowly approaching the bonfire-area.

It really wasn't a very complicated plan. Link would sneak up the warlocks' tents, silently take them all out and signal with a fire arrow to Mugen and his men to begin their attack. Alternatively, if Link could not sneak up on them, Mugen would launch an attack in order to distract the troops while Link dealt with the warlocks.

All in all, all the risks and dangers of plan would fall on Link's shoulders, just the way he liked it. He found that he quite enjoyed the company of Mugen and his men, although he had had very little time to get to know any of them apart from Mugen. He didn't want to risk their lives more than they had already done by sneaking into the area.

He hid behind the small ruins around the area where the river from Zora's Fountain ended up. He could feel the cold draft from the frozen landscape even from there. He thought about how many Zoras had gotten trapped underneath the ice when Ganondorf performed his terrible magic on them. Many Zoras had been able to escape the now-thawing ice afterwards, but many were still trapped.

Shaking his head, he continued on his way, sneaking up to the smouldering remains of the old professor's laboratory. He wasn't far from the bonfire now, and he could see the warlocks' tents. Again, he wondered how these men could have been trusted with guarding this area. The few sentries placed around the camp were asleep, and Link made sure they stayed that way with a thump to their heads with the hilt of the Master Sword.

He was now within a few feet from the first of the tents. Crawling up to it, he neither saw nor heard any activity from the inside. Not so strange, Link supposed, as it was about two hours after midnight, and warlocks were not known for their tendency to stay up late and drink with the common soldiers.

He held the Master Sword up against his back, careful not to reflect any light from the fire into the tent. The Mirror Shield had been left behind with Mugen for this one, the Hero realising just how much a liability it would be when trying to sneak into an enemy camp. Three steps and he was standing inside the tent. These warlocks were truly living in the lap of luxury, he realised. The ground had been covered with fine carpets, and _beds_ had been carried in to accommodate the magic users. And the magic users themselves were asleep.

And then it hit Link. He was about to murder sleeping men. He was about to become…an assassin. He had been killing monsters and creatures left and right since he had started on his long quest…but never fellow Hylians or any of the other humanoid races of Hyrule. The witch sisters and the man on the magic carpet did not count as they were monsters, and they had taken Sheik away from him. He stood above one of the sleeping warlocks, sword raised.

If Sheik had seen him now, he would probably have been smirking in amusement that the Great Hero of Time was not able to complete a mission, especially since the mission involved assassinations, which the Sheikah had apparently been doing for years.

But if he could not find the strength to end the life of a wicked warlock, what hope could he have of doing so with Ganondorf himself? Was this what the Triforce did? Enable its wielder to perform deeds that would otherwise be completely alien and unimaginable to them?

He opened his eyes, not even remembering having closed them. He looked at the Master Sword, the very symbol of what he was and what he was supposed to do. He put it away slowly, careful not to rouse the warlocks. The Master Sword could not be used for such a wicked deed, he decided. Instead, he drew the little knife he used for tasks ill-suited for a sword, such as slaughtering animals he had hunted or whittling.

Carefully, he lowered the blade of the knife to the warlock's throat, aware of the snorting sounds coming from the sleeping man. 'Just do it,' echoed in Link's head. 'Just do it.'

It was horrible. Just before he jerked the blade across the man's throat, Link remembered to put his hand over his mouth. Just as the blade cut the tender skin, the man awoke, his eyes fixing themselves directly at Link, who responded by cutting harder. The warlock began to struggle, but the interrupted sleep and horror of the situation left him unable to struggle against Link's sudden iron-grip. The Hero gritted his teeth, closing his eyes and holding the man down until he stopped moaning through Link's hand, and his body seized to struggle. Five minutes went by before Link was able to remove his hands from the dead warlock, horrified at what he had just done.

Creatures and monsters were so…easy to ignore when killing them. They did not have human eyes, did not speak their languages. But here, and now, Link had killed another Hylian. He had not noticed the warlock's ears before now. He was expecting a full-on breakdown any second.

It did not come.

And it only made things worse.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 45**

* * *

None of them said anything. The silence in the hall was complete, not even a wind disturbing it. The four travellers kept their gazes fixed on the phantom that stood in front of them on the raised dais. His black armour gleamed in the torchlight, a starch contrast to his spear, which seemed to suck in all light that came close to it. Small arcs of electricity fizzed across the blade. The phantom chuckled again.

"What is this?" he asked. "None of you have anything to say? If you do not, I suggest you kneel to me, for I am this realm's new master, and no one, not even you, Hero of Time, will stop me!" He fixed his gaze on Speil, who returned it. Both shadows stared at each other, a silent contest.

"I don't understand why you keep calling me Hero of Time," Speil finally said. "I would have thought it obvious that he and I are different entities. I am his shadow, as you are the Evil King's." He put away his weapons, surprising the other three. "As such, you and I have nothing to fight over."

"Wrong," said the phantom simply and took a step forward, slamming his boot into the floor below the dais. The stone cracked, and plaster fell from the ceiling. "You may not be the true Hero, but you were still created in his image, and ever since he humiliated me in the Forest Temple, I have sought nothing but retribution."

 _This cannot be,_ thought Sheik. _Link told me that Ganondorf had banished it to the space between dimensions…nothing can survive there, not even this monster…_

"Oh-hoh," said the phantom, his eyes coming to a rest on Sheik, who felt a shiver pass through his very being, as if the phantom could see right through him. "I thought there was another familiar presence here…and what do I see? The cowardly Sheikah who merely waited on the outside as the Hero did the princess' dirty work." He pointed at Sheik with his spear. Sheik assumed his fighting stance, ready to dodge in case the phantom attempted his wicked magic. The phantom grinned. "I am saving you for last, Sheikah. The Hero is fond of you…and I shall therefore enjoy torturing you to your very last breath."

Sheik was about to retort when Speil suddenly stepped in front of him, arms held wide. "I told you," Speil growled at the phantom. "You and I have nothing to fight over…but threaten Sheik, and I swear I will not rest until you have been utterly annihilated."

"Speil…" said Sheik, surprised. Never before had he seen the shadow like this, but then he remembered Terra's words in the city…

" _ **The kiss that calmed him down seemed to be quite…loving." Sheik didn't answer, and Terra smiled to himself. "And the one he gave you just now…seemed just as affectionate…"**_

Maybe the shadow had truly cast aside his feelings of hate for Link and just wanted Sheik now…he shook his head. _No, that's impossible. Speil's only reason to exist is to kill Link, he told me so himself…and he's very stubborn. He won't stop until one of them is dead._

"Ah, young love," said the phantom, chuckling yet again, beginning to annoy Sheik.

He looked at his other companions, wondering why they were so oddly quiet now that they were finally at their destination. Midna was glaring at the phantom, seemingly unable to say anything. Her magical fist was clenching and unclenching too. Terra…Terra's eyes were closed, and he seemed to be leaning on his sword, which he had replaced in its sheath.

"How sweet it is," continued the phantom. "Yet so easily cast aside and crushed…tell me, fellow shadow, do you truly believe that this…Sheikah filth would truly ever love you?"

 _How does he know this?_ Sheik wondered. _Can he read our minds?_ He was jerked out of his thoughts when Speil turned his head to look at Sheik, and the Sheikah was shocked to see that there was a look of sadness in those burning eyes, the eyes that had so many looked upon him with lust or wrath…or just plain curiosity.

"I know for a fact that he would never leave the Hero for me," Speil said, turning his head back to look at the phantom. "But as long as I draw breath, I shall not see him hurt."

 _Big words, Speil,_ thought Sheik. _Especially since you're the one who has hurt me the most…_

"Big words," mirrored the phantom, to Sheik's surprise. "But I wonder…can you back them up? Are you truly able to do what your Light could not? Destroy me?"

"What say you we find out?" said Speil, smirking.

"I would be delighted," said the phantom, twirling his spear above his, slamming it into the floor, much like he had done with his boot minutes before. The air was filled with electricity, sparks flying. The phantom stepped back onto the dais, knocking away the throne like it was matchwood. He grinned. "I am waiting."

"Stand back," said Speil, pointing his sword at the others. "This is my fight now."

"No, it's bloody not!" exclaimed Sheik, sidestepping around the Dark Master Sword. " _I_ am the one who was called here to end this evil, not you! And I will not have you undermine me just because you happen to have had a change of heart! Besides, you're not strong enough to beat him on your own!"

"Are you sure?" asked Speil as he ripped off his left gauntlet, revealing the glowing Triforce of Courage. "I thought this was all a Hero needs to fight the Evil King…and you're saying that I am not fit to fight his pathetic shadow?"

"No, he's right," said Terra, suddenly standing on Speil's other side. "This is our fight, not yours, shadow." He exchanged a look with Sheik. "If we both die, then feel free to step in. But for now, Sheik and I are the ones who must battle this beast." Terra opened his eyes, and Sheik saw that the tiredness that had plagued him for the last day had all but vanished, leaving behind only the alert and powerful Sheikah warrior that had originally greeted them. He looked at Sheik. "I am living on borrowed time, Sheik. Let us end this quickly."

"Yes," Sheik said simply, and stood beside Terra in front of the dais, where the phantom was watching the exchange with amusement. Without a word, the phantom started to float in the air, far above their heads. "Although," Sheik added, "it doesn't seem it will be making things easy for us."

"We would not have it any other way," said Terra, his voice changing with each word. Sheik looked closer at the other Sheikah, and saw that his crimson eyes were darkening and lightening with every second. Were the sprits in control now, rather than the person known as Terra?

Wordlessly, they both stepped onto the dais. With an infernal cacophony of noise, spikes shot up along the edges of the circular dais, preventing anyone from entering or exiting. Speil growled and tried to run over to them, but found himself unable to move, completely paralyzed. Midna appeared in the corner of his vision.

"You heard them," she said, a nervous tinge to her voice. "It's their fight…not ours." Faintly, Midna could hear the shadow growl, to which she only shrugged. "I'm afraid I can't let you go just yet."

A hellish wind began to blow, whipping dust and other debris into Sheik and Terra's faces. They did their best to ignore the battering to their bodies by the pebbles, but little grains of it got into their eyes, making it difficult to see. And still the phantom was not attacking. The wind began to howl as it reached the many crevices and cracks in the building. The torches along the walls were being snuffed out one by one, soon leaving the entire room in darkness save for the illuminated dais.

Then the phantom appeared above them, twirling his spear. The air around the tip crackled, and an orb of electricity appeared. Roaring, the phantom hurled the orb at them with an overhead swing. Sheik jumped to the side, as did Terra. The orb collided with floor, producing an ear-shattering boom. The last of the arcs remaining from the explosion quickly found solace within the iron spikes, coursing around the dais in a never-ending circle.

"Don't touch the bars!" yelled Terra over the wind. "It'll kill you instantly!"

"What else won't in here?!" Sheik yelled back. "We're sitting ducks as long it's up there!" He pointed at the floating phantom, which was preparing another ball of lightning.

Dodging the orb, Sheik came to the realisation that perhaps fighting this thing on their own hadn't been the best idea he had come up with. But then, what would Speil had been able to do?

"I have an idea!" shouted Terra, kneeling down. "Push off my back and bring him down here!" he screamed.

Sheik nodded, running for the improvised step-stool that was Terra. He readied his copy of Terra's sword. He jumped, landing with both his feet on Terra's back. Bending his legs, Sheik used every bit of strength he had in them to launch himself into the air. The wind shook and tore at him, threatening to land him directly on top of the spikes below, but Sheik's mind was focused on one thing and one thing only: _Get that bastard down there!_

The phantom, surprised at this turn of events, was too slow to react. Sheik brought a powerful over-arm swing down upon the phantom's left shoulder. Twisting in the air, he was also able to bring a heel down on the top of its head, throwing it down towards the waiting Terra. The phantom landed with a crash, breaking even more of the dais. Only the spikes around the dais remained unharmed, proving that they were of a magical nature rather than a built-in trap. Landing lightly on his feet, Sheik quickly rejoined with Terra, who was watching the phantom with interest.

"Why aren't you attacking?" he asked, noticing that the foul wind seemed to be dying down.

"I think…that's it," said Terra, pointing at the unmoving shadow on the floor.

"You…you really…think that's…all I can do?" growled the phantom, stirring slowly. It had hit the floor face first, and, as it slowly stood up, was now displaying its broken visage to the world. There was nothing recognisable about the face any longer. The nose was shattered, the mouth had been turned into a twisted mess, and the eyes had been crushed. Fingers gripping at the edges of its face, the phantom tore it off, revealing the broken skull beneath. "I do not need eyes to see!" it screamed, charging unexpectedly at the pair of Sheikah, spear poised to stab.

Sheik got out of its way easily, but Terra had been pressed into a corner. The older Sheikah solved this rather simply. He crouched low, swinging his sword at the phantom's knees. The sword cleanly sliced through the black armour, but the bones underneath did not seem to be affected. But it served a purpose. The phantom shrieked as it stumbled into the electrified spikes, howling as the lightning coursed through its body.

Terra appeared next to Sheik, panting and sweating heavily. His knees were shaking; he barely seemed to be able to hold on to his sword. "I…don't…think…it worked…" he said between mouthfuls of air.

"It does not matter," said Sheik, narrowing his eyes at the rising phantom. "It's my turn now." He charged forward, focusing on the frail area just underneath the skull. Sever the head, and the body dies. The phantom turned to him and fell into a defensive position, spear ready to parry and block.

What followed was an exchange of blows at breakneck speed. Sheik attacked and attacked, but none of his strikes seemed to get through the phantom's defence. Ganondorf's Shadow howled in delight as he struck forward, nearly skewering Sheik on his weapon. But the young Sheikah merely back-flipped away, landing in a crouched position just out of the phantom's reach. The phantom began to attack, stepping forward to close the distance between it and its target.

Once again, Sheik's leg muscles served him well, launching him into the air, well above the phantom's strike. He gritted his teeth, cursing when his blade only grazed the skull of the phantom. A powerful fist slammed into Sheik's chest, throwing him backwards, right into the spikes. The pain was unbearable. It felt like his entire body was burning on the inside, and he screamed.

"Sheik!" someone shouted as he slid to the floor, barely able to keep himself up on all fours. Black, armoured legs came into his vision, and he looked up, seeing the now perpetually grinning skull of the phantom glaring down at him. It raised its spear and brought it down. He felt it cut through the skin over, on and under his left eye. Everything became red, and he screamed once again as he realised just what had happened.

"Sheik!" someone shouted again, and he vaguely recognised it as Terra's. Clanging sound signalled that he had now engaged the phantom, but Sheik was unable to even look, cradling the ruined side of his face in his hands. His insides still burned, and now he was blinded on his left side. "Sheik! Please! I can't defeat it on my own!"

Somehow, his probing fingers found the hilt of his sword, and he was able to open his still functioning eye to see the massive form of the phantom dwarfing that of Terra's. The phantom had once again backed the other Sheikah into a corner, and it was only a matter of time before the creature's brute strength would break through.

Sheik's muscles screamed as he got to his feet, swaying and unable to see correctly.

"Sheik!" Terra shouted one last time before his sword was knocked out of his hands, clattering uselessly to the floor. The sickening sound of metal piercing flesh filled the air, and Sheik saw Terra's body freeze up as the phantom's spear went cleanly through his stomach.

Something…burst out from within Sheik, and he heard himself scream in primal rage, saw himself run at the phantom, which carelessly turned its head to look at him. A swish, a crunch, a crash. The phantom's head rolled across the floor, crashing into spikes, and exploded as the massive electrical charge completely obliterated The body inside the armour seemed to explode into a million pieces before disappearing, leaving only the empty steel as it crashed to the floor.

Sheik fell to his knees, panting and coughing blood. He felt as if he had been dropped off a cliff, set on fire and smashed into a tree. A groan to his right caught his attention, and he remembered what had just happened. Not sparing the now empty, black armour a glance, he crawled over to Terra, who was lying on his back, holding a hand to the massive wound in his stomach. Blood was steadily pouring out, and Sheik, somewhere in his clouded mind, knew there was nothing he could do to stop the bleeding. He reached out a hand to Terra. The other Sheikah took it, fixing Sheik with a sad gaze.

"Oh, Sheik…your eye…I'm so sorry…" he coughed, crimson drops flying from his mouth.

"Never mind…my eye," said Sheik. "You're…you're dying…Midna!" he shouted, his voice hoarse. "Midna!"

"It's too…late for me, Sheik…and the rest…of us," said Terra, his hand finding its way to cup Sheik's cheek, being mindful of the wounds near his left eye. "We're…already fading…"

"No…it's never too late!" growled Sheik. "Midna! Get over here, goddesses be damned!"

"She…can't…hear you…Sheik," said Terra, a small smile on his face. "You see…I have stopped…time…" Sheik opened his mouth again, but Terra beat him to it. "It's time for the…Twilight Sheikah to go…we have done our part…and you have done yours…"

"But I don't want you to die!" Sheik, feeling the beginnings of a sob making its way upwards. "I want you to live!"

"And yet…here we are…" said Terra, his voice growing weaker and fainter with every word. "I too…would like to have some more time…so I can spend…more time…with my descendant…but I'm afraid that's a wish…that will never come to fruition…" His finger stroked along Sheik's jaw in a comforting gesture. "You knew…this would happen…"

"Knowing and accepting are two entirely different things," said Sheik, unable to choke back the sob now.

"Sheik…" said Terra and lifted his head, groaning at the effort. He brought his forehead against Sheik's and put an arm around the younger's shoulders. "Know that…your ancestor and ancestors…will always be proud of you…and the mighty warrior you have become…you have helped us clear our debt to the Twilight Princess…and that have brought us peace…Sheik, you have so much to live for, so much to fight for…Hyrule is still in dire peril…please, do not let our passing…ruin it all…" He coughed, unable to turn his head away from Sheik. "I want…you to have…my sword... Go…with…pride…young…Sheikah…"

With that, Terra's body went limp, and his eyes blank. Ghostly lights emerged from and floated over his body for a few seconds before fading into nothingness. The spikes around the dais crumbled to pieces.

Sheik's scream echoed in the chamber.


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 46**

* * *

The warlock made one final gurgle before going limp, just like the previous three had done. His grip on Link's wrist slackened, and his hand fell. Link removed the knife, wiping it on the bed covers and replaced it in his bandolier. Sneaking outside, he spotted the final tent. This warlock had one to himself, suggesting that he was of a higher rank. That, or they just ran out of tents. Shaking his head, Link crouched down and advanced on the entrance flap, pushing it aside and skulking into the tent.

There was the bed, and there was the sleeping form. Biting his lip, Link advanced, standing over the soon-to-be inhumed warlock. The magic user slept with the covers over his head, Link realised, and he went to pull them back gently as to not awaken the warlock. Too late did he understand just what was going on. The burlap sack underneath did well enough to look like a body, and Link's eyes widened as he heard a low chuckle behind him.

"So _this_ is the Hero of Time? I'm disappointed you fell for such an ancient trick."

Whirling around, Link threw the knife in the direction of the warlock, who merely turned his to avoid the blade. Drawing the Master Sword, Link threw himself forward, intending to skewer the man before he could fight back or worse, sound an alarm. It had the same effect of attempting to hit air. The warlock easily moved aside, letting the thrust hit the tent fabric instead. The blade easily cut through it, and Link found himself overbalanced, tipping forward.

The warlock used this opportunity to sweep the Hero's legs from underneath him, sending Link crashing to the floor. The warlock then brought a foot down on his back, grinding the heel of his boot into Link's spine. The pain was excruciating, but the Hero gritted his teeth, determined not to alert the other soldiers of his presence. He tried to reach the hilt of his sword, but the warlock expected this and kicked the sword away. Link tried to struggle, his arms reaching for the offending leg that was keeping him down, but the cold steel of a knife suddenly coming to rest on his throat stilled him.

"Now," said the warlock, his voice deep and smooth as silk. "I am not usually a violent man, but I must insist that you stay still, or I will cut your throat." When Link did nothing, the warlock chuckled again. Link craned his neck, trying to get a look at his ambusher, but the awkward angle and darkness hid the man from his gaze. "Patience, Hero," said the warlock. "You will have another chance to kill me soon."

Seeing an opening, Link smirked. "How about now?" he asked, throwing his leg out, attempting to do the same manoeuvre the warlock had done on him seconds earlier. It did not work. The warlock jumped over the limb and stopped it with his free foot. Link growled when he felt the pain of the man's undivided weight resting on his back and leg.

"You're impatient," said the warlock. "Interesting. And, judging by the fact that you have yet to ask me why I have not alerted the guards, not too bright either." The warlock stepped off Link's leg, but kept his foot digging into the Hero's spine, and the knife still threatened to cut his throat. "Interesting qualities for one who is supposed to be this land's saviour and chosen of the gods."

"Screw you," Link growled, glaring at the fabric in front of him.

"And quick with his tongue as well," said the warlock. "Dear, oh dear, Hyrule was doomed from the start."

Realising insulting or struggling wasn't going to get him anywhere, Link took a deep breath and calmed down. He was high-strung as it was from killing four unarmed, sleeping men, and this encounter had put him over the edge. "Who are you?" he asked. "And why haven't you alerted the guards?" He felt the edge of the knife dig slightly into the skin of his neck.

"Who I am is not important," replied the warlock. "I am merely an unnamed sorceror in Ganondorf the Great's employ. One you tried to kill, incidentally." Link could _hear_ the grin on the warlock's face. "As for the second question…well, I merely wanted to see who and what the Hero of Time was and could. My questions have been answered."

"And what answers did you find?" asked Link, still trying to find a hole in the man's defence. There was little he could do with the knife at his throat, and the magical energy that the warlock exuded clearly suggested that he would be in for quite a fight even if he got loose.

"Disappointing ones, to be honest," replied the warlock. "I expected a great warrior and tactician, incapable of doing any wrong…but instead, I see nothing but a boy dressed in rags, masquerading as an assassin… Only the presence of the Master Sword gives you away." He was quiet for a few seconds. "Hm, I hope you wield it better than you did with the knife, or I shall be even further disappointed."

To Link's surprise, the warlock removed the blade from his throat and the boot from his back, allowing the Hero to stand up. He saw that the warlock was keeping a healthy distance away from him, close to the tent's entrance. The light from the outside made it impossible to see his facial features. The silhouette gestured to the fallen sword.

"Go ahead, pick it up." When Link didn't do anything, the movements became more urgent. "Do it. I want the battle to be glorious."

"Battle?" asked Link, bending down to pick up his sword, not letting his eyes off his attacker. "I'm your enemy, and you had me by the throat. Why didn't you kill me?"

"As I said, I want the battle to be glorious," repeated the warlock. "We will fight as honourable warriors, and only one of us will survive."

"Honour? Wielding magic and having fifty soldiers at your back is honourable?" asked Link, pointing his sword at the silhouette. "I don't think so."

"We make do with what we're given," said the warlock, mirroring Link's position with what seemed to be a mace. Where he had gotten it from was beyond Link. It was hard to see because of the lighting, but it looked like it had wings on the sides, reminding him of the physicians' signs he had seen in Castle Town.

Taking the warlock's words to heart, Link smiled. "You're right, we make do with what we're given." Concentrating, he gathered magical energy in his palm, imagining it to be hot, just about to burst into flames. Grunting, he threw the energy to the ground, and Din's Fire erupted around him, turning the tent into an inferno. At first, all he could hear was the crackles and pops as the air around him was heated and exploded, feeding the fire, but then he heard the annoying chuckle of the warlock.

"So you possess some skill with magic…you have some surprises yet, boy. Though that little fireball will hardly affect me, _or_ the soldiers who have obviously seen your little…display."

"I won't, but _someone_ will," yelled Link, no longer caring for who heard him. He only hoped Mugen and his men had seen the fireball. He jumped out of the collapsing tent, noting that everything inside had been completely ruined. Surely that would annoy the warlock somewhat. Speaking of which, where was…?

His answer came half a second later as the air close to his left air was disturbed. Acting on pure instinct and reflexes, Link threw himself to the right, feeling the tip of the mace grace his ear. Hitting the ground, he rolled and swung the Master Sword in the warlock's direction as he came to his knees.

He was old. The voice did not match, but the—Hylian, he noted—warlock looked to be just as old as the geezer in blue Link had met in Castle Town seven years earlier. Another thing that did not match his age was his movements. They were too quick, too nimble to belong to such an old man.

Even without the helmet, Link saw that this was the same warlock he had spied on with Mugen some time before. The little crown was clutched in the warlock's free hand. The armour looked even more vicious now that he was in such a close proximity, but Link had dealt with far more intimidating armour than this. A certain suit without a wearer came to mind.

Screams and shouts came from the other side of the burnt-down house, from the bonfire area. Link could hear familiar whistling sounds, and he knew then that Mugen had not hesitated in ordering the attack. None of the soldiers came to see what was happening where the explosion had started. The plan had worked.

The warlock looked in the direction of the noise, unable to see past the stone wall that had not been affected by the fire. "You seem to possess more resources than I thought… _again_ , boy, you surprise me. What's your name?"

"Link. And yours?" said Link. "If you want the battle to be honourable, I think it's fair that we both know the name of our opponent."

"Very well, Hero," said the warlock and did something Link didn't expect. He bowed. "My name is Vorpheus. Vorpheus the Immortal, if you must know my full title."

"Immortal?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow. This encounter was getting stranger by the minute.

"Immortal because I am over two hundred years old," said Vorpheus, brandishing his wicked-looking mace. "I have stopped aging, but my magical and physical powers have only grown. I have killed hundreds of men, and you are nothing but one more number in my ever-growing statistic."

"Statistic?" asked Link, not knowing this word.

Scowling, Vorpheus held out a palm, where a fireball was forming. "It is obvious that your intellectual powers are lacking…therefore, I suggest we just start our battle immediately."

"Fine by me," said Link and readied the Master Sword, all the while wondering how he was going to win the battle. "Don't think you'll win though…it's my destiny to defeat Ganondorf."

"Brave words, Link the Hero," said Vorpheus, the fireball flaring into life. He drew his arm back. "But prophecies are meant to never be fulfilled!" he shouted and threw the fireball at Link, who, not expecting its speed, had to throw himself to his side to avoid being grilled. The fireball exploded, setting fire to the dry grass and anything flammable around them. Including Link's leggings.

The Hero came to his feet running, patting out his burning leggings while moving, heading right for Vorpheus, who was already making another fireball. Link would reach him before he finished the infernal weapon. Vorpheus looked up at the approaching green phantom, and abandoned his fireball attempt, readying his mace.

Link jumped, deciding on his most used attack. It had rarely failed him, but Vorpheus' strength definitely did _not_ match his appearance, and the self-proclaimed Immortal stood firm as he block Link's strike with his mace. Not giving up, Link spun around the second his feet hit the ground, aiming for the joints between the plates of Vorpheus' armour, close to his hips. Surprising the Hero yet again with his agility, Vorpheus stepped out of Link's range, bringing his mace down at Link's head at the same time.

The Hero blocked the strike, wincing he felt his arm go slightly numb. Vorpheus was insanely strong, and he kept pushing downwards, trying to break Link's defence. Seeing no other way out, Link relaxed his grip on the Master Sword and pushed away, leaving Vorpheus to push the sword into the ground. The old man did not expect Link to come right and kick him right in the chest, which sent him stumbling away backwards.

Grabbing his sword, Link once again went on the offence, this time determined to land a hit on the two-hundred-year-old man. He tried to attack both high and low, but Vorpheus parried every blow. It wasn't until the old man was outlined against the moon with his back to Lake Hylia that he got an idea. Grinning, Link went on another attack, failing yet again to hit Vorpheus, but the ferocity of his attacks kept pushing the warlock backwards…toward the edge of the small cliff.

Vorpheus was agile and strong, but Link had yet to see anyone able to swim while wearing armour.

"Why do you keep at this folly?" asked Vorpheus after he repelled Link yet again. "Do you not realise you cannot defeat me?"

"I'm a stubborn guy," replied Link, pushing forward.

It wasn't until his heel went over the edge that Vorpheus realised just what Link was trying to do. He smirked, letting himself fall backwards. Just as he was about to fall, he roared, launching himself into air. Link felt his ears pop as Vorpheus flew over him, landing just in front of the stone wall of the laboratory. Eyes wide, Link turned around, staring at Vorpheus.

"I am an old man, Hero," said Vorpheus, smirking. "I have learned a trick or two." He appeared to listen to the screaming and shouting on the other side. "It appears the battle beyond this wall has fallen in your side's favour, Hero. I suppose I shall have to help my men." There was an audible bang as Vorpehus flew over the laboratory, and a cheer heralded his arrival with his men.

Cursing, Link ran around the laboratory. Just as he rounded the last corner, he saw Vorpheus hurl a massive ball of light at the small forest on top of the cliffs. The explosion shook the ground, and trees were tossed around. Vorpheus grinned at Link, and the rest of the soldiers began to move to surround him.

"Your allies are dead, Hero," said the warlock. "Do you still intend to pursue folly, or will you surrender to me?"

Something flashed from the hill, and Link smiled. "I think I'll take the first one," he said and charged at Vorpheus, whose face fell in surprise. Several soldiers moved to intercept, but each one was taken down by the arrows that had started to rain upon the bonfire area again.

"Impossible," said Vorpheus as he dodged another swipe from Link. "That spell is designed to kill everything it comes into contact with!"

"My guys are better than you, then," said Link. He thought it was strange that Vorpheus had yet to use any magic against him apart from the first couple of fireballs. He began to attack faster, trying to see any holes in the warlock's style. Dodge, dodge, parry, dodge, parry, parry-HOLE!

He thrust the Master Sword forward, and smiled when he felt the blade find a gap to slide into. Vorpheus grunted in pain and jumped away, feeling at the joint between his right thigh and hip. His hand came back red with blood. He growled and pointed his mace at Link.

"I've gone easy on you because you're a child, Hero, but not anymore!" he shouted. Link tried to charge forward again, but was thrown back when he ran into something that felt like an invisible wall. Landing on his back, he turned his momentum into a backwards roll and came to his feet right away. Vorpheus was holding both his hands ahead of him, palms outward. His mace had been tossed to the ground. The air around his hands was crackling, and blue arcs were dancing around his fingers.

The soldiers were gone. The ones who weren't already dead were trying to find a way up to the cliffs, where they would only find more death in the form of an impenetrable wall of swords and arrows. The Hero thought it strange that they hadn't tried to kill him, but he guessed that they didn't know who he was, that they thought he was just some rebellious kid with a sword.

Again and again he tried to attack Vorpheus, only to be repelled by the wall he had erected around himself. The static had turned into a ball of lightning now, and it was growing larger and larger by the second. If Link didn't do something, he wouldn't be able to dodge it in the end.

Suddenly, Vorpheus jerked, and Link felt the air pressure give away. Time seemed to slow down as the warlock aimed the lightning at him, throwing the ball directly at him.

"Die!" shrieked the warlock.

The Hero didn't know whether to stand or sit. There was no way he could dodge that thing. It was the size of a house now, and it seemed to grow as it came towards him. Then he remembered the fight with Phantom Ganon in the Forest Temple. The Master Sword had…willed him to move it in the way of one the phantom's attacks, and reflected it back to its caster.

But surely this wouldn't work with Vorpheus' attack? It was too big. But if he didn't do anything, he would surely die…

Bracing himself, Link swung.

He felt the sword vibrate as it absorbed the magical energies of Vorpheus' spell, amplifying it, charging it…and sent it exploding back, even faster now. Link couldn't see him, but he knew that the warlock's face would be frozen in shock, His wrinkled hands unable to act without instructions from his shocked brain.

There wasn't a scream. It sounded more like a whine, the sound the mutts of Castle Town made whenever an "upstanding" citizen kicked at them to drive them away. Oddly enough, instead of exploding in a dazzling display like a real lightning strike, Vorpheus just seemed to suck it up. The only thing that finally suggested that something had even happen to him were the slight tremors going through his body.

Without a sound, the warlock started tipping backwards, crashing into the ground. Stepping cautiously, Link approached the now-smoking sorcerer. He was still breathing, and his eyes came to rest on the Hero as he came into view.

"H…how?" asked Vorpheus.

"Like I said, it's my destiny to defeat Ganondorf, however much I hate it, and someone like you won't be able to stop me." He brought the Master Sword to the warlock's throat. "You seem like someone with some semblance of honour…yield to me, and I won't kill you."

"Link!" a familiar voice shouted, and the Hero looked up. Mugen and his men were quickly approaching, sprinting at full speed. None of them were missing, which made him smile. He turned his attention back to Vorpheus and increased the pressure on his neck.

"Yield."

"I…I…" rasped Vorpheus. "I…yield."

* * *

"They didn't stand a chance," said Mugen as he and five of his men gathered together the arrows that had not hit any targets. The area around the bonfire was littered with them and the dead soldiers. "Fighting uphill battles is never a good idea, but doing it fully armoured was damn near suicide. It was child's play. And that spell…heh, our training helped us avoid that."

"That's good," said Link, glad that none of the spies had been hurt. He chose not to ask about their escape from the spell from the warlock. He turned to look at the cliff where Vorpheus had first surprised him with his levitating ability. The warlock was purifying the lake now under the watchful eyes of six spies, all ready to kill him if he showed signs of doing anything but cleansing their water supply. "Is it true that he's two hundred years old?"

Mugen narrowed his eyes at the figure at the cliff. "I don't know. I've never heard his name before…but he commands powerful magic. I think the only reason he hasn't killed us all by now is that you beat him fair and square and he surrendered." He grimaced as he was forced to break the ribcage of a dead soldier in order to get his arrow out. "Who knows what he's capable? I bet he could even open portals to other worlds…"

Link looked up, eyes wide. He looked back at Vorpheus. "Excuse me for a second," he told Mugen and stalked over to the cliff. The warlock must haven noticed him, for he turned around, raising his hands in a non-threatening manner.

"It will take a few days, but the water should return to its pure state…I have removed all sources of the taint. I must admit that my colleagues were quite…incompetent."

Images of the sleeping men flashed across Link's eyes, but he did his best to ignore them. "How powerful are you?" he asked.

The question took Vorpheus aback. "Why do you ask? I thought for sure that I demonstrated my power during our fight…that last spell would have demolished the entire area."

Ignoring his answer, Link pushed on. "Would be strong enough to…say, cross into another realm?"

Vorpheus raised an eyebrow, understanding Link's intentions. "What do you have in mind?"

"Ever heard of a place called Twilight?"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 47**

* * *

It felt like he was floating in a river, gently bobbing up and down, sometimes turning slightly as the water curved around the land. It was comfortable, and had been perfect if it hadn't for the dull ache he felt in his left eye. It itched as well, but he didn't have the strength or the energy to scratch at it. Just as well since he didn't want to do anything else but laze about in the river. Dimly, he became aware of a strange sound. It was like someone was breathing hard, but from far away and separated by a wall. He could make out words, or at least what he thought was words. He wasn't too sure; the river was trying to steal his attention away from his own head. Something was pushing at his chest, and ghostly tendrils were caressing his face, soothing the itch in his eye just a little.

"… _can't you fix it?"_

That voice…he had heard it before. And he only associated annoyance and anger with it…as well as general amusement and…affection? That was the strangest combination of emotions he had seen…or heard…or thought…again, the river was so alluringly beckoning him to continue floating, and so he did. The voice, whoever it belonged to, could wait. Why in Hyrule would he want to fix something when he was so utterly and unbelievably comfortable and satisfied?

"… _I'm trying…it won't let me!"_

A higher pitched voice this time…surely that of a girl or woman, he wasn't sure. There were a lot of things he was unsure about right now. He seemed to recall that the owner of the second voice was of extremely little stature, reminiscent of that of a child. The owner was also important, he remembered. But not important enough to shake him away from this place. But perhaps it was time to move for a bit, he was getting sick of lying in the same position. He tried to move, but found that it was all too much of an effort to bother with. He tried wiggling his fingers, but even that proved too strenuous. Oh well, it didn't matter anyway.

"… _what's happening to him?"_

Happening to whom, he wondered. Were they talking about him? Nothing was happening to him, as far as he could see or feel. He was just enjoying a good float in a river that didn't seem to have any water. It seemed a bit farfetched, but he had seen stranger things in his life, none of which he could recall right now. It didn't matter. He didn't care.

"… _He's dying, that's what's happening to him!"_

The girl's voice was agitated, almost shrieking at the first voice, which apparently belonged to a man…or boy. Who was dying? Certainly not he, lazing about on the river. But perhaps he should open his eyes and see just who was dying. Maybe he could help. Yet, even opening an eyelid was an impossible task. The left one didn't react at all, only starting to throb and itch worse. The other one moved, but not enough to give him a window to spy at the world with.

"… _but we stopped the bleeding!"_

He nodded, or tried to, in any case. That's the first thing to do. Stop the bleeding, to not let one's lifeblood spill to the ground, where it would do no one any good. The second was to clean the wound, make sure nothing can infect it. The third is to get the wound to close, sewing it shut if need be. The fourth…the fourth is to wait for the wound to heal, at which point the stitches can be removed. Why did he know this? Because he was…a warrior…a shadow warrior…a Sheikah!

" _Sheik! Don't let the river take you! Fight it!"_

Now this was a bit odd. Who was Sheik? Was there a Sheik close by? Was _he_ Sheik? It reminded him of Sheikah…which was what he was, but why should he fight something that so obviously only wanted him to be well? The ghostly tendrils were stroking at his face harder now, as if agitated by the voices. He wanted to tell them it was okay, that the voices would go away. Then the tendrils slapped him. Over and over.

" _Wake! Up! Damn! You! Don't! Die! On! Me! We! Still! Have! A! Job! To! Do!"_

" _Stop hurting him!"_

" _I'm just speeding the process along! Sheik! Wake up!"_

He opened his eyes…

* * *

…only to be greeted with pain so intense and horrible in his left eye that he instantly regretted it. His entire body hurt, in fact, and the comfort of the river he had left behind was beckoning him to come back, but he could not. He felt his jaws tighten, and the scream that left his lips was hoarse and not as powerful as he had expected it to be. But the only thing he could focus on was his eye, and it's apparent non-existing functionality.

"Sheik! Calm down!" said the male voice, which he suddenly came to associate with the Hero of Time's dark counterpart Speil. "Midna!"

"Hold him down!" commanded the voice of the Twilight Princess, also known as Midna.

He tried to get out of the iron grip that someone, most likely Speil, was holding him in, but it was impossible. Suddenly, a strange sensation, like someone had cracked open an egg and let the contents fall out over him, began to spread across his hurting eye. It soothed it somewhat, but the pain still burned like a thousand suns and stung like a million needles.

"It's no good, the wound won't close!" exclaimed Midna. "The wound is tainted by the beast's magic. He'll lose the eye."

"Fucking piece of shit shadow!" yelled Shadow, his voice coming from right above Sheik's head.

"Speil, knock him out."

"What?"

"Do it! I can't heal the wound with magic, we need to do it the old-fashioned way."

"Fine. I am sorry, Sheik."

A sharp pressure at his neck, and the world went silent again. No river greeted him this time, just blissful oblivion. No thoughts, no worries, no feelings.

* * *

When he came to, he noticed that most of the pain from his eye was gone, replaced by the same dull ache and throb he had felt while floating on the river. He also felt a slight pressure over it, which he could only assume was a bandage. He remembered what had happened. The phantom had cut his eye and probably ruined it. Would he be blind on it forever? Midna hadn't been able to heal it; he remembered hearing…why not? He reached up to touch the bandage, feeling his entire body protest against the action. He gasped when he miscalculated the speed at which his hand would move and felt it bump against the bandage. The wound flared up in pain, and a groan forced its way past his lips.

"Sheik?" asked a distant voice. He tried to open his remaining eye, but was unable to. He felt around the area. Bandages had been tied around that too. Surely the phantom had not completely blinded him. He distinctly remembered talking to and looking at Terra as he…died. The voice was closer. "Are you awake?"

"Speil?" asked Sheik, trying to gauge where the sound was coming from. He felt a hand touch his left shoulder, one of the few areas that didn't ache. Sheik grasped the shadow's hand with his own, desperately needing am anchor the world. "What happened?" he asked.

"You don't remember?" asked Speil, his deep voice, just a bit lower and scratchier than the Hero's, was suddenly very comforting to Sheik. The temporary blindness he had suffered from before hadn't been half as bad as this one, mostly because of Terra's soothing reassurances. But now he wasn't entirely sure if it would be temporary or not.

"No," he answered. "I remember Terra…dying, but nothing after…" He felt his heart give a jolt when he said the other Sheikah's name, the thought of him being dead almost unbearable. "What happened to my eye?"

Speil was quiet for a few seconds. He squeezed Sheik's hand. "Want to sit up?" he asked, to which Sheik nodded. He helped the Sheikah sit up with his back to a rock wall.

"Are we still inside the fort?" asked Sheik.

Speil made a confirming sound. "Midna did not wish to move you. She was afraid of aggravating your wounds even further."

"What happened?" repeated Sheik.

"You were dying," said Speil after a moment of silence, as if he had debated with himself on whether or not he should tell Sheik. "You were halfway down this realm's River of Death, where all souls unable to hold on go…"

"Not that," said Sheik, shaking his head, feeling his neck crack slightly. "My eye…you two were panicking about it…"

"It's ruined," Speil said simply with no thought or pause. "The shado—phantom's taint was impregnated within its very blade and it infected your wound after it hit your face. Midna and I tried to remove the taint, but it proved too resilient. I…we do not think you will ever be able to see with it again."

 _So it's true,_ thought Sheik. It felt oddly anticlimactic. _I suppose I was ready for it to be ruined…but the waiting is the worst part, as they say._

"I see," said Sheik. "But why have you bandaged the other one?"

"Because we didn't want you to ruin your damaged eye's healing by trying to open them both when you woke up. I can take it off, if you wish," said Speil. Sheik thought about it for a minute, then nodded.

"Remember," said Speil as he unrolled the bandage, "keep your left eye closed. If you're lucky, the scar will not be too large."

"If I keep it closed, Speil, the lids will grow together and then I won't be able to open it all," Sheik pointed out as the last piece of bandage disappeared from his right eye. He carefully opened it, squinting as he got used to the light from the fire that had been lit next to them.

"Good point," said Speil, moving away from Sheik so he could get used to seeing again. He had taken off his outer tunic, revealing a, of all colours, white undershirt. It was strange to see the shadow dressed in such a garment. His gauntlets were off as well, the Triforce symbol glowing gently in the firelight. "But you still shouldn't open it for a while."

"I won't," said Sheik as he studied the shadow. He had changed again. He seemed…calm and collected, caring and gentle. "What's wrong with you?" Sheik asked out of the blue, surprising himself.

Speil didn't seem as taken aback. "I do not know…I think this—"he pointed at his palm with the Triforce symbol"—is affecting me."

"No," said Sheik, shaking his head. "There's something else…you have been acting differently ever since we came to this place."

"Perhaps," said Speil, nodding slightly, his eyes focusing on anything but Sheik. "I just feel…slightly at home here, as if this is the place I truly belong."

"Well, there _are_ a lot of shadows here…" said Sheik, wondering just how stupid what he had just said sounded. "Maybe you feel a kinship to the Twili? They seem rather…shadowy."

 _Okay Sheik,_ he thought. _This little ocular crisis is affecting your vocabulary…time to stop talking._

"It's not that," replied the shadow. "I don't know exactly what it is…but it's not the Twili."

Sheik was about to answer when the form of Midna suddenly zipped through the open door to the main chamber, her fist-hair carrying a large jug of something. She noticed Speil and Sheik talking, and a smile spread on her lips as she hurried over to them. She sat the jug down (narrowly missing Speil's foot, something the shadow did not hesitate to point out. The Twilight Princess merely showed her tongue and focused on Sheik)

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

"Horrible," answered Sheik, trying to plaster a weak smile on his face, but failing miserably. "Feels like someone has put me through a meat grinder."

"They might as well have," she said, smiling at his quip. "You were a frightful mess. But I managed to heal you…mostly, anyway," she said, clearly referring to his damaged eye. "I'm sorry, but I wasn't able to—"

"It doesn't matter," said Sheik, holding a hand up to stop her from talking. "You did your best, which is all that matters." He looked around. "Where's Terra?"

"His body…dissolved," said Midna, looking uncertainly at Speil, who merely shrugged. "When the last spirit left his body, it sort of just…faded away. The only things that were left behind were his clothes and sword," she said and pointed at a small pile of clothing and the sword, which leaned against the wall.

"Wait," said Sheik, suddenly remembering something. "He told me he had stopped time…what happened with that?"

"Stopped time? What are you talking about?" asked Speil, exchanging confused glances with Midna.

"Nevermind," said Sheik, dismissing the subject.

 _He told me he had stopped time,_ he thought. _Did he do it just so we could…say our goodbyes without interruptions?_

"Anyway," said Speil, drawing attention away from the subject of Terra. "The threat is gone, which means we can go home, right?" He looked at Midna. "You can send us back, can't you?"

Sheik looked at her as well, wanting to know. The princess of Twilight looked bothered for a second, her fang poking out in a surprisingly non-mischievous manner. It looked like she was biting her lip, in fact. "Erm…I'm not sure," she finally answered. "My first battle with the phantom left me drained…if I hadn't changed into this form, I would have died. I'm not sure if I have any power left to create such a portal."

"So you are saying we are stuck here?" asked Sheik, feeling nonchalant about this. Then he remembered Hyrule…and Link. "Can you at least make an attempt?" he asked, standing up. His body reminded him of the battering he had received in the battle, but he bit his lip and came to his feet.

"You really need more rest before you can—"Midna began.

"No offence, princess, but we are running out of time," interrupted Sheik, feeling slightly annoyed. "Over a week has passed in Hyrule, and even more time has been wasted while I recovered. I—we need to go back immediately." He almost forgot Speil, who had remained silent throughout the exchange.

"He's right," said the shadow, also standing up. "The Hero needs his Triforce," he said in a sarcastic tone. "And Hyrule needs its saviour."

"Fine," said Midna. "I'll try. But I'm not making any promises!"

* * *

It felt wrong, but Sheik could not resist looking through Terra's clothes. The exoskeleton was the exact same as his, and Sheik had only seen two others, namely his and Impa's. It was bigger than his, though.

The robe was truly a magnificent piece of work, however. He supposed it had been created by his ancestors' spirits, but he could see where the seams went, which suggested that it had actually been sewn.

"I'm sure he would want you to have it," said Speil, having snuck up on the Sheikah. "Otherwise he wouldn't have left it behind, right?"

"I can't," said Sheik, folding the robe up and laying it on top of the exoskeleton. "It would be wrong of me."

"Why?"

"Because all clothing that has belonged to a Sheikah must be burned in order to ensure that all of their essence reaches the afterlife," answered Sheik as he put the exoskeleton on the fire. It caught flame quickly, soon disappearing among the dancing flames. The robe was next, a bit more resilient to the flames, but it too had to give in to the fire.

"What about his sword?" asked Speil, handing Sheik the blade that was so like Kazuya, yet so different. Its hilt was covered in different carved designs, most of which centred on the design of the Sheikah Eye. Many of them had been painted a dark green colour.

"I cannot destroy a sword with fire anymore than I can rehydrate an entire desert with a cup of water," said Sheik, studying the blade, drawing it out of its sheath. It felt like it belonged in his hand. Sure, the copy, which had faded away after Terra died, had been one of the best and most…welcoming swords he had ever used, but that could not surely mean that Terra wanted _him_ to take it?

"I think you should keep it as a memento," said Speil, offering his thoughts. "I'm sure he would want you to remember him, even if you don't use it."

"No," said Sheik, rising to his feet. "If I keep it…I must use it. This sword is imbued with his essence…and it will only be an aid in battle." He slid it back into the sheath, tying it to his back like he had done with Kazuya, the empty sheath of which he placed on the opposite side of his back.

"It needs a name, though," noted Speil, helping Sheik with securing it.

"Terra will be its name," said Sheik, feeling it was only proper. "Kazuya is named after the first Sheikah who used it, one of my great-grandfathers. This was Terra's sword, and it shall bear his name."

"I'm sure it will serve you well," said Speil. He found his black tunic and pulled it on, securing his weapons to his body.

They faced each other, sizing each other up.

"You know…I think I will miss this," said Sheik. "You've been…in the lack of a better word…nice."

"Really?" asked Speil. "That goes against the nature of my very being, does it not?" He grinned. "It's all your fault, in that case. I cannot help but feel affected by you." He suddenly enveloped Sheik in an embrace, resting his chin on top of the Sheikah's head. "I've fallen for you, Sheik…"

Sheik looked up, surprised at the sincerity the shadow was displaying. Their gazes locked, and Speil started to lean down, their faces coming closer and closer.

What would have happened next will never be known, for a certain princess started yelling for them to get their "Lazy asses over to her so she could begin creating the gate!"

Blushing, Sheik pulled away from Speil and went over to Midna, followed by the grumbling shadow moments after. Midna looked at them both.

"Listen…before I begin…I just want to say that I…I couldn't do this without your help. You saved my realm and my people. I am forever in your debt, both of you," she said, looking Sheik to Speil and back to Sheik. "I…I've grown fond of both of you, and I truly hope that this is not the last time we see each other again." She floated in front of Sheik, smiling through badly concealed tears. "I hope…we _can_ see each other again, under happier circumstances."

"As do we," said Sheik, speaking for Speil, who suddenly seemed very bothered by the princess' words. Which Sheik understood, since Speil hardly had been on the receiving end of many compliments since his creation. He looked into Midna's eyes. "And I am forever in _debt_ for saving my people so long ago."

Nodding, Midna wiped her tears and closer her eyes, muttering under her breath. A wind started blowing inside the chamber again, and the fire died under the heavy barrage. Hundreds of tiny, black squares suddenly started to fly in from every direction, all of them culminating at a spot right in front of Midna. She continued muttering before suddenly opening her eyes.

"Someone's trying to establish a connection from Hyrule to here," she said.

"Who?" asked Sheik, wondering for a second if Link had found a way.

"I don't know…someone powerful," said Midna. "I've never seen anyone this powerful…he is literally tearing apart the barrier between our two realms."

"Ganondorf?" wondered Speil aloud.

"No," said Midna. "It is not he." She growled. "Damnit, he found my portal. I can't close it, I don't know if I'll be able to open another. If you don't go through, you will be trapped here until I've recovered my power!"

"But if we go through, we might find ourselves face to face with an enemy we cannot defeat," said Speil, looking at Sheik.

To Sheik, the answer was clear. Hyrule needed them, and Hyrule needed them _now_. "We go through."

Standing in front of the portal, in which a massive, swirling tornado of colour was spinning, he turned to Midna one last time. "Thank you for everything, Princess," he said and bowed, wincing as his muscles protested.

Speil merely gave her a lazy glance. "You and I still have a battle to finish," he said, to which Midna nodded.

"The next time we meet, we'll have one hell of a fight!" she exclaimed. She then groaned and gritted her teeth. "You have to go, now! I can't hold it open much longer!"

Nodding, the two turned around, stared at the portal for all of two seconds, and jumped in.

_Thank you, Midna…thank you, Terra…_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 48**

* * *

It felt like being in the middle of a storm, travelling between dimensions. Sheik could not remember their first encounter with this strange space because he had been unconscious at the time, but from the way Speil was cursing and shouting "Not again!" it was obvious he did. They were tossed around like ragdolls, swooping hither and thither, narrowly avoiding crashing into each other. The only thing that made the entire experience bearable was the complete darkness, which prevented them from seeing how close they swung by each other. Something he thought strange, however, was the fact that the space between dimensions was completely silent. The only thing he could hear was the aforementioned shouting and cursing from the Hero of Time's shadow and the wind rushing past as their speed increased.

He was feeling nauseous. The last couple of days had not been kind to him, and sleep, food and drink had been scarce, if not completely absent in the latter two's cases. How he was able to continue on without having tasted water while in Twilight, he didn't know, but he what he _did_ was that he was damn well going to drink dry the closest lake when they arrived back in Hyrule.

His eye, which had merely been reminding him of its existence in Twilight, was starting to throb harder, and a needle of pain laced through it every now and then. Whatever Midna had done to the wound in Twilight was obviously wearing off the closer they got to Hyrule again, and Sheik suspected that he was in for a great deal of pain when stepping onto the grass of his home—his _true_ home, for he still identified himself more with Hyrule than Twilight. He only hoped that their arrival would be somewhere secluded, where they would not be seen or heard when he undoubtedly screamed. He had always been taught to keep any feeling of discomfort to himself, but this pain—along with the loss of his sight—would not, _could_ not, be kept in, he was sure of it. Hopefully, Speil would also be there to comfort him.

The shadow had truly undergone a marvellous transformation in Twilight. Well, in all honesty, he _had_ been changing from the second Sheik gazed upon him for the first time, though that was mostly superficial and only in appearance and vocabulary. His personality and general behaviour, on the other hand, were completely unrecognisable. Their little adventure in Twilight had truly bettered the shadow…or perhaps it was the Triforce, which had so unexpectedly found its way to Speil instead of Link, who was supposed to be its true bearer.

He could see stars now, rushing past at blinding speed. Or maybe they weren't stars. Perhaps they were souls on their way to the great nothing beyond the planes of existence, as some of the religious cults in Hyrule would say. Either way, they were still rushing past the two travellers. He wondered what would happen if he touched one, and reached out a hand. The lack of a second eye was playing havoc with his depth perception, he realised. The stars—or souls—were obviously way out of reach.

That struck fear in him. Would he even be able to fight now? Walking and looking around were certainly not challenging with his newfound ocular issue, but wielding a sword surely would. The second thing he was going to do when they got back to Hyrule was to fight something, just to make sure he could still be useful to the princess. The very idea of being exempt from his duties because of an injury he sustained while not on duty…it would be a disgrace, and he would embarrass his entire people, something he seemed to be doing quite a lot these days.

"I think we're getting close!" Speil suddenly shouted, his eyes zooming by. It looked quite comical. "Look ahead!"

Sheik did so, and saw that some sort of portal was opening in front of them, quickly coming closer and closer. Hundreds of billions of colours, many of which Sheik hadn't seen before, swirled inside the cone of light that was threatening to—and almost certainly going to—swallow them up and send them home.

 _Hyrule…here we come,_ he thought and closed his eye.

* * *

"Huh," said Vorpheus suddenly. The dark, crimson portal he was opening seemed to ripple for a second as he lost his concentration. The portal seemed to be sucking everything in front of it inside, which was why Link, Mugen and the rest of Zelda's spies were hurdling behind the remaining laboratory wall. The bodies of the soldiers that had been killed by the arrow bombardment had been sucked in a long time ago, and the bonfire had been reduced to mere embers.

Despite the noise from the process, Link could hear the surprised utterance. "What's wrong?!" he shouted to Vorpheus.

"Someone has opened a portal on the other side!" the obscenely old warlock shouted back. "Someone powerful…far beyond my league!" He grunted and doubled his efforts. "And they're trying to stop me!"

"Don't give up!" the Hero responded. "If you do, you'll regret it!" He noticed Mugen looking at him with a worried expression. "What?!"

"Am I the only who finds it…risky that we should allow the Ganondorf-aligned warlock to create a portal which he could escape through?!" He seemed to think for a second. "Or even use his powers at all?!"

"I don't know!" Link answered. "I just want to find Sheik!"

"Sheik's in this other world of yours?!" asked Mugen, suddenly alert. At Link's nod, he continued: "What is he doing there?!"

"The Gerudo witches!"

"Ah!"

"Yeah!"

The ground was shaking, and great pieces of stone and dirt came loose from the cliffs above the lake, creating gigantic waves in the still-blood-red water as they crashed into it. The stone wall, which was their only protection from the undertow of the portal, was vibrating heavily, and loose stones from the very top of it were being removed one by one as they were sucked into the vortex.

Then it all stopped. The ground was no longer shaking, the wall no longer vibrating. The accelerated erosion of the hills and cliffs around Laky Hylia was slowed down to its natural speed. Link carefully peeked out from the wall and saw Vorpheus standing proudly beside a completely silent and calm white doorway. And the old man was grinning.

"I have a couple of tricks up my sleeve," he explained as the rest of them approached him. "I won't let someone else stop me from going where I want…though this is the first time I've actually done something like this."

"Are you sure this leads to Twilight?" asked Link, regarding the rainbow-colours barely visible inside the portal. "It doesn't look very…twilight-y."

"That is merely the portal, the means with which you will travel there," said Vorpheus. "I could only find one plane that corresponded with the description you gave me. The plane beyond this doorway—or portal, if you will—does seem quite…twilight-y."

"Don't insult the hero, warlock!" said Mugen, slowly drawing his sword. "Or you will live to regret it."

Vorpheus grinned. "You are not the first man to say that to me. And certainly not the last…and I must remind you that I have killed people for less." He rubbed his hands together, earning him dark looks from the other spies. "But, as it is, I have formally surrendered and yielded, so I will not do anything to harm anyone until I am released from my captivity."

"You don't strike me as a man who accepts being someone's prisoner," said Mugen, looking Vorpheus up and down. "In fact, I think you kill anyone who even looks at you the wrong way."

"True," Vorpheus replied. "But this is also the first time I have actually surrendered voluntarily…and I'm curious as to what kind of path this will lead my life down. Besides, it appears that even though Ganondorf is in the lead at the moment, the Hero of Time will surely tip the scales in your favour sooner or later…and I do not like being on the losing side of anything."

"Well," said Mugen as he put his sword away. "I still don't trust you. Show one sign of betraying us or the Hero…and I will have your head."

"Fair enough," answered Vorpheus and turned his attention back to Link, who was still studying the portal. "I promise you, Hero, this portal _does_ lead to the realm you described to me. And, I must add, it is putting a considerable drain on my being, so if you would be so kind as to step through, find whoever you're looking for and come back, I'd very much appreciate it."

Link nodded, lifting his foot. However, Mugen's hand on his shoulder stopped him from completing the step. "Wait," said the spy. "If what you say is true, which I have no reason to doubt, then this portal leads to a world that is just as big as ours…how will you find him?"

This part of the plan had escaped Link, and the Hero stepped away from the portal and turned to Vorpheus. "Can you find Sheik with your magic?" he asked.

"By scrying, you mean?" the warlock asked. He rubbed his chin, the white stubble making an audible scratching sound against the metal gauntlets. "Well, I _have_ already established a connection with the other world…so I could, theoretically, send the spell through the portal…but it will take a massive magical charge, which I do not possess at the moment. Your counterattack robbed me of a lot of energy, Hero."

"So you can't do it?" asked Link, wanting things plain and blunt.

"Not at the moment, no," confirmed Vorpheus. "It will take a couple of days at the least for me to regain my power. And who knows if I will be able to create another portal? The being on the other side was quite adamant in stopping me in performing my task…even going as far as sending someone through a tunnel to crush my portal…"

"Wait, they sent someone through?" asked Link. "Who?"

Vorpheus shrugged. "How should I know? The only thing I'm sure of is that two entities were sent from Twilight to here." He looked at the portal, and Link noticed just now that his eyes were completely white save for the black pinpoints for irises. Had the magic or his aging done so? Probably the former.

"Two?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow as he thought about it. It couldn't be, surely? "Do you know where they came through?"

"Let me see," said Vorpheus as he closed his eyes and turned to the portal. The wavered around him, and every Hero and spy felt their ears pop. Suddenly, the warlock opened his eyes. "The Lost Woods…they appeared somewhere in the Lost Woods…I can't see exactly where, for someone is preventing from scrying into it."

The Deku Sprout was doing what he could, Link knew. The question now was whether or not the new arrivals to Hyrule were the ones he was looking for, or someone else. He looked at the portal, not really feeling to keen on jumping into it. He was barely getting used to _this_ world, and now he was supposed to go to a completely different one. He shook his head and looked at Vorpheus. "Close the portal," he said. "Sheik's back, I'm sure of it."

Annoyed, Vorpheus huffed and snapped his fingers. A loud boom, and the doorway was gone, replaced by a circular scorch mark on the ground beneath it. "You just made me waste a lot of energy for that, Hero," he said sourly.

"Just as well," said Mugen and pointed at the warlock. "Vorpheus the Immortal, you are formally under arrest. Do you accept?" The men behind him had their hands on their weapons, just in case.

"Accept?" asked Vorpheus, laughing. His youthful voice truly did not match his ancient appearance, and it unnerved them all. "Accept that my freedom will be taken away, ripped away from me lest I resist? Sir, I accept no such thing…but I have already given my word to the Hero, so I will…endure it."

"Good," said Mugen, drawing a rope from somewhere in his suit. Where exactly the coil had come from, Link didn't know. Mugen tied Vorpheus' hands together.

"This really is not necessary," said the warlock. "I do not need my hands to use magic, and if I truly wanted to escape, I would have done so an hour ago."

"Be that as it may, I am still tying you up," said Mugen. "If only to preserve your image as our prisoner."

"I'm not _your_ prisoner," Vorpheus said quietly. "I'm his," he said and jerked his head in Link's direction. "If he had not been here to help you during your…hm, attack, you would all have been dead by now." He looked at Link. "Is it your wish that I go with these men as a prisoner, Hero?"

Link nodded. "You won't be harmed, I can promise you that."

"Harmed…hah," snorted the warlock. "But I see your point. Very well, Hero. I shall be on my best behaviour. I hope we will see each other again."

"I'm sure we will," said Link, watching as two of Mugen's men led the warlock away, toward the camp they had made on the cliff overlooking the battle site. He turned to Mugen. "I have to go—"

"And look for Sheik, I know," said Mugen, smiling. "I must say that it has been a pleasure working with you, Link." He held out a hand that dwarfed Link's. As they shook, his smile fell slightly, resulting in a sad one. "I hope you find him, Link. You obviously love him very much."

Recoiling, Link staggered back. "How did you—"

"Know?" asked Mugen. "It was quite obvious when you talked about him. You do not give any obvious signs, Hero, do not worry about that. But when you've lived for as long as I, you learn to read people." He looked at the ground, seemingly embarrassed. "Does…does Sheik feel the same way?"

Link nodded. "He does…or did, at least. I'm not sure right now…maybe he hates me for not being able to stop the spell that took him away."

"I'm sure he doesn't," said Mugen. "Sheik is not one to hold grudges…hell, I don't think he's even capable of truly hating someone unless they are Ganondorf or any of his minions."

"I hope you're right," said Link as he took out the Ocarina of Time, the thought of walking back up the hill to Epona not very appealing to him. As he played the song Malon had taught him when they were children, he found himself wondering how Sheik would be feeling about this whole business…or if the people he would find in the Lost Woods even _were_ his lover…and shadow. For that would definitely be the one he returned with.

They heard Epona whinny in the distance and her thundering hooves along the ground. Link turned to Mugen and shook his hand yet again. "I hope this isn't goodbye…I'd very much like to fight with you again."

"Yeah, maybe we can actually fight back to back next time," grinned Mugen as Link clambered into Epona's saddle. The Hero smoothed down the equine's mane in affection.

"I'd be honoured," said Link, countering Mugen's statement. "Goodbye for now." He spurred Epona's sides and rode off, leaving the spies at the shores of Lake Hylia.

"Goodbye, Hero of Time," said Mugen.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 49**

* * *

Pain. That was all Sheik felt when he hit the ground, his back making an ominous cracking sound. For a second, he was worried he had broken his spine, but the flare of pain travelling upwards to his head signalled that it had merely taken a hit. Another second later, Speil hit him. While the shadow had a physique identical to Link's, who did not weight that much, Speil just happened to be weighed down by a sword, shield and countless little gadgets similar to the ones the Hero of Time lugged around. The result? A colossal weight nearly crushing Sheik along with many sharp edges poking and sticking him in various places.

"Ooof!" exclaimed Speil.

Sheik was unable to make any other sound than a pathetic little whine, his arms scrabbling all over Speil to get the shadow off of him. Unfortunately, Speil was rather dizzy and it took him at least eight seconds to register the poor Sheikah's wordless pleas. Climbing off, the shadow looked down at Sheik, who could only answer with a pained gaze and more sounds that made no sense to Speil.

"I'm sorry," said the shadow as he scratched his neck embarrassedly. "I suppose I am a bit heavy…"

The Sheikah answered this statement with a very rude finger gesture and a glare. Then the coughing started, and his entire frame was wracked with the tremors of his lungs trying to re-inflate. To his credit, Speil helped him sit up, careful not to damage him even further.

His spine felt like it was on fire, and the slow stroking from Speil—surely meant to be comforting—did nothing to alleviate the problem. In fact, it only made it worse. Roughly, he pushed Speil's hands away, trying to stand. The world spun, and he quickly found himself back on the ground, staring up at the night sky. Remnants of the portal they had arrived through still glittered in the air, slowly dissipating into nothing as the connection between the two realms was cut off.

"I do not think you should stand for now," said Speil, his face appearing in the top left of his vision. "Remember what happened last time we travelled between dimensions? You went blind." He looked into Sheik's eye, his forehead creasing. "You're not blind now, are you?"

"N…no," Sheik choked out and repeated his finger gesture. "Stop touching me," he added when Speil tried to stroke his cheek. "You've done enough damage…"

"I didn't do it on purpose," said Speil, a frown on his face and hurt in his voice. "You _could_ have moved out of the way."

"I…was checking to see if…my spine was broken," said Sheik, slowly sitting up. They had ended up somewhere in the Lost Woods—yet again—but, hopefully, they were in the right world this time. He recognised…very little of this particular clearing.

"And?" asked Speil. "Is it?"

Sheik, unable to stop himself, chuckled at the sincerity in the shadow's voice. He regretted it when he started coughing again, however. His ribcage strained under the sudden pressure from underneath, and a white-hot spike of pain rushed first down, then up his spine. "No," he finally said. "I wouldn't be able to move if it were."

"If you say so," said Speil as he crouched next to Sheik and offered his hand. "Listen, I truly did not mean landing on you. Come on, let me help you up."

The pleading in the shadow's voice was not becoming of him at all, and Sheik let this be known. Speil merely chuckled and slowly helped Sheik to his feet, quickly moving to support him when the Sheikah threatened to fold up again. Just standing was torture to the Sheikah, and his head was swimming. He could feel the contents of his stomach swirling around. His mouth was filling up with spit, and his eye widened.

Again, to his credit, Speil helped him lean forward and held back his hair as Sheik vomited. The strong acids of his stomach burned in his mouth and throat, and Sheik could feel misery upon misery piling up in his mind. Why did it always have to be this way? For the third—or was it the fourth—time in just a single day, he was completely dependent on Speil to help him do something as simple as _move_.

The shadow helped him sit with his back to a tree trunk and then crouched in front of him, his glowing eyes carefully scanning the Sheikah's form. He noticed that Terra was giving him trouble with relaxing and carefully removed the sword from Sheik's back, leaning it against the same tree.

"Are you alright?" asked Speil gently, with such concern that Sheik thought he was faking it. But then he remembered what the shadow had told him just before they left, the part about having fallen for the blond Sheikah. "Where does it hurt?"

"Everywhere," whined Sheik, shocking himself with how pathetic he sounded. His mouth was slathered with the taste of his stomach contents, and a headache the size of a planet had taken up residence in his head. "How come _you_ don't get any of this?" he asked, spitting at the ground next to him in an attempt to rid his mouth of the foul taste.

"Existential superiority?" said Speil, rolling the words around in his mouth after saying them. "I am a magical being," he said. "I am not bound by the laws of physics and physiology."

"Shut up," said Sheik weakly. "Stop rubbing it in."

"You asked, and I answered," replied Speil, chuckling. "Jealousy is an ugly colour, Sheik…and it's not becoming of a Sheikah to be such."

"What would you know?" countered Sheik. "I'd hardly think falling in love with me is proper for a being that is merely a personality test…"

"Ah, touché," said Speil.

It was comforting to hear the sound of life in a forest again. The silence in Twilight had been pressing, but all the birds and other creatures of the forest in the Lost Woods were currently playing something Sheik usually referred to as the Symphony of Life. _This_ was how a forest should sound. He suddenly frowned.

"Did you truly mean what you said in Twilight?" he asked, fixing Speil with a penetrating stare…or at least a penetrating a stare as he could manage with just one eye. The damaged eye decided to join in on the Symphony of Pain that was currently being orchestrated in his body. "About…falling in love with me?"

Speil looked away, the question obviously bothering him. "What can I say?" he asked. "I could easily tell you I was lying…but you would see right through me, would you not?"

"You are not a good liar, no," confirmed Sheik.

"Let me counter your question with one of my own," said Speil and looked back at Sheik, his eyes dimming slightly, as if the shadow was narrowing them at the Sheikah. "How would you feel about it…if I said yes?"

They were effectively at a stalemate. Sheik did not know how he would respond. Sheik was in love with Link, and Link was in love with Sheik. That was a fact. Or he hoped so, at least. Many things could have happened in the week and a half he had been gone in Twilight. But he could not help but feel a growing fondness for the shadow that was now sitting in front of him, cocking his head in a rather adorable wa—

 _No!_ he shouted mentally. _I love Link…Speil tried to kill me, enslaved me and claimed me as his own! How can I possibly be thinking like this?_

And yet…he could. Quite easily. The trip into Princess Midna's realm had affected the shadow in many unknown ways, but his personality had been the most obvious one. Before, Speil had been intrusive, overbearing, controlling. But after Sheik saved him from death by cutting him off from the witches' spell he had…he had become a completely different person. But that could not have been from the spell itself. Sheik strongly suspected it had something to do with the Triforce seeking refuge in his body. Was the magical triangle altering Speil to suit its needs? Was that why he suddenly became so aggressive when Midna had made her rather threatening and dangerous entrance? Was that why had drawn his weapons and tried to kill the Twilight Princess?

Whatever had happened, dwelling on it did no good as he felt the headache settle further into his brain, pounding away at his poor mind. Speil was still looking at Sheik closely, still waiting for an answer. Ignoring the fact that _he_ had asked a question first, Sheik answered thusly: "I don't know."

"You do not know?" asked Speil, his expression remaining unchanged. "How could you not know?"

"As I said, I do…not…know," Sheik repeated. "When we first met, you threatened to kill me. The second time we met you almost did, but suddenly decided to make me yours instead. The third time…well, surely you can see the pattern? And now you have…changed so drastically it is not even amusing!"

At first, the shadow did not respond with anything more than a hand quietly placed on his chin in contemplation. "Yes…" he said slowly. "I can see how that would be quite…confusing." Then he scooted over, placing himself next to Sheik, who tried to move away, but was stopped by his own traitorous body as the Symphony of Pain reached an incapacitating crescendo. Slowly, the shadow put an arm around the Sheikah's shoulders, moving him closer in a sideways embrace. Then he said: "Do you also remember what I told you during our conversations in my…dream world?"

Unable to move away from the shadow and wracked with pain from his body adjusting to Hyrule again, Sheik could do little but try to make himself as comfortable against Speil as he could, no matter how much the action tore at him, both because he liked it…and hated it. He nodded to Speil's question. "You said you were continually evolving…"

"That is correct," said Speil, rubbing Sheik's shoulder now, undoubtedly trying to comfort him. The rumble from his deep voice sent shivers down Sheik's otherwise painful back. "And ever since we were taken to…that place, the process started going faster." He noticed Sheik twisting his head to look at him with a raised eyebrow. "Do you remember what your…relative told you? About time running slower in Twilight than here?" As Sheik nodded yet again, he smiled. "I think my connection to this world never completely disappeared…which is why I continued changing…and then this came along." He pointed at his hand, where the Triforce lay hidden underneath his gauntlet.

The shadow was about to continue talking when he noticed Sheik's head slumping against his shoulder. He looked down and saw that the Sheikah had fallen asleep. That, or had passed out because of the pain. Either way, Speil still smiled. The Sheikah had gone through enough, and deserved some rest.

It was at times like these that Speil wished that he could sleep as well. It seemed to be an enjoyable enough way of passing time. The only time he had experienced something similar was when he almost died after arriving in Twilight, but that was an experience he had no wish to repeat. For the first time in his rather short period of existence, the shadow had been…afraid. He had also fully expected Sheik to leave him to his miserable, slow death. And he had been quite convinced that he was done for after Sheik had stabbed him with a knife…but the warmth and calm that had spread throughout his body afterwards…it was indescribable.

Smiling wider, he pulled the Sheikah closer, careful not to torment the Sheikah further. The Sheikah moaned in his sleep, but not in pain, to Speil's surprise, but in comfort…or something else.

"Oh, Sheik," whispered Speil. "If only I could make up for everything I have done to you…"

* * *

Link could not ride fast enough. Epona raced on, doing her best even as her master kept kicking her sides, spurring her to go even faster. Had this been any other day, she would have thrown Link off and probably given him a kick for good measure, but she could sense that her master was desperate to get somewhere as fast as possible.

It never occurred to the Hero to use the Ocarina to teleport to the Forest Temple, where he would be able to search for Sheik right away. But then, Link's mind was not working very rationally at the moment. He had gone for at least two days without proper sleep, and the fight with Vorpheus, while not particularly difficult, had drained him of a lot of his strength. He suspected strongly that he would fall over if he got off Epona right then.

He passed by several burnt-out villages, yet they did not faze. Both because he had seen them at least once before, but also because he simply did not have time to worry about anyone else.

The moon was high in the sky when he finally spotted the tree line that marked the border of the Lost Woods, where Ganondorf could not yet tread. He could see no smoke or firelight from where he estimated Zelda's camp was located, which was a good sign.

He rode as far in as the tree density allowed him, after which he jumped off Epona, wobbled slightly as his body got used to being on the ground again, and started running, leaving the equine alone in a clearing. Epona looked after him for a few minutes before snorting and turning her head to the direction of the camp, where Maladict was waiting for her. Snorting again, Epona galloped.

Branches whipped Link in the face, and roots conspired to trip him up. The forest around him was a green blur as he sped up, trying to orient himself all the while. He had lived in these woods for all of his life, he knew it like the back of his own hand…where a certain triangle was supposed to be. As he jumped over a large boulder, he suddenly remembered that _two_ entities had entered the realm, and he had a good idea of who the second was.

What if Sheik was under the shadow's influence completely? Would he be forced to fight Sheik? Growling, Link hacked down a small, innocent tree that had the audacity to stand in his way with his sword. Suddenly, he realised that he had forgotten his shield back at the lake. Cursing his own stupidity, Link continued on, hoping that Mugen or one of the other spies would bring it back. The shield was truly one of a kind, and the goddesses would probably never forgive him if he lost it…

…not that he cared what the goddesses thought.

Coming to a stop in the clearing where he had many times seen the mysterious Skull Kid play his flute, he looked around. Where was he supposed to start? The forest was enormous, and it was easy to get lost in the maze of tunnels that seemed to stretch on forever.

Leaning against the small "stage" in the middle of the clearing, he panted and tried to form a plan. He had—yet again—forgotten to ask Vorpheus exactly _where_ these two new additions to the realm had landed, though he had a feeling it couldn't be too far from civilization. Perhaps close to one of the refugee camps? Shaking his head, Link realised something else—he had forgotten where these camps were.

"If only Sheik had been here to remind me…" he told himself and punched the tree trunk that served as the Skull Kid's stage.

He drew Kazuya, which was still fastened to his bandoleer. The blade still shone in the near-darkness, the weak light from the moon reflecting off the blade.

"Where is your master?" Link whispered, hoping that by some miracle the blade would suddenly start to shine and point him in the direction of the Sheikah he had fallen for so hard. The only thing the curved blade did was to vibrate slightly…

…wait, vibrate? Link's eyes widened as he looked at Kazuya, seeing (and feeling) the tremors passing through the steel or whatever kind of metal it had been forged from. He turned around, and the vibrations stopped. He turned back, and the sword started to shake again. Grinning, Link walked forward, having found himself a compass of sorts.

There were no paths in this part of the forest, he saw. He couldn't remember whether Saria had showed around here or not, but he was pretty certain she hadn't. It was too…overgrown and wild, as if nothing living had walked here for centuries.

Not even yet another branch smacking into his face could deter him now, and Link kept walking, removing anything that stood in his face, be it tree, bush or rock. Trees were hacked down, bushes crushed beneath his boots and rocks blasted to pieces with his spin attack. He was anything but quiet and stealthy as he moved along, but he couldn't be bothered with such niceties now. Sprout would surely be cross with him when he returned for damaging the forest like this…but the consequence did not seem nearly as harsh considering the reward.

* * *

Speil looked up, hearing distant bangs of explosions. He could also feel a _very_ familiar presence approaching at breakneck speed. The shadow grinned slightly and extracted himself from the sleeping Sheik, who whimpered slightly at the loss of contact and heat.

"I am sorry, Sheik…but the Hero and I are not ready to meet just yet…I will see you again very soon," he said, steeling his gaze and focusing it on the point along the tree line where he knew there would soon be a green-clad youth standing.

* * *

He could see an opening in the trees, and Link pushed forward. He emerged from the darkness, only to see two familiar points of red suddenly disappear. Next to them was…he gasped and ran toward Sheik, fearing the worst.

"Sheik? Sheik!" he exclaimed as he fell to his knees next to the Sheikah, not noticing the strange sword near him. He shook his shoulder, trying to wake him up. He noted the bandage across his left eye with worry and felt around the Sheikah's throat, trying to locate a pulse. He sighed in relief when he found one, and was glad to find Sheik quite warm.

Having made sure Sheik was alive, Link stood up, looking at the point where the two red dots had been seconds before, glaring at the spot. He drew the Master Sword, wielding both it and Kazuya as he looked around, trying to find those tell-tale pinpoints of his darker self.

"I know you're there, Shadow!" he shouted. "If you have hurt him…I swear to the goddesses that I will hunt you down and slaughter you!"

No one answered.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 50**

* * *

The world slowly came into focus as Sheik was slowly called out of the soothing darkness of sleep by a very rude and impatient person. Judging by the voice, it was a girl, a young one at that. His eye jerked—if such a thing was possible—in pain when she screeched into his ear.

"Wake up!"

It was obvious to Sheik that nothing would make the girl cease her infernal screaming, and trying to return to a state of sleep would be useless. Irritably, he opened his working eye—being careful not to disturb his injured one—and gave her the best glare he could possibly muster at the moment. He felt as if a horse and cart had run him over and left his bleeding and broken body along the road in pieces.

"What do you want?" he asked gruffly, his throat constricted by what felt like the cold of the century. A stuffed nose also reported for duty, and it was finally confirmed. Sheik was sick. He looked closer at the girl, and recognised her instantly. It was Malon. She did not answer his question. "What…do…you…want?" he asked again, slowly this time in case his slurred and constricted words did not register properly in her ear.

"I wanted to wake you up," the ranch girl said, smiling at him. The last time they had met, she had given him fearful glances, surely worried that he would grant her the same fate that Ingo had suffered. However, Ingo had suffered rightly so. He tried to smile at her, but her expression did not change, neither for the better nor for worse. He felt fabric against his mouth. Someone had put his cowl back on, for which he was infinitely grateful. Too many people in the last couple of weeks (or was it a month?) had seen his face, and while he could make exceptions for two or three of them, he truly did not wish for all of Hyrule to see what he looked like. His eyes and clothes were enough to remind them of _whom_ and _what_ he was. His face was not needed. "You have been stirring for the last couple of hours, and the doctor thought it was time for you to come back," he continued.

"Doctor?" asked Sheik and looked around for the first time. He was lying on a cot inside a small, white tent. Another bed stood next to his, though he could not spy its occupant among the many sheets and blankets. He could hear moaning and groaning close by, and he instantly recognised them as the sounds of the injured or dying. So he was in some sort of field hospital, but had been given a private tent along with the other one. He was naked under the sheets, he noticed, and felt a blush creeping up on his face. The last thing he needed was for…unapproved people to see him fully exposed. Glad that someone had seen fit to cover his face, he looked up at Malon. She was wearing an all-white outfit consisting of a blouse and simple pants, something not usually seen on Hyrule females. The front of the blouse was, however, stained with red.

"Yes, the doctor," confirmed Malon, obviously sensing the Sheikah's confusion. "Link brought you back from the forest three nights ago—"

"Hold on, _three_ nights?" asked Sheik. He _knew_ he had been exhausted from his ordeal in Twilight, but was it really so bad that he needed three whole days to recuperate? He remembered Terra explaining that time ran slower in that realm, but was he really so connected with Hyrule that the time difference affected him that much?

"Three nights," said Malon again, her voice calm and confident, a radical change from how she had acted around him a month ago. "As I said, Link brought you back from the forest—"

Again, Sheik interrupted her. "Link brought me back? How did he find me?" he asked. As far as he knew, Link possessed no extra perceptive powers and could not feel other people's presence the way Sheik could. And the Lost Woods, which was one of the places in Hyrule with the most magical ambience, it would have been impossible to scry for him using magic.

"He did not say," answered Malon. "All I know is that he was just as exhausted as you were and collapsed right after delivering you to the hospital." She nodded her head in the other bed's direction. "You two really need to learn how to slow down."

Sheik looked at the bed, and the occupant stirred. He didn't even need to see the face to recognise that mop of hair, the pointy ears and the little ring that dangled from his left one to know that the Hero of Time was sleeping in it. As if that hadn't been enough, the Hero's unconscious mind found it necessary to announce his state of sleep to the world by giving the loudest snore Sheik had ever heard. He was sure he heard the glasses of water on the small table between the beds rattle.

Giggling, Malon put a sheet over Link's face, which served little to no use in muffling the tempest. The ex-ranch girl then walked back to Sheik's bed and leaned forward, starting to fiddle with the bandage over his eye. "Hold still," she ordered when Sheik jerked away. "The wound was serious, and I wanna see if the potions have worked."

"Potions?" asked Sheik as he forced himself to relax while Malon unrolled the bandage.

"The wound was festering when you came in," answered Malon. "We force-fed you potion after potion, but the doctor is still unsure if we can save the eye." She suddenly stopped, looking embarrassed.

Sheik knew why, and shook his head slightly. "It's alright…I already know. And I too highly doubt the possibility of it ever functioning again. The one who did this to me used black magic to infect me."

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Malon, returning to her task of unrolling the covering. It astounded Sheik just how many meters of bandage they had used on him. "You are taking it surprisingly well," she said after a minute of silence.

"That is what I have been trained for," replied Sheik. "I will do my duty until my very last breath," he said, repeating part of the oath he had taken five minutes before Ganondorf had attacked Hyrule Castle seven years ago.

"That's awful," said the ranch girl softly as the last of the bandage gave way. Sheik, had he not heard the true story of his people, would have been inclined to agree. But his people truly owed the Hylians their very lives. Malon gasped when she saw what lay beneath the bandage.

 _Oh no,_ thought Sheik. He looked at Malon. "Do you have a mirror?" he asked. "Let me see what the damage is." The girl nodded and handed him a small hand-held mirror from the table. It was impossible to see to his left, Sheik realised as he slowly lifted the mirror, angling it so he could actually _see_ his damaged eye.

"Oh," he said simply. He truly could not find anything else to say. The wound itself had closed and mostly healed, though a long, wicked scar (quite similar to Terra's, he thought) ran down from his eyebrow to lower cheek. The skin looked healthy, however. Speil had described it him as a black, disgusting mass, but the potions had obviously done their job. The thing that stood the most out, though, was the eye itself. From what he could see, it still moved around as if it could see. It was still of ruby colour save for a snowy white slit that ran along where the phantom's spear had sliced it. It reminded him of a cat's eye, only with white instead of black. "I…imagined it to be worse," he said.

"Can you see with it?" Malon asked, lightly taking the mirror out of Sheik's non-resisting hand. "Does it work?"

"No," said Sheik and shook his head, regretting it when the muscles protested and the Symphony of Pain once again started its orchestration, the conductor obviously a personal enemy and nemesis of Sheik at this point. He looked at her. "Tell me," he said, "as an outsider…how bad does it look?"

Malon looked around, focusing on anything but him. When Sheik did not say anything and merely stared at her until she finally looked back at him, and a smile, a sad one, quirked at her lips. "A few more potions and several days of rest should take away most of the scar," she said.

"I did not ask whether it would go away," said Sheik, feeling slightly relieved that more potions could possibly take the edge off the damage. "I am asking if I look truly hideous and disgusting at the moment."

"I'm sorry," she said, and Sheik nodded as his fear was confirmed. Well, it wasn't as much a fear as it was a small worry gnawing at the back of his head. What would Link think of this? He didn't think the Hero was a shallow person by any means as he had seen the Hero act kindly to everyone on several occasions. He looked at the sleeping Hero.

 _Will you hate me now?_ he thought.

* * *

It had been years since Sheik had slept as he did for the next two days. He only spent five or ten minutes at the time awake, usually at meal and potion times, and the rest he spent asleep. Every time he was awake, though, he took advantage of the time he had to just look at Link. The first time he woke up to Malon screeching in his ear, he had been too tired for the idea that he was finally back with his Hero to truly settle in his head, but now he was aware.

The Hero had lost weight, he saw, and Malon had filled him in on the details. The Hero had come running back to what he had been told was the new headquarters of Zelda after the last was discovered with Sheik in his arms, screaming for help. One of the physicians had accepted his burden, and Link had swayed where he stood. The physician had asked whether or not the Hero needed help as well, upon which Link had informed him that he had been operating on pure adrenaline for the last twelve hours and had not been sleeping well for the last week. And then he had collapsed to the general alarm of the gathered refugees, soldiers and medics.

 _Was he worried about me?_ was a question that kept reappearing in Sheik's mind. Had the Hero lost his sleep over Sheik ever since the incident in the Spirit Temple? Another thought usually accompanied the question, and he felt endless guilt over it every time: _I hope so_.

Yawning, he looked away from the Hero to the nightstand, where most of his dinner still remained on his plate, glaring at him. It was a large portion of some kind of stew, which was delicious, but Sheik had never eaten so much in one sitting. He too had lost too much weight, according to Malon, and she made sure that he ate every single bit of his dinners. It led to a few awkward moments as he tried to hide his face from her as he ate, but it worked out somehow. The same happened when he drank potions, but that too solved itself somehow.. However, a failed ambush on one of Ganondorf's convoys had left many soldiers wounded, and she was too busy to keep track of his nutritional habits today. Lying on his side, Sheik ignored the silently accusing stew and continued looking at Link. He didn't wake up whenever Malon tried, but every medical expert assured them both that it was merely because of exhaustion.

The scar was fading slowly but surely. It had gotten much smaller now, but the part just across his eye remained inflamed and viciously red. And the white line was still making him look like a cat, or so his other eye told him. His vision blurred, and he knew that he was falling asleep again. His body was aching less and less, which meant he was getting better, but moving was still out of the question. Trying to get into a comfortable position, he let the darkness overtake him.

* * *

"His heart is beating faster," noted the doctor as she stood over the sleeping Hero. "And his eyes are moving beneath the lids. This indicates that he is dreaming. He will probably wake up soon." She straightened up and moved over to Sheik.

Rare were the Hyrulian person that could scare Sheik, but this stone-faced, no-nonsense, purple-haired young woman affected him on a far deeper level of fear than Impa's worst moods and periods of angers had ever done. Whenever she was around, Sheik made sure to eat every last bit of his meals and drink the last drop of every bottle of potion, no matter how bitter or sour the liquid tasted. Her spectacles, small and around, were forever perched on the tip of her rather long nose, and her eyes, which were the iciest blue Sheik had ever seen, peered at him suspiciously through the spectacles.

"Has he been eating his meals?" she asked Malon, who Sheik had found out was permanently assigned to tend to Sheik and Link unless an emergency like the failed ambush was in progress. At Malon's confirmation, she narrowed her eyes at Sheik, who felt like whimpering and pulling away from the doctor. "And the potions? They have _all_ been finished to the last drop?"

"Yes, Doctor Kaura," said Malon. "I have made sure of it."

Kaura's face did not change as she looked Sheik in the eye, as if daring the Sheikah to make a comment on her treatment methods. "And how do we feel today?" she asked. The question, which was usually asked in a kind and slightly condescending manner to make a patient feel better, felt like a ton of bricks suddenly being dropped on him.

"F-fine," answered Sheik, surprised that of all the enemies and threats he had faced in his relatively short life, the person responsible for his wellbeing and healing seemed far more terrifying. But this was, apparently, how she was with all of her patients and not just Sheik, so he assumed that she had no prejudices against him.

"No stomach aches or other pains?" she asked, her voice even and commanding. A lock of her strangely-coloured hair refused to stay in the tight bun she usually tied her hair in. Somehow, this lock only made her scarier.

"No," answered Sheik, realising his mistake too late.

"No, _what_?" asked the scary woman.

"N-no, Doctor Kaura," said Sheik sheepishly. She had made it very clear on their first meeting that he was to refer to her by her title and last name exclusively, or she would personally take his other eye. Normally, Sheik would answer the threat with one of his own, but Malon shaking her head fiercely behind Kaura had told him that this was not a very wise idea.

"Good," she said and made a note on the piece of paper she carried around at all times. She then turned to Malon. "Make sure he drinks the potion _before_ he goes back to sleep," she told the girl. She made to exit the tent, but turned back to look at Sheik. Fixing him with yet another of her fierce looks, she said: "Sweet dreams." With that said, she disappeared through the flap, leaving Sheik and Malon alone with the sleeping Link.

Sheik released the breath he hadn't even realised he was holding. Malon giggled at his desperate attempt to regain his oxygen.

"She truly scares you, doesn't she?" she asked as she uncorked a bottle of the vile red potion that stood on the nightstand. "I don't think I've seen you this disturbed since…that night at the ranch." She paused slightly as she obviously remembered the events of that fateful night.

"She does," confirmed Sheik, pleadingly looking at her as she approached with the bottle, silently praying that she would trip and spill the contents. He didn't mind a red potion every once in a while, but he had been drinking at least four bottles a day for the last three days, and he was wondering how in Hyrule they could keep it up the production to satisfy the demand. The war was not going well, judging by the sounds of the wounded in the larger tents close to theirs, and the amount of potion consumed in the last month must surely have been approaching the level of water in Lake Hylia…which was where the water in the potion originated from, ironically enough. But then, the magic of the temple would surely keep replenishing the water supply as it had done for the last thousand years.

The subject was uncomfortable for the ranch girl, and Sheik decided to change it before any more questions about Ingo or other things came up.

"How is your father?" he asked, knowing that Talon had been injured when Ganondorf finally decided that Lon Lon Ranch was unneeded and torn it down. The injury itself had not been serious, but the subsequent infection that set in as they removed the arrow from his shin had almost killed him. But he was recovering among the soldiers in the larger tent.

"Oh, he is getting better every day," answered Malon, her eyes thanking him for changing the subject. "He's laughing again now, and he cheers up the other wounded with stories from the ranch."

"That's good. The world would be a sadder place without your father's booming laughter," said Sheik, smiling. He thought for a second, decided and slowly removed his cowl, revealing his face to the ranch girl.

She froze, not even able to gasp. "You're…beautiful," she said slowly, mirroring Link's exact words when he had taken off his cowl in front of the Hero. "But why?" she asked, her brow furrowing.

"I trust you," said Sheik. "I know you will not tell anyone else about my face if I ask you not to." He smiled again, the smile actually visible to Malon this time. "So please do not."

"Of course not," said Malon, a shy smile on her face. A blush had found its way to her face as well.

 _Damn, I forgot that she does not know about my relationship with the Hero…_ he thought, hoping that he would not find himself in an embarrassing situation where both Link and Malon would be vying for his affection…

 _Where did_ that _come from?_ he asked himself. Was he truly this confident in his own looks? He sounded so…arrogant to himself. _It's the potions,_ he thought. _All the potions are starting to affect my brain._ He was caught off-guard when Malon suddenly handed him the bottle of potion, and groaned.

"Now-now," Malon said. "If you want to be a big boy, you have to drink your medicine."

Suddenly wishing he had his cowl back on, he drank the absolutely disgusting liquid and tried to glare at her, failing miserably. "Just how old do you think I am to treat me like a child?" he asked. "I am probably older than you anyway."

"Is that so?" asked Malon. "How old are you, then?"

"Sixteen," he answered.

"Eighteen, soon nineteen," said Malon.

_Damn!_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 51**

* * *

Sheik had finally been allowed out of bed by Malon after a straight week of uninterrupted rest on the order of Dr. Kaura. His first steps were shaky, but the idea of needing Malon to support him was enough to correct this lack of stability in his legs. He was wearing a loose, white shirt that was far too large for him and drowned his arms and hands in its sleeves, and the pants…well, they had to be held up with a rope, the patient's clothes being meant for someone of a much larger stature than the teenaged Sheikah. Shoes, unfortunately, were rare, and his own were still being repaired as best a Hyrulian shoemaker could…although working with Sheikah footwear had never presented itself as an opportunity to the poor shoemaker, who was apparently losing more and more hair for each day that passed. The only thing even remotely fitted Sheik was the cowl, and even that seemed a bit big at times.

Walking around the little camp, Sheik realised that the war was going far worse than he had ever imagined. Seven years ago, the Hyrulian Army had numbered in the thousands, each soldier capable and well trained. This number, close to forty thousand, had now dwindled to thirteen thousand fresh and able men and women, while the remaining twenty-seven thousand were either wounded, captured or dead. When Sheik had asked one of the wounded soldiers how Ganondorf could possibly have wrought so much damage on Zelda's army, he was told that the Evil King had brought in reinforcements from the many countries around Hyrule that had long been harbouring grudges with the largest kingdom of the world. Even when (and it was a question of when, not if) Ganondorf would be defeated, Zelda would still face the challenge of treasonous nations trying to encroach on Hyrule territory.

It was not until he returned to his bed, thoroughly exhausted, that he realised something strange. None of the soldiers in the camp were acting hostile towards him despite his heritage. Granted, most of them had seen Sheik on various occasions, usually accompanying Zelda, so perhaps they trusted him considering he was their princess' personal bodyguard. But then, most of the armed forces respected him and his people for their abilities. It was always the civilian population that had treated the Sheikah with suspicion and contempt, most of the enmity directed at their culture in general, which encouraged everyone—be it boy, girl, man or woman—to learn how to defend themselves and fight, something the average Hylian relied on the army to do.

While Sheik did not personally agree with the civilian Hylians, he respected their opinion, though he secretly wished that they would sometimes take responsibility for their own safety for once, instead of calling for help and acting like spoiled children when help arrived too late. Malon was about to help him back into bed—his movement was still being constricted by sore and aching muscles—when another nurse, a young man, came panting into the tent.

"Doctor Kaura needs help," he simply said. He looked at Sheik, and the Sheikah noticed the young man's eyes widening slightly. He then looked back at Malon. "Now." Nodding, Malon smiled to Sheik and went with the other nurse.

This fitted Sheik perfectly as he had no wish to go back to bed for the time being. Instead, he hobbled over to Link's bed. The Hero looked so peaceful in his sleep, and Sheik noticed the eye movement that Kaura made so many comments about. He hoped that this was a sign of the Hero's imminent awakening. The irony was not lost on him that Link had been the one to save him this time rather than the other way around. Making sure no one could see them through the tent opening, he reached out and softly stroked Link's cheek with the back of his hand.

"Get well soon, Link," he whispered as he leant down and placed a soft kiss on the Hero's forehead.

Reluctantly, he went back to his bed and buried himself in the covers, suddenly realising how tired he was.

* * *

He was finishing the last of the damnable stew when the stirring from the other bed roused his attention. He looked at the sleeping Link, anxious for the Hero to finally wake up from his ridiculously long nap, as Malon kept calling it.

When the Hero only gave a loud sigh and turned over, Sheik felt his good mood plummet. Two more days had passed since he had kissed Link's forehead, and he had hoped that the affectionate action would reignite the Hero's consciousness. He had started to move, though, which was a tremendous improvement and an extremely good sign according to the wicked witch of the south, also known as Dr. Kaura. The scary physician had just left him twenty minutes ago, and he could still feel slight tremors through his body.

 _Still_ , he thought with a slight smile, _it means he will wake up soon…though how soon "soon" is…no one knows._

He put the wooden bowl on the nightstand and got out of bed, shivering slightly in the morning cold. How the army found it possible to keep feeding its wounded the stew was something he did not know, but he assumed it had something to do with the Lost Woods' magically replenishing supply of wildlife…quite handy, he thought.

The toes on his bare feet curled as they touched the carpet, which felt strange. He stood in the tent opening, looking at the camp.

It was one of the smaller refugee camps, according to Malon, and the one used mainly for medical emergencies, which was why both Sheik and Link had been moved here on Zelda's orders. The princess herself had yet to visit them, though she sent her well-wishes and love almost every day via a courier, also promising to pay a visit as soon as her schedule permitted her doing so. Sheik couldn't blame her, really. A guerrilla war is difficult enough to fight without having to entertain wounded soldiers on top of it all.

The camp itself was located in a small, hidden valley somewhere in the woods. He was not entirely sure of its exact location as he had not been able to see a map, nor was he allowed one. Dr. Kaura was particularly strict about her patients doing anything mentally or physically strenuous, and looking at maps and battle reports were apparently part of these categories. Sheik didn't dare to ask for any information about the war from her either. In any case, Sheik was, for the moment completely lost.

Stepping outside, he smiled when he felt the grass beneath his feet tickling him. There really was something…liberating about just walking around with no shoes on. He now understood how Link felt whenever he angrily tore his boots from his feet and walked around in the forest when he was annoyed.

As he walked through the camp, taking care not to step into the inevitable mud pits that resulted from many pairs of feet stepping on a single patch of ground over a few days, he noticed that many of the soldiers—injured and on duty alike—nodded to him, which he did his best to return. He was unused to this, though that was mostly his own fault since he had always tried to keep his distance to other people.

Maybe it was because of this surprise and wonder that made him inattentive, for before he knew it, he was standing right before Kaura, who stared at him with a mix of annoyance and…was that worry?

"What are you doing out of bed?" she asked calmly. She was carrying a bag filled with a number of bottles with unknown liquids, and her hair was rather frazzled. "You're nowhere near well enough to be walking around." She was particularly concerned about his eye; it seemed by the way she was staring at it.

"My presence here tells otherwise," retorted Sheik, not even realising who he was talking to before saying it. For a moment, he truly wished he was Link and could turn back time.

"Don't be smart with me, young man," the icy woman answered and glared at him, all traces of compassion gone. "You may have internal injuries, and those will become aggravated if you keep on prancing around camp."

 _Prancing?_ Sheik thought. He tried to look Kaura in the eyes, but found that his gaze kept sliding away, as if his own, treacherous eye was trying to tell him not to do so. "I can assure you that I have _not_ pranced, and I _will_ not either. I am merely stretching my legs." Even before he finished the sentence, he knew he was in deep trouble.

It was the way her entire being seemed to lock up that told him so. Every limb went rigid, every aspect of her being going completely still…except for a vein on her forehead which threatened to burst at any second. And then the single most terrifying thing the woman possessed came into being… _the smile_.

It was not a big smile, and Sheik wasn't completely sure on whether or not he would actually categorise it as a smile, but the corners of her mouth just seemed to lift for a bit, as if she took great glee in her patients defying her.

"Is that so?" she asked slowly, her eyes growing colder. "Just stretching your legs, huh?" She looked around, spotting a soldier seemingly with nothing to do. She whistled and motioned him over. The closer he got, the bigger he seemed. He towered over both of them, and Kaura was quite tall to begin with, certainly taller than both Sheik and Link.

"Can I help you, Doctor?" the soldier asked, his face masked by the visor on his helmet.

"I need your assistance in leading this patient back to his bed," she said sweetly, completely fooling the soldier into believing she was a nice person. "He is quite unruly, so I believe some restraint shall be necessary."

"Yes, Doctor," said the soldier and, without any effort whatsoever, picked up Sheik and threw him over his shoulder. "Where to?" the soldier asked.

"This way," said Kaura and walked on, leading the soldier back to Sheik and Link's tent.

"Didn't you say something about internal injuries?" asked Sheik as he felt the sharp edges of the soldier's pauldron digging into his ribs. "Aggravation, and such?"

"Did I?" asked Kaura, her voice taking on an innocent tone. "Oh dear, I believe the patient is far worse than I though if he thinks he hears things," she added to the soldier, who chuckled dumbly.

* * *

"Now, if I see you out of this bed one more time, I will personally tie you to it, understand?" asked Kaura, glaring down at Sheik through her spectacles. The soldier had not been particularly soft-handed with the Sheikah, and the bed had creaked ominously when he had all but hurled Sheik into it. And Kaura had merely watched with what seemed like amusement.

"You do not believe I have any internal injuries, do you?" asked Sheik, rubbing his sore chest. If it hadn't been for the shirt, he was sure that the sharp pauldron would have drawn blood. "Or you would not have enlisted the aid of that ruffian."

"No, you seem fine from what I have seen," confirmed Kaura, her visage not changing. "But you are still my patient, and my patients are to stay in bed until I tell them otherwise. I will ask again: _do you understand_?"

He nodded, noting that her voice was taking on its sharp edge again, a sure sign of impending doom. However, his mouth betrayed him yet again. "Why, though?"

"Why what?"

"…nothing," he said.

"Good," said Kaura and took out a bottle from her bag. She grinned sadistically and put it on the nightstand. "Your medicine for this morning," she said and turned to leave. "If Malon tells me you haven't drunk it, you know what will happen." She was about to leave the silent Sheik, but stopped in the opening, as if remembering something. "And it is out of principle, if you _must_ know why my patients must stay in their beds," she said and left.

 _Principle my arse,_ thought Sheik as he uncorked the bottle with his thumb and chugged down the potion, wincing at its aftertaste. Seeing as there was nothing else to do, he thought about going back to sleep, but a familiar cry caught his attention.

Kaiza the falcon flew in through the opening and perched on the bar at the foot of the bed, looking at him with what could only be a fine mix of relief and annoyance. She then literally jumped onto his chest, staring him down. Then she pecked at his nose, and Sheik grinned, lightly pushing her away.

"Alright, alright, that's enough!" he exclaimed when the falcon refused to cease her attack. "I missed you too, you softie," he said and stroked her head, smiling fondly at the messenger bird. "I keep forgetting it's been at least a week for you while barely a day or two for me," he said, as he felt like explaining himself to _someone_ , for once. In the last week, he had not been able to get things off his chest, and there was a story that _needed_ to be told, even if the only audience willing to hear it was a cantankerous falcon with a penchant for pecking out the eyes of people she didn't like.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 52**

* * *

"So where's Kaura today?" asked Sheik when Malon stepped into the tent. Yet another day had passed, and he was getting stir-crazy, which he felt slightly ashamed about since he was trained not to get impatient. But then, few of his skills remained these days.

The doctor had yet to show herself that day despite it being past noon. Usually, Kaura came by to check up on both of them at least twice before noon and thrice before nightfall. Malon looked bothered for a few seconds before approaching Sheik's bed. She leaned close.

"She's taken the day off," she whispered, looking around conspiratorially.

"You say that as if this is not a normal occurrence," stated Sheik, lowering his cowl in an attempt to remind her of the trust between them…or at least the trust that he _hoped_ existed between them. "What's wrong?"

"I don't think I should be saying this," said Malon uncertainly. She had started to tie her long, reddish-brown hair in a bun similar to Kaura's now. It was obvious the girl was an admirer of the strict physician.

"Come on, you can trust me," said Sheik, smiling gently as he did so. "I swear I will not tell anyone."

"Eh…," said Malon before seemingly making up her mind. "Alright…but you had better do good on your promise," she said and leaned even closer, her mouth close to the Sheikah's ear. "She lost five patients yesterday…she took it pretty hard."

"So she _does_ have a heart…" said Sheik slowly.

"Of _course_ she does," said Malon. "I don't think I've ever met someone more caring and loving than her." She smiled as she obviously remembered some experience with her idol (and possibly mentor, as he had seen Kaura show Malon how to do various procedures).

"That's quite hard to believe," said Sheik. "I have yet to see this caring and loving aspect of her personality." He felt tempted to laugh, but remembered on whose expense he would be doing so, and stopped himself.

"That's because you tend to annoy her at every turn," said Malon. "But really, it's because…well, you don't understand what it's like to be a doctor in this place. She has to deal with so many people dying under her care…she _has_ to act like she does, or it'll overwhelm her."

An uncomfortable silence stretched on. Sheik agreed with Malon, he really couldn't imagine how it would be to be a doctor in this place…

"I hear her crying at night, you know," continued Malon.

Again, a heavy, awkward silence hung over them, only interrupted by voices from the outside of laughing, crying and screaming men, women and children, all mixed in a horrible concoction one would only find in a refugee camp and field hospital.

 _What can I say?_ thought Sheik. _I thought she was just drunk on power and naturally arrogant…_

His musings were interrupted by a groan to his left, and two necks hastily turned to observe the second bed, where a bleary-eyed Hero of Time was currently trying to sit up and failing miserably.

 _Rest be damned!_ thought Sheik as he practically hurled himself out of his bed and was by Link's side in an instant, helping the older teen assume a more comfortable position.

"Easy, Hero," he said when Link started to look around, his eyes widening and panic setting in. The Hero was clearly confused as to where he was, and, judging from what Sheik had seen during the time he had known him, always felt threatened when in such situations. His voice seemed to have the desired effect, though, and Link's eyes settled on Sheik's face, but widened immediately afterwards.

"S-Sheik?" asked Link, his voice thick, crackling and gravelly, the result of not having used it for a long time. In Link's case, a week was practically an eternity as the Hero never seemed to shut up, but now he had, and it was devastating to hear.

A cup of water appeared to Sheik's right. Malon held out the cup to Sheik and smiled at him, clearly thinking that the Sheikah should be the one to give it the Hero. Nodding in gratitude, Sheik took the offered cup and held it to Link's lips. The Hero drank greedily and fast.

"Slow down, Hero," said Sheik as he drew the cup back slightly. He was having an oddly familiar feeling at the moment, almost as if he had gone through this with the Hero once before. And then he remembered, and chuckled.

"What's so funny?" asked Malon.

"Nothing, really…except that the Hero and I always end up like this, me feeding him water and treating him like a baby," answered Sheik.

"…not…a….baby…" said Link between gulps of water. His head was apparently clearing up quite fast, and his eyes seemed to sharpen for every second that passed. Sheik noticed that he was staring at his face, or, more specifically, his eye. Sheik dreaded the moment when Link would mention it.

"Keep telling yourself that, Hero," said Sheik, trying to ignore the continued stare. "It might come true…some day."

Malon giggled. Her footsteps grew softer as she stepped closer to the tent entrance. "I'll go tell Kaura he's awake," she said.

"I thought she had a day off," said Sheik as Link finished the last of the water.

"I think she'll make an exception for the Fairy Bo—I mean, the Hero of Time," she replied, correcting her use of Link's nickname. "He _is_ her patient, after all." With that, she disappeared.

Sheik bent down and put the cup on the floor…and was immediately assaulted by the tightest hug he had ever received by Link. The Hero, still the physically stronger of the two, pulled Sheik into the bed with him, burying his head in the Sheikah's neck.

"I was so worried, I was so worried," Link kept repeating, whispering into Sheik's ear as he started to place butterfly kisses along the Sheikah's neck. "I'm so sorry."

Surprised at the sudden embrace and barrage of kisses, apologies and relieved utterances, Sheik could do little but ask: "What for?"

"I could have saved you from the witches' spell," said Link, barely stopping to say this before continuing to kiss his partner. "I could've stopped you from going to Twilight…"

Sheik froze and pulled away, climbing out of the bed. "How do you know that?" he asked when Link gave him a confused look. "Who told you?"

"The Deku Sprout," answered Link, looking hurt. "What happened to your eye?" he asked, finally popping the question Sheik had dreaded so much. Link reached out to touch his face, but Sheik pulled back.

"It's ruined," Sheik said quietly, almost a whisper. "I understand if you think it's disgusting and—"

"Shut up," said Link and practically smashed his lips to Sheik's, silencing any comments from the Sheikah. At first Sheik tried to pull away, suddenly feeling trapped by the Hero's embrace.

 _How can he still want to kiss me when I look like this?_ Sheik thought, shocking himself with how vain he sounded. A sense of desperation overwhelmed him, and Sheik used every bit of his still recovering strength to pull away, vaulting out of the bed.

Link looked at him, blinking all the while. "Sheik?" he asked, surprised.

"I…I," the Sheikah tried to say something, _anything_ that would explain why he would suddenly tear himself away from his lover. When nothing offered itself, he could feel himself starting to cry, something he simply _could not_ deal with right now. Rubbing at his eyes, he silently turned around and walked out of the tent, ignoring Link's shouts for him to come back, asking what he had done.

The Hero stared after the retreating Sheikah until he disappeared behind another tent, unable to move. "What…?"

* * *

Unable to take his mind off the failure of a reunion in the tent, Sheik stalked around the camp, avoiding the general area where Link would be. Again and again he had to wipe away tears that threatened to spill over. He was acting irrationally, he knew, but…he just couldn't _stop_.

Sitting down on a rock facing the forest, he sighed and tried to calm down, his trembling arms forced down to his sides, gazing directly forward into the darkness among the trees.

The Hero had accepted him despite his eye injury, and he _knew_ he would…and _that_ was no the reason for his rapid departure. He had enjoyed the kiss, truly done so. But something had surfaced inside him, a thought and desire so treacherous to his own ideals, sense of honour and love…

…he had wished he was kissing Speil. He had even mentally replaced Link's face with his shadow's.

He felt like a traitor and adulterer…a scoundrel with no sense of loyalty or devotion, everything a Sheikah was not supposed to do.

A pain was building up inside his chest, and he had to scream, yet could not summon the strength or breath to do so. He clenched his eyes shut, his jaw tightening. His eye flared up with pain, his nails bit into the palms of his hands, drawing blood that slowly trickled down, staining his white clothes with little buds of red that spread outward.

And finally, it came. It started at the back of his throat, a scream that seemed to tear him apart from the inside as it emerged, echoing in the confines of the valley as was thrown back and forth between the hills and cliff sides. Soldiers, patients, doctors and nurses all looked up from what they were doing, shocked by the pain and desperation in the voice.

And then tears fell, completing Sheik's misery.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 53**

* * *

It was hopeless. No matter how many ways he looked at it, he was irreversibly, as Link would say, in deep shit. Sheik sighed and looked up. The sky was painted a fiery orange in the sunset, something that came faster and faster for each day that went. His tears had stopped hours ago, but it still felt like someone had dropped a stone in his stomach. He couldn't move, either. He had tried to stand up and, if not to return to the tent and the waiting Hero of time, then at least to get the circulation back in his legs, but his body refused to cooperate, and Sheik was left there, feeling like a fool and adulterer.

Some of the soldiers had tried to approach him, but the Sheikah had found no ability no answer them, his throat closing up and leaving him only able to make squeaking sounds. Some had laughed; some had given him worried looks and gone back to their posts. One of them had given him a flask of water which lay forgotten by his side. He appreciated the effort, he really did, but right now it felt like nothing could help.

That was probably the reason why he didn't react when soft footsteps approached him from behind. He didn't look up until a stool was placed beside his rock and Doctor Kaura, the Violet Tyrant as she was known as, sat down on it. Her hair, which was usually kept in a tight bun, hung from her head and cascaded down her back. Her hair was shorter than his, he noted with satisfaction, although his blond tresses definitely needed care these days. Water, unlike firewood and meat, was a luxury, and washing one's hair was usually lowest on the priority list.

He turned his head slightly to study Kaura more. She looked, for the lack of a better word, haggard. Her eyes had dark bags underneath them, and the eyes themselves were dull and unfocused, so unlike the piercing and fierce quality they had otherwise. Her spectacles were gone, probably left back wherever she slept. She wasn't looking at him, but staring straight ahead into the darkening woods.

 _Should I say something?_ Sheik asked himself, remembering what Malon had said about Kaura losing five patients in one day. Luckily for Sheik, she sighed and turned to look at him.

"No matter what I tell you, you just refuse to stay in your bed, don't you?" she asked, quirking her lips in an imitation of a smile. Sheik knew a fake smile when he saw one. He looked at her and nodded.

"I am not one for bed rest, no matter how bad shape I'm in," he replied. He thought about it for a split second, and gave her a smile of his own, trying to make it as genuine as possible. To his surprise, he found that he actually liked this woman despite her best attempts to be the scourge of his existence. It was…fun, to have someone like this who could verbally spar with him. Link was either too innocent or honest to engage in such activities with Sheik.

Kaura chuckled, a hollow, empty laugh. "I had heard that you Sheikah were stubborn, but I had no idea you gave such little consideration to your own health." She shook her head. "But I guess that's how you've kept yourselves in such high esteem with the royal family…never give up, never give in, am I right?"

"I suppose," answered Sheik. "I'm not really the one to ask as the only other Sheikah I have been in contact with is my aunt, and she is gone now," he said, leaving out Terra. His chest stung when the mental image of the spirit host passed by his mind's eye.

"I'm…sorry," said Kaura earnestly. "I didn't know she—"

"She's not dead," said Sheik, interrupting her. "She has merely…gone somewhere else…ascended to a higher existence," he said.

"Oh," said Kaura simply.

A silence stretched on, neither party coming up with anything to say. The sounds of the camp were increasing in volume, and torches were being lit to ward off the darkness of the night. An armoured soldier passed them by, his armour clinking as he shoved a pole with a lit torch on it into the ground.

"The Hero is up," said Kaura suddenly as the last light of the sun died behind the mountains to the west. "I half-expected you to throttle him into another coma, considering how worried you have been about him."

"I almost did," said Sheik, catching himself in the act of opening up to the doctor. But then he relaxed, thinking that even a vicious doctor like Kaura would uphold the trust and confidentiality between a doctor and a patient. "But then…"

"What?" asked Kaura, her eyes lighting up slightly, as if hearing about his misery perked her up. Sheik was about to lambast her for being an ice queen, but saw that it was not glee that had taken up residence in her eyes, but worry and…compassion? "What happened?" she repeated.

_What's the harm in telling her? I am mostly recovered, and if she becomes hostile about the our…relationship, then to hell with her._

He pinner her with what he hoped was his most serious look. "Do you swear to keep this a secret?" he asked gravely.

The doctor looked surprised for a second, but then nodded, adding: "I swear."

Sheik nodded and looked back at the forest, taking a moment to gather his thoughts, wondering how best to tell Kaura of the forbidden relationship between him and Link. Settling on the most direct route, he once again looked at Kaura.

"The Hero and I are…in a relationship, as in lovers." He stopped, waiting for a reaction from Kaura.

"Yes, and?" said Kaura, urging him on.

"You have nothing to say to that?" asked Sheik, surprised. Had Hyrule suddenly become accepting of such relationships?

"Should I have something to say?" asked Kaura, raising a purple eyebrow. Her eyes seemed to have regained some of its former sparks as her eyes were now fully focused and icy like they had been when the two had first met.

"No…I just…" said Sheik, his prepared speech now useless. "Hylians usually don't accept such unions…"

"Well, I'm not from Hyrule," said Kaura, smiling slightly. "I'm from Termina, and relationships where both partners are of the same gender are…well, not exactly common, but accepted as a facet of life, just like relationships with two different genders."

Sheik blinked, not expecting such an explanation. "I…see," he said.

"But the acceptance of your coupling is hardly what is bothering you, I suspect," continued Kaura. "Your willingness to reveal this to me proves it."

"You're right," said Sheik, nodding.

"So, are you going to tell me why you're not in the tent, molesting the Hero right now?" Kaura asked, flashing him a fiendish smile.

Ignoring the last part, Sheik cleared his throat. "I will not go into details, but…someone has come between us," he said. "And…I don't know how to handle it…" Images of Speil and Link flashed across his mind's eye.

"So, you're saying that you have fallen in love with someone else?" asked Kaura.

"No," protested Sheik. "I _haven't_ fallen in love with him…but he has fallen for me." What exactly he was denying, he didn't know.

"Then you need to tell him that you're not interested," said Kaura. "I'm sure he'll understand."

"I doubt it," said Sheik. "He and the Hero hate each other, and I'm not too sure how I feel about him myself."

"You just said you hadn't fallen for him," Kaura pointed out.

"Yes, I know," said Sheik, nodding. "But…well, I kissed the Hero when he woke up…but…I kept imagining myself kissing the other one instead…"

"Huh," said Kaura. And that was it. Another silence fell between them. "That is complicated," the doctor finally said. "You say you haven't fallen in love with this third person, yet imagine yourself kissing him instead of the Hero…" She looked at Sheik with an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry to say that relationships are _not_ my strong suit." She looked around. Night had fallen, and the temperature was dropping. "How old are you?" she asked.

"What?"

"You heard me. How. Old. Are. You?" Kaura asked, slowing down her sentence, as if talking to a child.

"Sixteen," Sheik answered, wondering just how many times he was going to answer the question the bloody hospital. It was supposed to be a secret, but four people knew of it now. Link, Malon, Zelda and Kaura.

"Ah," said Kaura and nodded, as if a great mystery had been solved. "No wonder."

"What?" asked Sheik, wondering if she had a solution.

"You're in the middle of your teens, a rather…turbulent time of one's life," she explained. "Your body is developing, and your chemical balance is thrown around from time to time, which has a tendency to cause trouble emotionally and psychologically." Kaura smiled, noticing Sheik's worried look. "Don't worry, it's quite natural. Hasn't anyone told you about this?"

Sheik silently shook his head. No one, not even his aunt, had warned him about this. He had never heard about chemical imbalances in one's body, at least not natural imbalances.

"Good grief, what do the physicians in this kingdom actually do, then?" Kaura asked, sighing in what seemed to be frustration. "No wonder the nurses have no idea what to do…" She noticed the inner turmoil currently rattling the Sheikah and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Listen, there is nothing wrong with what is happening to you. It happens to everyone. As for why you imagined yourself kissing someone else, well…sexuality is a strange thing, and the emotion known as love is not far from lust."

Sheik could feel his cheeks growing warm as blood rushed to colour them red in a blush. Happy for the cowl, he looked at Kaura. "So…it does not mean anything?" he asked.

"There _is_ a chance that it does mean something," said Kaura and smiled. "But there's just as big a chance that it is merely…something else talking." As she said this, she gave a meaningful glance downwards, causing the Sheikah to blush even more. Suddenly, the doctor rose to her feet, picking up her stool as well. "Relationships are strange things, Sheik," she said, surprising the Sheikah by using his name, which he could not remember giving her. "If there's a problem, there can only be two possible outcomes. The issue will resolve itself sooner or later. The only thing you can do is to enjoy what you have for now, and deal with the problems as you go." She turned to walk away, but paused and looked back. "Oh, and I'm going to give the Hero a full physical in a couple of minutes…I suggest you stay away until I'm done…if you can control yourself." She winked at him and walked away, leaving Sheik blushing and cursing her name.

* * *

"Hey," Link said as Sheik entered the tent, looking at his lover calmly. He did not say anything else, not wanting to upset him now that he was back.

"Hey," replied Sheik, suddenly feeling self-conscious when he noticed that Link's gaze kept being drawn to his damaged eye. He took a step forward, and stopped, cursing himself for forgetting what he had been planning to say.

"So what's up with that doctor, eh?" asked Link, breaking into a grin. If it was for Sheik's benefit, the Sheikah didn't know, but it easily beat the awkward lull. "I was like fighting those Iron Knuckle things again, at least just as painful."

"Yes, she is quite…firm-handed," Sheik said and approached Link's bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," replied the Hero. "Walking's still no good, but talking, eating and drinking is fine."

"Like always," said Sheik and smiled.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" asked the Hero.

"Exactly what you think, Hero," replied Sheik, pulling down his cowl to flash Link a smirk.

"Hey!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 54**

* * *

"No, no and _no_ , you are not allowed to spar with the soldiers!" Malon exclaimed as she did her best to push Link back into his bed, much to the Hero's dismay.

"But I'll rot away if I just stay in bed!" the Hero tried to argue, his eyes pleading. "And my strength is fading!"

Sheik was observing this with a smile on his face from his bed, which he was allowed to leave anytime he wanted provided he stayed close to the tent. He had to admit, Link had a point. The time in bed had not been kind to the Hero's physique, and the fact that Malon, who was rather thin, was able to keep him down was a testament to this. But, Kaura had been adamant about the Hero not leaving the bed before she came back that day, and Malon intended to follow her superior's order to the letter.

"Sheik!" Link all but shouted. "Help me!"

Grinning, Sheik shook his head, glad that his cowl was currently hiding his mirth. It was good to finally see the Hero put in his place. "Sorry, Hero, but the doctor insists…and I have no intention of going up against her. It is not a wise idea according to Malon."

"The last person who disobeyed her ended up with both arms in slings," said Malon, grateful for the slight reprieve in Link's struggles. "And he was just brought in for a small cut on his arm."

Link's eyes widened, and he ceased struggling altogether, making Malon sigh in relief. "Is that true?" the Hero asked, his voice trembling. It was joined by his bottom lip when Malon nodded, making him look like a little child who had just been denied dessert.

"Calm down, Hero," Sheik said, taking pity on the older teen. "You'll be allowed out of bed today, and then we must continue on the quest. You should be grateful for any time you can spend resting." As if to illustrate his point, Sheik straightened out in his bed, stretching his slightly sore limbs.

It had been a good day. He and Link had, after much covert snuggling, decided not to talk about any troubling subjects until they were both well enough to continue on their way, as it was obvious they were both made uncomfortable by something. Sheik knew exactly why _he_ was troubled, but what _Link_ knew was beyond him. But, they would cross that bridge after Kaura had cleared them for release, not a second before.

While Link anguished in his bed, Sheik had been out and about, talking to messengers and trying to get a general idea of what was happening in the outside world. Small snippets of which village had fallen or which officers had been killed was all he could garner as Zelda wanted to keep all vital information under wraps in case of spies. After the initial disappointment, he had gone to the quartermaster. He had been surprised that the field hospital even had such an officer, but he supposed that _someone_ had to keep tabs on which weapons and armours belonged to whom. The aging soldier—a sergeant by the look of his uniform—had first eyed him with distrust and refused to release his equipment, but Kaura had happened to walk past at that point.

After half a minute of glaring from the scary woman, the sergeant had relented and given Sheik back his weapons and clothes. His exoskeleton had been put aside by his bed as he did not feel like changing into the tight clothing just yet. He had also left Terra the sword and Kazuya behind with the quartermaster since he didn't want them in the tent. What he had truly wanted back were his daggers. He needed practice, especially since his newly acquired ocular handicap was ruining his depth perception.

The first half hour had been frustrating. He had not been able to hit a single bullseye, and had in most cases missed the targets completely. At one point, he had almost been in tears as the annoyance had built up. He had just about been ready to give up when an aging archer had noticed him and approached, asking if he needed help. At first, Sheik was going to tell him to shove off, that a Sheikah didn't need help with something as simple as throwing a dagger, but then he had noticed that the archer had the exact same injury as he. After an hour of tips and instructions, Sheik had finally been able to hit a target in approximately the same way he had been able to before the events in Twilight.

After thanking the old man, Sheik had returned to the tent, exhausted and confident that he would be able to fight again, where he had collapsed on the bed. Link had asked him where he had been, and, upon hearing what Sheik had been up to, insisted that he too should train and make sure he hadn't gone rusty. Malon had entered the tent, and then this spectacle had ensued.

* * *

The day after, Link was on his feet, walking around. His recovery was speedy, and he was already well enough to wear his weapons and armour that evening. Of course, this was probably due to the ungodly amount of red potion he had forced down his throat after realising that the longer he was bedridden and unable to fend for himself, the longer he was under the influence of Kaura.

Sheik had to admit, it was good to see the Hero back in his green tunic again, although a pair of proper pants would have been preferred instead of the white leggings. After casually mentioning this to Link, the Hero had laughed and pranced around in said leggings—and nothing else—for an hour. Thankfully, his sense of decency had kept him from doing outside the tent, but it had still made Sheik blush like a tomato.

Embarrassing episodes aside, the pair were now both standing in their usual outfits, studying each other in silence. It felt…good to have the Hero's gaze raking up and down his body again, Sheik realised and blushed.

"I'm not so sure about me, but you look great," Link finally said, grinning at his lover.

"Well, apart from… _those_ —"Sheik pointed at the leggings"—you look fine as well," the Sheikah answered.

"Just fine?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow as he tried to mimic Sheik's usual questioning expression. "You look great, and I look fine? Isn't that close to comparing an apple to chopped liver?"

"Chopped liver?" asked Sheik, doing his best to stop his own eyebrow from mirroring Link's. "That has to be the worst analogy I have ever heard, Hero."

Wrinkling his nose, Link turned away and started to strap on his bandoleer. "Not _everyone_ can be a smartass Sheikah," he mumbled.

 _And thank the goddesses for that,_ thought Sheik and pulled his hair up and tied his turban. It had been so long since he had last worn it that his hair felt unnaturally constricted. Shaking his head to check if it held, he tied the bandages around his hands, careful not to cut himself on the hidden daggers. He then unpacked the bundle that contained his swords, kindly fetched for him by Malon. Terra and Kazuya were so alike, yet so different. Kazuya's dominant colour scheme was dark blue, similar to Sheik's exoskeleton, while Terra's was green, reminiscent of the other Sheikah's suit.

"When did you get that?" Link asked from behind him. Sheik turned around and saw that the Hero had finished putting on his equipment surprisingly quick and was looking at Terra.

"I had it when I returned to this realm," said Sheik and strapped Terra to his back. "It was…a gift from someone." He looked at Link as he then strapped Kazuya to his back as well, arranging them in an X-shape on his back. He had not fought with dual swords for some time, but he hoped to relearn some of the things he had forgotten as he went.

"It looks vicious," said Link and smiled. "Just like you."

Sheik looked up. "Vicious? I thought you said I was beautiful?" He noticed that Link's eyes seemed to be drawn to his eyes these days.

"You _are_ ," said Link moved closer, stroking Sheik's cheek with the back of his hand. "But that scar, along with the swords, makes you look like a ferocious warrior." He leaned in close and kissed Sheik lightly.

After parting, Sheik stared at him with what he hoped was a sly expression. "So I didn't look like a warrior before?" he asked. "I don't know if I should feel vaguely offended or take it as compliment."

"I hope the latter," said Link and started to rustle around in his pack, which Malon had practically broken under the weight of. Sheik hoped Link wouldn't do the same. The Hero had lost a _lot_ of weight, and his strength was still not back to the point it had been before they entered the Spirit Temple. "By the way," the Hero said, making the Sheikah look back up. "You forgot something back in the desert."

"And what would that be?" asked Sheik with his back to Link as he tried to get used to the weight of two swords on his back. The Hero remained silent, forcing Sheik to turn around and look at what he was holding in his hands. The Sheikah's eyes widened. "You…took care of it?" he asked, his eye roaming the delicate wooden object.

"Of course," said Link and scoffed. "I know how much this means to you, and, let's be honest; this is a pretty big part of who you are." He held the object out to Sheik, who took it with a trembling hand.

Not noticing the surprisingly eloquent sentence Link had just uttered, Sheik let his fingers lightly roam along the strings of his lyre, playing a small warm-up melody. It had been so long since he saw the instrument, and it felt _right_ to have it back in his hands. He noticed Link looking at him expectantly and smiled under his cowl. Slowly, he moved his fingers, playing the melody that he had played the first time he and Link had met in the Temple of Time. Link smiled as he recognised the notes.

"There's the Sheik I know," the Hero said after the last of the strings' vibrations died out. He opened his mouth to say something else, but was interrupted as the younger teen embraced him, burying his face in Link's chest.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Sheik kept repeating, his words muffled by the fabric of Link's tunic.

Smiling gently, Link wrapped his own arms around Sheik and hugged him back. "You're welcome, Sheik…"

* * *

"Does Zelda even know we're here?" asked Link.

They were standing close to the makeshift gate of the field hospital. Dawn was breaking, and they were going back to the main camp, where the princess and main part of the army waited. The Kokiri village had been vacated when it became apparent that there would not be room for the amount of people who were flocking to it. Zelda's war camp had now been set up at the Sacred Forest Meadow, close to the Forest Temple. The area was probably the safest in the entire Lost Woods after the soldiers had cleared out the Moblin infestation. The only problem was the Skullkids, but they were mostly pulling pranks rather than causing trouble.

"Apart from our admittance here, I do not believe so," answered Sheik. One of the gate guards was looking at them strangely, and Sheik was trying to stare her down. "Especially since you all but knocked me down in order to prevent me from sending a message to her via Kaiza."

Sheik couldn't see it, but Link scratched his neck embarrassedly anyway. "Hey, you wouldn't yield to me."

Kaiza had appeared the day before during a particularly tiresome final check-up by Kaura. At first, Sheik had thought Zelda was demanding a mission report, but the falcon did not carry a message on her leg. Sheik had then figured that it would have been a good idea to write to tell Zelda that they were both fine. Link, however, did not agree, and had tried to take Sheik's writing supplies away from him. The Sheikah would have none of that, though, and a play-fight had turned into an earnest struggle of dominance which Link, with his more powerful frame and ample strength, had easily won.

"You could not honestly expect me to yield to an opponent who threatened with, and I quote, 'tearing out my remaining eye and feeding it to the crows', did you?" asked Sheik, smirking when the female soldier finally relented and looked away. He looked at Link. "Also, kicking someone between the legs, no matter the situation, will always be a cowardly move."

"Cowardly, but effective," said Link and grinned. The grin faltered, however, when Sheik's expression did not change. "Does it still hurt?" the Hero asked apprehensively.

"…the pain comes and goes, Hero," said Sheik. "I will make you pay for it some time, though, and I live by the eye for an eye-rule."

Link gulped and looked back at the many tents and small shacks that made up the field hospital. They were waiting for Malon, who had asked them to bring some medical supplies back to the main camp, which was running out of medicine.

As the silence stretched on, Sheik thought it appropriate to fill it with something and pulled out his lyre. It was not until he finally got it back that he realised just how much he had missed the instrument. It was like being reunited with an old friend after years of separation and still be able to remember every single detail about him. He started to play, not an established melody, but just random notes that somehow seemed to flow together and form an unknown song. As he continued playing, he noticed that Link had closed his eyes and was swaying back and forth to the music. Suddenly, the Hero opened his eyes, looked at Sheik, smiled and stuck a hand down one of the innumerable pockets on his tunic. Out came the Ocarina of Time, and then they were both playing.

It surprised Sheik to see Link pick up on the unknown melody so quickly. He hadn't expected the Hero to be so musical.

 _But that's what I get for only truly listening to him when I was teaching him the warp songs,_ he thought.

They both lost track of time while they played, the strings and flute intermingling and producing harmonies that would make a composer weep for the beauty of it all. The notes echoed in the forest, waking many of the dwellers within. Somewhere, wolves howled, doing their best to answer the call of the music. Why any wolves were awake or willing to answer was a mystery.

As the music faded, they both heard someone clapping. They opened their eyes (which none of them had noticed closing), and saw both Malon and Kaura standing there, smiling and applauding their improvised performance.

"That was beautiful," said Malon.

"Indeed," said Kaura. She was wearing night robes, indicating that she had just gotten out of bed, most likely because of Malon. Three heavy-looking packs lay at their feet. "Have you been practicing that piece for long?" the doctor asked.

"Actually, we've never played it before now," said Link and grinned. "It just kinda…happened."

"You were improvising?" asked Malon, her eyes widening. She looked to Sheik for confirmation.

The Sheikah nodded. "Yes, we were improvising. I was testing my instrument, and the Hero joined in."

"Impressive," said Kaura and pushed her spectacles further up her nose. Her hair had still not been arranged into the usual tight bun and hung freely, like it had done when she and Sheik had talked.

 _She should keep it that way…it makes her look less threatening,_ he thought. He pointed at the packs. "Are those the supplies?" he asked.

Kaura nodded. "Yes. These packs contain enough red potion and bandages to last them the week it takes to organise a larger convoy. They're heavy, though, so I'm not sure if you should be carrying them by yourselves…" She trailed off, looking purposefully at the two boys. "In fact, I forbid it," she suddenly said. "I have just discharged you from the hospital, and I will not have all my hard work undone by something like this. I shall find someone else to—"

"That's not necessary," said Link, shaking his head. "We've got transportation." Without pausing, he put the ocarina to his lips and played that all-too-familiar song. Malon recognised it immediately and smiled.

"You've been taking good care of her?" she asked, directing the question to Sheik, who nodded.

The morning silence was disturbed by a distant whinny, and the fast-approaching thundering of hooves. As they approached, Sheik could hear that there were more than four hooves involved in the noise, and he smirked.

 _Those two sure are close,_ he thought as both Epona and Maladict burst out from the trees, tore across the field and into the small valley where the hospital was located.

"Where did those two come from?" asked Kaura, wondering if the horses had been waiting in the forest all this time.

"The main camp, obviously," said Link in a matter-of-factly voice.

"The main…camp?" said Kaura, her left eyebrow twitching slightly. "Which is several miles away?"

"I find it best not to ask when it comes to this horse," said Sheik in what he hoped was a kind voice. Epona snorted at him and pushed her muzzle against his arm, as if acknowledging that he had been gone and that it was good to see him again. Maladict took it one step further and chomped down on his turban, tearing it off. Sheik narrowed his eyes at the stud, which actually managed to look quite innocent as it let go of the fabric of Sheik's headwear. "You are being quite unruly, you know that?" Sheik asked Maladict, who snorted.

"He's just upholding our agreement," said Link and pointed to both their heads. "No cap, no turban, remember?" he asked and laughed.

"That was an agreement?" asked Sheik. "I thought I was giving and receiving a compliment."

"I think you are the victim of a verbal contract," said Kaura and handed Link the first of the packs. The Hero tied the pack to Epona's saddle—where exactly the saddle had come from; he didn't want to know—and petted her neck.

"That's right!" exclaimed Link. "Verbal contract."

Sheik took a long, hard look at Link's back. The Hero seemed to notice as he froze mid-motion. "Do you even know what those words mean?" asked the Sheikah.

"I know there's a contract involved," said Link and continued to load Epona, doing his best to avoid Sheik's piercing stare.

Sheik sighed slapped his forehead. "Unbelievable."

"Good grief, you two bicker like children," said Kaura and unceremoniously tossed the remaining pack to Sheik, who barely caught it and was almost thrown to the ground by the weight.

"I thought you wanted us to be careful," said Sheik and did his best to attach the pack to Maladict's saddle, but the stud's height and playful cantankerousness did not help him.

"Eh," the doctor simply said as she watched her ex-patients almost work themselves to death with the medical supplies. "If you're well enough to argue, you're well enough to lift something."

Eventually, Malon took pity on Sheik and helped him. After making sure the supplies were carefully fastened and wouldn't fall off, Sheik and Link turned to Malon and Kaura. Both sides were unsure of what to say.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye…for now, anyway," said Link. He smiled at them both. "Thank you both."

"We are in your debts for all you have done for us," said Sheik, bowing.

Malon blushed and giggled at the sudden formality. "Please, it was nothing, really."

"She's right," said Kaura. "You two must have been the easiest patients we've had this entire damnable war. A bit of bed rest and potion and you were good to go."

"We are still grateful," said Sheik and jumped up into Maladict's saddle. "And we will be at your service if you ever need help."

"That's right," said Link and climbed onto Epona. The height difference between the two equines suddenly became even more apparent with riders.

Malon couldn't suppress a giggle, and Kaura raised a thin eyebrow. "Why is it that the Hero of Time has the smallest horse?" she asked.

"Luck of the draw, I suppose," said Sheik and smiled. He looked at Link. "If we want to reach the camp before dark, we must leave now." He nodded to Malon and Kaura. "Again, thank you. Thank you for everything." As he said this, he focused his gaze on Kaura, who seemed to take the hint and gave a small nod herself.

Sheik spurred Maladict on, trotting off. Link smiled and thanked them again as well, and quickly caught up with Sheik. The sun was already creeping over the trees as the pair finally continued on the path to Ganondorf's destruction…and Hyrule's salvation.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 55**

* * *

"I told you, it is of no importance," Sheik said for what felt like the thousandth time. They were less than halfway to the main camp, and already Link was growing restless and asking Sheik incessant and—as he had just said—irrelevant questions.

"But I want to know what your favourite colour is," Link moaned, doing his best to make Sheik turn his head and look at him, but failing. " _I_ think it's important…"

Sheik gritted his teeth, summoning all his willpower to stop himself from falling into Link's trap. Nothing would feel better than glaring at the juvenile Hero right now, but doing so would confirm Link's victory. He shook his head to himself, trying to concentrate on the liberating feeling of his hair swishing back and forth.

"Sheeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiik," whined the Hero, undoubtedly making his lower lip quiver and doing his best impression of a doe-eyed waif. "loooooook at meeeeeeee…"

"No," the Sheikah replied, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the path. It may have been a small, rarely used wildlife track, but recent activities, such as an army on the move, had widened it considerably, and a lot of trees had been chopped down to feed the many campfires, resulting in what could only be described as a highroad. Deep wheel tracks ran along each side of the road, and rain water had accumulated in them. Because of the water, the road had turned muddy, and their progress was slow as both Maladict and Epona kept slipping or losing their foothold.

Why exactly this was happening to a horse that seemed to be able to create its own plane to run on, Sheik didn't know. He supposed Epona was doing so in solidarity with Maladict, trying to comfort the stud by letting him know he was not alone. He didn't know if Link knew yet, but it was obvious to Sheik that the equines were quite fond of each other.

Epona snorted, and Link was suddenly right beside him as the muddy parts of the road grew more along the sides and left the middle rather dry. The Hero was _grinning_ at him, which did not bode well at all.

"Guess what?" Link asked. Even his voice was smug.

"What?" said Sheik, only turning his head the slightest to watch the Hero, who did not seem to able to sit still in his saddle. He truly could not fathom how Link could still possess the amount of energy he did, especially after being admitted to the field hospital for what was basically exhaustion. He supposed it had something to do with the many bottles of red potion he had consumed in order to be released by Kaura.

"I know something you don't," said Link. He cocked his head to the side. "What do you think it is?"

"Obviously, I would not know, Hero," replied Sheik smoothly as he did his best to stare at Link with his unseeing left eye. "And, frankly, I do not think I want to know…"

Link's smile faded a little, and Sheik regretted saying and doing what he did momentarily. But then a new, fiendish and somehow _chilling_ grin found its way to Link's lips. "You've noticed something?" he asked slowly, his usually bright, blue eyes darkening.

 _Oh dear, what now?_ thought Sheik, feeling slightly alarmed. "I have not, Hero. What is it?" he asked, indeed noticing that something was amiss. What exactly it could be was beyond him. Was it appearance? No, they had both already seen what had happened while they were apart, and…

_Oh no!_

"You haven't called me by my name lately," the Hero finished. "I think that clearly calls for punishment."

Clearing his throat, Sheik shifted uncomfortably in his saddle. "And…just what kind of punishment would that be—"

He never had a chance to finish as Link had suddenly launched himself out of his saddle, flying at Sheik, knocking the shadow warrior down. They both hit the ground with miscellaneous "oofs" and "ows". Unfortunately, they had been walking across a particularly wet patch, and the mud loudly squelched as the two did their best disentangle from each other…or, at least one of them did.

Sheik groaned in annoyance, feeling the dirty water and wet soil soaking and staining his exoskeleton and tabard. Worst of all, his _hair_ , which had almost just been washed and dried for the first time since who knew when, was being brought back to the state it had been in ever since the Spirit Temple. Link's chuckling was the final drop.

"Link…" he said slowly, feeling his temper rising as his hand sank into what had looked like a patch of dry ground, "why did you do that?"

"As I said, punishment was due," said the Hero. Sheik couldn't see him from the position he was lying in, but he knew Link was enjoying the impromptu mud bath immensely. Link, a child of the forest, apparently did not mind the horrible feeling of one's body being dirtied in the very worst way. Suddenly, Sheik felt strong hands grabbing his shoulders. Then he was flipped onto his back, and Link was kissing him passionately.

And Sheik now understood why Link had done what he did. As much as he enjoyed the feeling of the Hero's lips on his and the warmth of his body covering Sheik's, he could not ignore the feeling of the wet mud at his back, further soaking and soiling his clothes and _hair_.

When they finally parted, Link grinned down at him. "See what I did there?" he asked, his eyes gazing at him in a way that Sheik could only think of as lustful.

Blushing, the Sheikah nodded. "Sweet and sour?" he asked tentatively.

Link nodded. "Exactly. I know you like being kissed, but I know how much you hate mud…" He realised he did not need to explain and leant down again, continuing his assault on Sheik's mouth.

 _Oh, goddesses…why won't he stop?_ Sheik thought as Link's tongue finally gained entrance and started duelling with his own. Who was he kidding? He _loved_ this…but the Hero had actually found a way to combine it with something he disliked so strongly that it cancelled out much of said enjoyment.

_Stupid Link…_

* * *

"This is your fault," said Sheik, his form shivering as yet another icy wind blew across them. Obviously, the Hero of Time had not considered the ramifications of getting his lover wet and cold, and he was wisely keeping his mouth shut, only saying something when agreeing with Sheik.

"Yeah, I know," replied Link remorsefully.

Maladict and Epona seemed to share a knowing look before they both snorted in what seemed to be laughter, as if sharing a joke about the follies of human lovers.

Sheik wasn't truly angry at Link. After all, he had been the one to break their agreement on first-name basis when talking to each other, but there were _so_ many other ways to get one's point across without having to resort soaking your significant other in mud.

There had been something quite positive with the experience, though, and Sheik had noted this with surprise. He had not imagined it being Speil holding him down and kissing him this time. But this presented another problem, namely that of how the shadow would react to all this. Had Sheik fallen for both of them equally?

_I'm in a bloody mess…_

His mood lightened considerably when they spied the first of the tunnels that would lead them to the Sacred Forest Meadow. They were not far off, now, and they had gotten there rather quickly despite detours and…other things.

Link took the lead through the tunnels, which seemed to have been purposefully designed (by whom? The Kokiri? The Deku Tree?) to confuse whoever went through it. But that was not all. It felt like someone was watching them, waiting for them to take a single misstep and leap upon them.

 _I think I know who it is,_ Sheik thought and looked into the shadows, expecting to see a pair of glowing eyes at any second. Link must have noticed his suspicious looks, for he slowed Epona down for a bit and came closer.

"Horrible, isn't it?" he asked.

"Excuse me?" asked Sheik.

"The feeling of someone looking at you," explained Link. "The first time I went through here, when I was eleven, I almost got lost. I could've sworn that someone…or something, was going to reach out from the shadows and pull me in…"

 _So, it's not Speil, in other words,_ Sheik thought and looked at Link. "What happened?"

"Saria saved me," Link said, a gentle smile on his lips, a nostalgic look in his eyes. He was clearly remembering the events of seven years past. "I'm not sure if she did it on purpose…but she led me through the maze with her ocarina, playing her song." His smile fell slightly, and the Hero sighed. Sheik knew exactly why.

"You miss her," he said.

"Yeah," Link confirmed. "I've tried contacting her, but I can't get through to her…"

"Ganondorf has probably erected some sort of barrier in order to prevent the sages from influencing and helping you," Sheik said, frowning. If Ganondorf was powerful enough to block out the sages already, who knew how strong he would be by the time Link would confront him?

_And Link doesn't have the Triforce piece…_

"Just one more thing he'll have to pay for, then," said Link.

"Indeed," said Sheik.

* * *

"Halt! Friend or foe?" the guard shouted. Sheik saw Link roll his eyes, suggesting that the Hero had not been in many lively or friendly situations with border guards.

"Friend," the Sheikah announced.

The meadow had changed little. The only notable thing was that someone had managed to raise the steel bars again, preventing anyone from entering the maze beyond. A solitary guard stood before it, spear and shield raised in preparation for a fight should the two new arrivals prove to be the aforementioned foes.

"Prove it," the guard shouted.

"Not very clever, is he?" Link whispered, grinning at his companion.

The cowl hid his grin, so Sheik had to nod. "I'd say he's on the same level as you."

Link scowled, narrowing his eyes at Sheik. "Still angry about the mud, huh?"

"Not angry…simmering," Sheik corrected him and climbed out of Maladict's saddle, slowly approaching the guard, who was shivering in his armour. His helmet's visor prevented Sheik from seeing his face, but his voice had sounded quite young. Experienced soldiers or veterans were in short supply, apparently. He raised his hands in a non-threatening gesture. "Soldier, do you see who that is?" he asked and pointed at Link, who waved at the guard.

The guard was clearly not prepared for such a question, and made several false starts on utterances, letting out fragments of broken sentences and words. All the while, the heavily armoured soldier leaned forward, obviously having difficulties looking through the small slit of his helmet.

"Maybe you should try lifting the visor," said Sheik as kindly as he could while imitating lifting the face-protector with his hands.

"Uh…" the guard said, clearly conflicted. "I'm not really supposed to…"

Shaking his head, Sheik looked over to Link, motioning for the Hero to come over. Link dismounted and slowly led the horses over to the flustered guard. "Do you see now?" Sheik asked. Link seemed to be giving the guard an encouraging smile…or at least tried to.

"Look at the sword," said Sheik.

"Uh…"

"Sheik, I don't think—"

"Quiet, Hero."

Something seemed to snap to attention in the guard's brain, for he suddenly straightened up, his unseen eyes seemingly focused on the green-clad Link. "D-did you say…Hero?" he asked, directing the question at Sheik without looking at the Sheikah.

"Why yes, yes I did," said Sheik, rolling his eyes.

"The H-Hero of T-Time?"

"The very same."

"Here?"

"Yes."

The guard stared at Link for a few seconds. Then he pivoted around on the heel of his boot and shouted. The armour gave his voice a metallic clang. "Open the gate!"

* * *

They had not been able to see it from the entrance, but small bridges had been constructed on top of the maze, allowing easy navigation of it. The maze itself had been turned into one large barrack, housing all the soldiers, civilians and other personnel. Ladders had been raised all over the maze in order to provide access to the "roof"-area of the maze, where blacksmiths and medics had established their workshops.

"Is it just me, or has this place gotten bigger?" asked Link as they walked across the maze. The guards on the _other_ side of the gate had immediately recognised Link and given them passage. They had been forced to leave Epona and Maladict behind, though, for there was simply no room for two horses inside the maze.

"It would seem so," replied Sheik. The bridges were really just ladders lying across the gaps, which provided a good view of the huddled masses below. The men and women hardly seemed fazed by this new residence, but that might have been explained by the widened gap between the walls. "I am willing to guess that the Deku Sprout has something to do with it."

It was true. It wasn't just that the maze itself was bigger. The entire meadow seemed to have grown now that they were seeing it form higher up. The staircase leading to the Forest Temple were at least a mile away, leaving Sheik to wonder just how many people were in the maze. And they were all looking up at Link as they passed over them. News of the Hero of Time's arrival was spreading like wildfire. But none of them spoke or called up to Link. They just stared at him in awe…or was it disappointment? Silent wonder?

"Good old Sprout," said Link, not noticing the people below them, apparently.

"Technically, he is young by definition as a sprout," said Sheik. "I don't think he would appreciate being called old."

"Eh, whatever he is, he's good."

"Agreed."

They crossed the gap above one of the small pools of water, which Sheik guessed were the source of drinking water for the surprisingly large amount of people housed in the meadow. Link suddenly stopped mid-step, his foot hovering right above a rather steep fall over a boiling cauldron of some sort. Sheik prepared himself to grab the Hero's hand and pull him back so he wouldn't be scolded by some poor people's cooking pot, but Link actually stepped back on his own.

"Hey…if the camp is up at the temple…" It was almost possible to _see_ the cogs and wheels grinding in the Hero's head. "How come we rode here?"

"Because I thought it would be better for us to have a little time alone with each other," said Sheik and continued walking. It was a blatant lie. The thought of teleporting to the main camp had not even occurred to him. He had slipped up yet again. But the excuse seemed sound enough.

"Oh," the Hero said. And then he grinned and ran to catch up with his companion. "You're still pissed about the mud, aren't you?"

"Mind your language, Link," Sheik said. "And yes. Thanks to you, I look like I have just crawled out of a swamp."

"Well, there's a pond right here—"

"Don't get any ideas!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 56**

* * *

The fading sunlight did its best to pierce through the thick layers of foliage that was the result of hundreds of years of uninhibited growth, failing miserably as only a few precious rays found their way through the thick leaves and branches. It did little to illuminate the small foyer-like area in front of the Forest Temple entrance. To compensate, torches seemed to be burning at all hours, and some soldiers had been assigned exclusively to change them when they burned out.

They were both exhausted from climbing the long stairway up to the meadow itself. Link had not been able to keep himself from commenting on the fight he had once had with a gigantic Moblin here, and had insisted that Sheik should see the depression in the ground where the giant pig-dog-hybrid had fallen. What exactly had happened to the body afterwards, none of them wanted to know.

The guards stationed around the camp gave them strange looks, as if wondering what a pair of teenagers was doing wandering around the camp. Upon realising just who the green-clad one was, they snapped to attention whenever they came close. When they noticed who—or rather, what—Sheik was, they just glared or stared down their noses at him. It was a remarkable change in attitude compared to the soldiers back in the field hospital, but Sheik knew exactly why this was. The soldiers stationed here, so close to the princess of Hyrule, were the supposed "elite" soldiers, and these men had never had much love for the mysterious shadow people that protected the royal family instead of them. This prejudice seemed to be passed down from regiment to regiment, ensuring a continued hate for the Sheikah.

Sheik knew a couple of these men, those who did not conform to bigotry and suspicions, and could sympathise with the soldiers' frustration…but open hate for their ruler's bodyguards was—in his opinion—not the way to go. Had the soldiers approached the Sheikah many years ago, when the shadow warriors were still a numerous and mighty people, some sort of compromise could surely have been reached. They had not, however, and Sheik knew that it would never change.

Link noticed the tension between his companion and the soldiers and tried to say something, but Sheik's firm, yet soft grip on his arm discouraged the Hero. Link looked at Sheik with incredulous eyes, as if asking why the young Sheikah could possibly put up with it, but Sheik's mouth did not answer. A small, almost unnoticeable shake of his head was all Link needed to keep quiet.

They were directed to a large, grandiose tent that had been erected right on top of the raised platform bearing the Forest Temple's symbol, a tent that only could have belonged to royalty. Raised voices could be heard inside, some of which were in pitches that could not possibly have been coming from human throats. The royal guards—the _elite_ of the elite, as it were—did not know what to make of the two mud-covered travellers that were slowly approaching the habitat. However, they both stood aside when Link drew the Master Sword and proved who he was.

The tent seemed to be made of extremely fine silk on further inspection. The white, almost transparent fabric reflected the torchlight and made it seem like it was in the middle of the day inside. The guards gave them both perplexed looks before closing the entrance, preventing anyone from seeing inside. Amazingly enough, the tent was divided into sections, each with another pair of guards at the "doors".

As they progressed through the sections, the voices became clearer and the words easier to make out. There were Gorons and Zoras inside, they both realised at the same time, and they were discussing tactics. The pair shared a look. If Zoras, Gorons and Hylians were working side-by-side on battle tactics, then it meant that all three peoples had been pushed to the brink.

An attendant, his corpulent form covered in dark purple robes, stood outside the final opening. His beady eyes, which were almost swallowed by the slabs of flesh that hung from his forehead, focused on the pair. His double chin jiggled as he stepped forward, prompting the guards next to him to do so as well.

"Ah, the Hero of Time, not a moment too soon," he announced. His voice was incredibly high-pitched, almost to the level of a pig-squeal. "And your…companion," he added with distaste when his eyes fastened on Sheik. Sheik narrowed his eyes at the impudent man, hoping his mismatched eyes would unnerve the fat one. The attendant didn't seem to notice this however, and his face brightened when his eyes went back on Link. "Her Highness has requested that you…both are to be shown into the war room as soon as you arrive. Follow me, please," he said and turned around, motioning for the guards to relax.

The room beyond was much larger than it seemed from the outside, and an absolutely immense, circular table had been taken inside. Around it, various representatives of the diverse peoples of Hyrule were sitting. Goron, Zora and Hylian military officials, it seemed to Sheik. They all wore some sort of decoration. The Hylians were clad in impressive-looking armour and covered with various ribbons and medals. The Gorons, who did not wear clothes, had their arms covered in bracelets of gold and silver. The ones with the most gold on their arms seemed to be of higher rank. The Zoras, who did not wear any clothes like the Gorons, all had their decorative helmets placed in front of them on the table. Exactly how rank was decided between them, Sheik did not know.

Link seemed surprised to see all the military higher-ups gathered here. Or maybe he was just shocked that the peoples he had saved, the Gorons and Zoras, actually had military forces. Sheik frowned underneath his cowl. All allied races of Hyrule—Hylians, Gorons and Zoras—had been caught by surprise when Ganondorf had attacked. Because of this, none of them had been able to mobilize to mount an effective counterattack against the bronze-skinned man and his armies. The Gorons were overcome by the reappearance of Volvagia, their ancient enemy, and the piscine Zoras were frozen in their home by Gaondorf's evil magic.

But now the races had gathered, and they were all ready to fight. If this would be good enough, however, Sheik was not sure. In the seat furthest from the entrance to the room, with her back to a large sculpture of the gathered Triforce, each triangle representing one of the peoples around the table, sat Zelda, clad in her ceremonial armour. She was staring at the two new arrivals, a smile spreading on her lips.

"Your Majesty," announced the attendant over the din of conversation, "the Hero of Time and his companion have arrived!" He bowed and retreated from the room.

To her credit, Zelda managed to compose herself enough to look kindly at the dignitaries and generals or whatever their corresponding ranks were, and said: "Gentlemen, I am afraid this meeting must be adjourned for now so I may speak to the Her of Time in private." She looked from person to person in a seemingly respectful gesture, but Sheik could see that she was daring each and every one of them to protest. One of the Gorons seemed to be in the process of raising his hand, but the stare from Zelda—which turned icy in the matter of a moment—discouraged the rock-eater from pursuing the action.

The Zoras rose from their seats wordlessly, bowed to Zelda, who inclined her head, and left the room, stopping only to bow to Link and Sheik as well. The Hylian generals did the same, albeit with a bit of grumbling about Link hardly being important enough to interrupt the meeting. The Gorons—minus the one who had begun to protest—all smiled at Link and went outside.

 _At least the Gorons and the Zoras remember what Link has done for them,_ Sheik thought as the guards retreated as well.

When she was confident that they were alone, Zelda let a fully fledged grin appear on her face and rose from her chair. Her armour, which was mostly constructed for being impressive rather than functional, glimmered and twinkled in the torchlight. Polished to perfection, the feminine armour was also covered in decorative embroideries of the Triforce and other royal emblems, including that of the Sheikah, although _that_ one was more of an acknowledgment than decoration. Her golden-blonde hair was held back by her royal diadem, which was little more than a simple golden circlet. Her lips had been coloured a bright red, which made them look bigger and—supposedly—more attractive. Appearances were important when dealing with dignitaries from the other peoples, apparently.

She came closer, stopping right in front of them. "You two look like you have just crawled out of a swamp," she said.

Sheik shot Link a pointed look, to which the Hero only grinned nervously.

"Care to explain what has happened?" continued the princess, her voice bearing a fake edge of disapproval. "Doctor Kaura told me you were on your way here this morning, healthy and well and…just look at you!"

"It was m—"Link began, but was stopped by a jab from Sheik's elbow.

"Skullkids," said Sheik. "Skullkids ambushed us and knocked us from our horses."

Unnoticed by Link, Sheik had done his best to make sure his fringes were covering his left eye, masking the injury from the princess.

Expecting some sort of disappointed comment about how he was getting rusty, Sheik was surprised when he was suddenly embraced by Zelda. All he could manage to let out was a low stutter.

"H-Highness…!"

"I was so worried about you," whispered the princess into his ear, tightening her hold on him. "When Link told me you were gone…" She did not seem able to finish the sentence, but continued to hold him.

Sheik found himself relaxing into the hug, realising how much he had missed Zelda's too-casual-to-be-proper closeness to her official bodyguard. Slowly, he put his own arms around her and hugged back, closing his eyes and sighing in content. "I am fine," he responded in an equally quiet whisper. "But I have lost a good friend…"

"Who?" asked Zelda. The embroideries were surely getting soiled by the still-not dry mud in his clothes and hair, though the princess hardly seemed bothered by this.

"A…Sheikah," he answered, unable—and not wanting—to lie to her. Zelda had several times referred to herself as his surrogate sister, and it had never felt as true as it did now.

"I'm sorry."

"There is no need to be sad," he said. "He is in a better place now, with my ancestors." It was true. Terra may not have been put to rest in the Shadow Temple, but his spirit went the same way as his ancestors' did.

They drew back from each other, realising that they had to keep some semblance to proper behaviour while in such a conspicuous place. Link was smiling, happy that the two had been reunited after a long period worrying on at least one part. However, as Sheik was turning his head to look at the Hero, Zelda noticed something. Faster than Sheik had expected her to be, her hand found its way to his face, pulling back the fringe that was covering his eye. The princess gasped.

"What happened to you?"

"I'd like to know that as well," Link piped in.

Sighing, Sheik stepped away from Zelda so that he could look at both her and Link at the same time. It was bound to happen sooner or later, he knew. And it was happening right now. He had been pressed into a corner. If he turned tail and fled, they would surely give chase, or, even worse, end up not trusting him. It was time to tell the story of Twilight.

"It is a long tale," he said, "and it will take some time to tell it."

Zelda drew out a chair and motioned for him to sit. "We have plenty of time," she said.

Sitting down, Sheik drew his breath and began…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 57**

* * *

"…and then I wound up back in the Lost Woods and lost consciousness. When I woke up, I was in the field hospital with Link in the bed next to me," Sheik said, finally settling back in his chair, relieved that his story-telling was over. It was difficult to relegate all that had happened in Twilight, especially when he had to remember not to mention a certain shadow's presence. The last thing he needed was for Zelda and Link to know what kind of bizarre game he was playing with Speil…or that Speil was even still alive.

"Huh," said Link, still gazing at Sheik with a look that clearly said confusion was still raging in the Hero's head, as well as…suspicion?

"I didn't know about this parallel world to Hyrule," said Zelda and stood up. Both she and Link had sunk into chairs of their own at Sheik's behest as he did not wish any interruptions while he told the story. "It is not mentioned in the ancient historical texts…" She walked over to a bookshelf and pulled out a hefty tome, which made the large, round table shake slightly as she put it down. As if to illustrate her point, she raffled through the pages, not really looking. If she had followed her duties, Zelda would have memorized the contents many years ago. But, as Sheik remembered her, the princess had not been very interested in ancient history.

"Maybe just as well," said Sheik, looking distastefully at the book. How many lies had been written in that tome? "The realm seemed dangerous, even more so than this one is at the moment."

"And that princess…Midna, was it?" asked Zelda. "I have never heard of the Twili, much less an all-powerful princess who sounds like she had powers close to those of the goddesses." She slammed the tome shut. In the wake of the booming sound, silence spread. The princess was thinking, deeply so judging by the furrows in her brow.

"Zelda? What's wrong?" asked Link, not really sensing that this was not the time to be talking.

"…why isn't she helping us?" the princess asked. She turned to Sheik. "You told her of our struggle, didn't you?"

"Yes…or, Terra did, I think," Sheik said. "You have to understand that Twilight was in just as big a crisis as Hyrule. The land was dying, your highness. I saw it with my own eyes."

"Or eye, as it were," said Link. Sheik couldn't see the Hero's expression, but he was clearly trying to break the tension in the room.

"No, Hero," corrected Sheik. "This was before I fought Ganondorf's shadow."

"Oh."

"Princess," Sheik continued, "she was weakened to the point where she almost died. It will take some time before she—and Twilight—has recovered from the ordeal. They would not be able to help us even if they tried." He looked at Zelda with a pleading expression, wishing her not to pursue the issue any further.

Nodding, the princess sighed and crouched in front of Sheik's chair. Yet again, Sheik was reminded of just how short he was compared to most others. "You're right, Sheik," she said. "I was just hoping we could gain one more ally, one more fist with which to strike against Ganondorf's impenetrable shield. As it is, however, we stand alone."

"What about the Gorons and Zoras?" asked Link.

"They are still reluctant to send in their own troops," said Zelda, not moving from her position. She was staring at Sheik's injured eye, as if willing it to heal on the spot. "They are not confident that we would win an open battle with Ganondorf's armies."

Silence stretched on, and Sheik did his best not to be bothered by Zelda's staring. He did not last long. Blinking, he looked right back at her. "What is it?" he asked.

"I was just thinking about how…beautiful your eyes were…are…" she blushed when she realised that she had just inadvertently insulted him. "I mean…"

"I think she's trying to say your new look is not becoming of you, Sheik," said Link, enjoying the princess' fluster.

"Is that so?" asked Sheik, joining on the impromptu little game of "Make Zelda Blush".

"No! No! That's not it at all!" protested Zelda, glaring at Link for making matters worse. She stood up and walked back to the table, pretending to open the tome and read. "I just…I'm just not used to…"

Sheik grinned and rose from his seat as well, staring at the princess' back. After coming to terms with it, Sheik did not truly mind the injury. Of course, depth perception would always be a challenge from now, but aesthetically, he quite liked it. The pure-white slit-like iris was an interesting sight to behold, and it provided quite a contrast to his other round, black iris on his right eye. "I believe I am hurt, Hero," said Sheik.

"And here I thought Hyrule's ruler was a compassionate soul, always willing to look beyond appearances and see the good in everyone," continued Link, coming to stand next to Sheik. He put an arm around the smaller teen and pulled him closer. "I do wonder how she would react if I kissed you her and now."

Sheik's eyes widened. He looked from Link to Zelda and back again, panic-stricken. Sure, the princess had known about his affection for the Hero, but how would she react to the fact that they had actually entered into a relationship. She had already told him she was okay with it, but a theoretical relationship was completely different from a real one.

"So," the princess said as she slowly turned around, her eyes cast downwards. "The cat is out of the bag, as the saying goes."

"You didn't tell her?" Link whispered, suddenly feeling very cold.

"At what time would I tell her of this?" Sheik whispered back. "I've been gone for many weeks…why didn't _you_ tell her?"

Zelda's armour clanged as she slowly took a step toward them. Then another one. And another one. Both of the male teenagers' hearts were thumping rapidly in their chests, waiting for her next words.

"I'm so happy for you!" Zelda exclaimed and nearly threw herself into their arms. At such a short notice, neither Sheik nor Link were prepared for holding up the weight of Zelda's armour, and the three crashed to the carpeted floor, the princess giggling like a little girl. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" she asked when they were finally able to sit up in a somewhat comfortable heap of limbs and heads.

"We didn't know how you'd react," said Link. He yelped when Zelda gave him a bop on the head.

"You silly little man," the princess said with a smile. "I told Sheik that he had my blessing months ago!" She fixed her gaze on the blond-haired Sheikah. "Why didn't you tell him?"

 _There's an awful lot of questions about telling here, isn't there?_ Sheik asked himself. "I don't know," he answered. "I guess I just did not expect it to be an issue that would come up during the quest."

"Well, it just did," said Link and pinched Sheik's arm. "Do you have any idea how hard it was not to talk about it when I talked to Zelda weeks ago?"

Then, non-verbally, both Link and Zelda seemed to come to an agreement. They slowly looked at each other, and then at Sheik, who could only gulp when he realised what was coming.

_Oh, bloody hell…_

There was much tickling.

* * *

"So how come you moved the camp?" asked Link.

After torturing Sheik for what—to the Sheikah—felt like an eternity, Zelda had announced that she was hungry and that Sheik and Link was going to join her supper, mud or no. Had it been peacetime, a small legion of servants would have carried tray upon tray of different and exotic courses into the room upon hearing a clap from their princess. Now, however, Zelda ate whatever everyone else ate, and to Sheik, it seemed that she enjoyed the simple dishes far more than the overblown, stuffy gourmet food she had gotten used to while growing up in the castle.

The corpulent attendant, however, whose mind seemed to be stuck in what was referred to as the glory days of Hyrule, had insisted that the food was at the very least brought to her in an extravagant manner, and the three friends had to endure quite an embarrassing display of the fat man doing his best to perform the duties of five separate people. Even Sheik, who really did not care the man, had to feel sorry for the attendant.

But now the display was over, and they could finally eat. Zelda had shushed the man away, leaving them in peace once more.

"For the same reason that I have been forced to call upon the Gorons and Zoras for tactical help," the princess replied, putting her fork down. They were having some sort of bird, most likely some sort of wild cuccoo, if Link's reaction to the dish was any indication. The Hero had turned slightly blue and stiff when the attendant had placed the plate in front of him. Zelda sighed. "As Ganondorf's power grows, Sprout's powers weaken. He is doing his best to keep the Evil King out of the forest, but the barrier is cracking.

"It is me, he is after," she continued. "Ganondorf covets the Triforce of Wisdom, and will stop at nothing to gain it. If we continued staying in the Kokiri Village, it would be them who would suffer the most if Ganondorf breaks through. I voiced my concerns to Sprout, and he agreed. Although he still offered me shelter, I found it best to go somewhere I would not endanger any innocents with my very presence. That way, if Ganondorf finally manages to enter the forest, Sprout can encase the Kokiri Village with an even stronger, more compact shield, protecting the forest children."

"I see," said Sheik. He was still surprised at how calm he could will himself to be without his cowl on, even though only Zelda—who had known what his face looked like since they were both little—and Link were there. Six months ago, even such an intimate and closed gathering would have made him uncomfortable. "And the meadow provides a good defensible spot as well," he added. "A siege would be very difficult to maintain for the Evil King, especially if the Deku Sprout can modify the walls to be taller."

"That is what I thought as well," said Zelda, smiling. She noticed Link's silence and looked at the Hero, who was pushing his food around the plate, a clear contrast to his characteristic gluttony when it came to fine dining, or at least as close to fine dining as Sheik could make with a small fire, some meat and vegetables. "Is something wrong, Link? You're not eating…" she said.

The Hero looked up, and for a moment, Sheik could see great worry in his eyes, although it was quickly covered up with an exaggerated smile. "Nah, it's nothing," he said and proceeded to shovel almost the entire cuccoo breast into his mouth, an action Sheik was sure would have killed anyone else, considering the sheer size of the slab of meat. "I'm just tired," he finished after choking it down with a giant swig of water.

Zelda looked at Sheik, her eyes telling him that she had seen the exact same thing as he. "If you say so," she said and smiled. But the look she then gave Sheik clearly conveyed: _"You're going to talk to him later."_

"Moving on," the princess said as she finished her meal and took a sip of wine (She was the only one of the gathered that drank it, as Link had no wish to try it and Sheik preferred water to any alcoholic substance, especially after the little incident in the Gerudo Fortress). "There is another matter that we must investigate and resolve as soon as possible."

"What is it?" asked Link, suddenly very interested in listening to what Zelda had to say, most likely to shift attention away from his strange behaviour just now.

"It has to do with you, Link," she said, her smile fading as she looked at Sheik. "I do not know if you have noticed it yet, Sheik, but Link is missing something vital to his quest."

 _Here it comes,_ Sheik thought. He had expected this, and he knew that he could not act like he knew of this from before. "Missing?" he asked.

"The very thing that will allow Link to face Ganondorf and still stand a chance," Zelda answered. She seemed to be expecting something, as did Link upon further inspection, but Sheik refused to give it up.

"The Triforce," Link said, as if wanting to help. "I don't have the Triforce of Courage, Sheik."

"What?" Sheik exclaimed, rising from his seat in a carefully prepared and choreographed act. "You cannot be serious!"

During the course of a split second, Link and Zelda shared a surprised look, as if Sheik had responded in a completely unexpected way than they had envisioned.

"Let me see!" Sheik continued and stormed over to Link, yanking off his left gauntlet. A (hopefully) convincing gasp was issued forth and eyes were widened. "It's not there!"

* * *

"It must have passed to and sought refuge in someone else, that's the only way I can explain it," said Zelda. She and Link seemed to have bought Sheik's faked ignorance on the Triforce's disappearance, and the princess had once again been forced to bring out every tome of knowledge of the Triforce and the Goddesses' creation of Hyrule. The papers were spread all over the round table, and she and Sheik were going through them one by one. Link had taken a single look at the ancient texts, tried to read one of them, and abandoned all attempts at trying to understand the archaic language in which they were written.

"Either that, or Gandondorf has it," Sheik added, putting on a look of worry. He wondered how angry Zelda and Link would get later when it was revealed that Speil had it, and he did not look forward to the revelation.

"No, if he had it, we would not have been able to hide here for so long," said the princess. She picked up a gild-edged paper on which the details of the three stages of creation were written, sighed and put it down. "This is impossible…" She turned to look at Link, who tried to look as busy as possible without actually doing something in order not to appear useless. "Link, do you remember if you had the Triforce mark on your hand when you woke up in the Temple of Time?"

"I don't know," replied the Hero. "I never really bothered to look at the back of my hand at the time with, you know, a war going on," he said.

"At least make yourself useful," said Sheik and dumped a pile of papers in front of him. "Here, read through these and see if you can find anything useful."

Sheik was quite pleased with his theatrical skills at the moment. Zelda's desperate search for more information on the Triforce was proof of his ruse had been swallowed hook and sinker. Either that, or Zelda had seen through him and was trying to outsmart him. Dismissing the thought, he continued to look sternly at Link. "Well?" he said when the Hero made no move to read the pile of papers…not that Sheik had expected him to.

"Sorry, Sheik," said Link, looking innocently up at his boyfriend. "Can't read it. Besides, you said it yourself, you're the brains, and I'm the brawn."

"When did I ever say that? Wait, don't answer," said Sheik and shook his head, having forgotten how infuriating the Hero of Time could be when he wanted to. And Link was clearly trying to get a rise out of him so he would give himself away, but that was not going to happen.

They worked for another hour, each of them growing more frustrated with the lack of progress or knowledge of just where the missing Triforce piece had gone. Zelda looked at the wax candles, which had all burned down to the point of flickering out, and sighed.

"This isn't going to get us anywhere," she said, looking at Link and Sheik. The two were both tired to the point of falling asleep, having not completely recovered from their separate ordeals just yet. They had moved their chairs together, and Sheik was resting his head on Link's shoulder. "And it's late."

"Yup," said Link, a response Sheik would have deemed quite rude if it hadn't been for the fatigue that was blurring his thoughts.

Rubbing her tired eyes, Zelda started clearing away the papers. "If you want, there's an improvised 'bathhouse' close to the temple entrance," she said, eyeing their mud-covered clothes with obvious distaste.

"Well, I'm not too bothered by a little dirt, but Sheik despises it," Link said, grinning at said Sheikah, who glared frostily back at him. It seemed that the Hero regained his courage whenever there was an additional person close by.

"Why don't you use it first then, Sheik?" Zelda asked. "I'll have Guilden bring you some clean clothes while your outfit is washed." Sheik was about to protest, but her face suddenly turned to granite and left him mute. "Do I have to order you, Sheiky?" Zelda asked sweetly.

"No, Your Higness—"

"Ah, ah, what are you supposed to call me?" she interrupted.

"No…Zelly," Sheik said dejectedly.

"Good. Guilden!"

The plump attendant appeared like lightning in front of the tent opening. "Yes, Your Highness?"

"Please show Sheik to the bathhouse, give him some clean clothes and make sure his…soiled ones are washed," she said.

"Certainly, Your Highness," said Guilden, bowing and scraping all the while. He straightened up and looked at Sheik with barely veiled distaste. "Please, come with me, sir," he said and motioned for Sheik to follow him. The Sheikah shot Zelda a look before doing so, leaving the Hero and the princess alone.

After making sure they were out of earshot, Link turned to Zelda, completely awake now. "You know Guilden doesn't like Sheik," he said simply.

"Yes," acknowledged Zelda. "But I know he won't let his hatred of the Sheikah interfere with direct orders from me. He is a trained professional, after all."

"It's Guilden going out of line I'm worried about," mumbled Link as he stood up. "Sheik doesn't seem to know where the Triforce is."

"Either that, or he's lying," agreed Zelda. "And I truly hope it is the latter, or else we will have a big problem very soon." She thought for a second, then looked up. "What about your shadow? He didn't say anything about _that_ either. Are you _sure_ the Gerudo warrior spoke the truth?"

"I don't have a reason to doubt her," said Link. "She and Sheik respect each other a lot, and Ayla wouldn't make up lies like that. If Sheik confided in her, and she told me, then she must be worried about him."

"Then why would _Sheik_ lie about this to us?" asked Zelda before taking a sip of wine. The liquid didn't taste very well, and she wrinkled her nose. "If your shadow has possessed him, then surely he would want us to know about it so we could do something."

"Unless he's trying to protect us," said Link. He crossed his arms and leaned against the table next to Zelda. "Maybe my shadow has made threats against us…"

"But that's ridiculous. You're the being of light and should easily be able to slay it."

"Not if it has the Triforce, though…"

A thoughtful silence fell over the two, neither of them knowing what to say or do. This was clearly a matter which would have to solve itself lest they hurt Sheik…or he hurt them. Instead of wasting her time on dwelling on the subject any further, she looked at Link. "Why did you look so worried during dinner?" she asked.

"What're you talking about?" asked Link, trying to look as confused as possible and failing miserably.

"Don't give me that, Link, I saw you! You looked like you were facing Ganondorf armed with a toothpick. I was going to have Sheik grill you on this, but it seems I can't trust him at the moment." She put a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Link. Tell me."

It was poorly executed attempt at wringing information out of someone, Link knew, but there was just something about her pleading face that made him sigh and say: "I'd rather not say, Zelda…it's kinda personal."

"Is it about you two doing…you know…?" Zelda blushed as she said this, doing her best to make her meaning come across without actually having to go out and say it.

"Huh?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow. Then he got it, and started blushing as well. "No, no, no! Not that!" he protested.

"Good, because if you hurt him, Link, I swear I—"

"Whoa, slow down," said Link, waving his hands in the air defensively. "If anything, he would be hurting me! Zelda, we haven't reached…that point yet."

"He would be hurting you?" asked Zelda slowly, raising her own eyebrow in answer to his.

"Yeah, with all those knives and such…" Link said and trailed off.

"Are we even talking about the same thing?" asked the princess in a deadpan.

"I sure hope we are, or else this is very awkward," said the Hero.

Shaking her head, Zelda sighed and waved her hand in the air, as if dismissing the topic. "Never mind," she said and looked at Link. "Link, what's bothering you? You _know_ you can tell me…or is it that you don't trust me anymore?"

"It's not that, Zelda," said Link, rubbing his neck. "It's just…I'm not sure if I'm up to this."

"Up to what?" asked Zelda.

"Everything!" exclaimed Link and stood up. He started pacing back and forth in front of the table. "My role as the Hero of Time, if I can actually do all that I'm prophesised to do…if I can actually kill Ganondorf…"

"Link, what has happened?" Zelda asked. At his surprised jerk, she cleared her throat. "I know this kind of self-doubting doesn't spring up from nothing. Something made you think this way. What happened?" she repeated.

"The lake…"

"Lake Hylia? What about it?"

"I…I killed people, Zelda," said Link, the same feeling of despair and self-loathing he had felt at Lake Hylia suddenly springing upon him. "I murdered them…"

"No, Link," said Zelda kindly. "You defeated enemies…enemies that were trying to stop us from liberating Hyrule and undo the horrible things their master has brought upon this land. They knew what they were getting into, and you bested them in comba—"

"No, Zelda! I didn't best them in combat!" Link all but shouted. Outside, they could both hear the clinking of armour as Zelda's royal guards straightened themselves up, preparing to rush into the tent if any other signs of trouble presented themselves. Luckily, Link managed to tone down his voice. "I murdered them in their sleep, Zelda…I…slit their throats while they were…powerless to stop me." His voice was hiccupping, and Zelda could see moistness in his eyes.

"Link…" She could not find any words to comfort him. She had sent him to stop the mages from poisoning Lake Hylia, and he had done so…at a high price, it seemed.

"Is this what I'm destined to be, Zelda?" he asked, looking at his hands, as if he could still see the blood staining them. "Is this what I am supposed to be? A murderer? Nothing but a monster that ends lives when they least expect it?" His voice was rising, and tears were now steaming freely down his cheeks. His eyes had darkened, and utter misery shone in them.

Unable to stand it anymore, Zelda quickly went over to Link and hugged him. The Hero of Time seemed to be close to collapsing, and she carefully lowered them both to the floor, where his strong, almost clumsy hands clutched at her armour.

Then Zelda remembered who Link really was… _what_ he really was. No matter how adult and mature he looked, he was at heart an eleven-year-old boy who had been dragged into a world of pain, destruction and death. And what for? An eleven-year-old princess who had desperately and selfishly tried to stop a war that was destined to happen no matter how much either of them did…

She could feel tears of her own gathering in her eyes. "What have I done?" she whispered.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 58**

* * *

It felt good to finally be able to remove the filth that felt like it had ingrained itself in his skin and hair. Sheik sighed as he sunk into the warm water, happy that Zelda had afforded herself a luxury such as this.

 _Luxury and luxury,_ he thought.

It was a shack. That's all it was. A teeny, tiny shack containing a medium-sized bathtub (where exactly they had gotten this, he didn't want to know), a large tank in which warm water continuously flowed into the tub through some kind of mechanism he was sure some poor sod was cranking manually.

But right now, he didn't care. He finally had a chance to have a real bath again, and he was not going to waste the opportunity. The field hospital had very limited ways with which to provide its patients with warm water, and Link and Sheik had been forced to clean themselves with water they were both sure had had ice chunks floating in it a couple of minutes before it was brought to them.

The water quickly took on an ugly shade of brown as he scrubbed every part of his body, doing his best to clean off the disgusting, dried mud. Outside, he could hear footsteps. Guilden had barely said a word to him apart from the sentence "leave your clothes here" and pointing to a lichen-covered rock. After Sheik had done so, the attendant had rushed off with his exoskeleton, promising to return with clean clothes as soon as he could, although that had taken close to twenty minutes.

"Your clothes, Master Sheikah," the attendant said loudly from the outside, knocking on the door a couple of times. "I feel I must remind you that the water will not be warm for long, and the Hero of Time will surely wish to use the bath as well."

"Yes, yes, I know," Sheik yelled at the door. Then he noticed that he had forgotten to take his cowl off, and the fabric had soaked right through. Mumbling, he tore it off and tossed it at the door, on which a small hook hung. He missed. He then heard Guilden mumble something to himself and stalk off, and Sheik smirked.

He and the princess' personal attendant had never gotten on very well. Not that Sheik had made any effort for such a thing to happen, but that was because Guilden seemed to have been determined to hate Zelda's nanny—Impa—and her kind from the start. He supposed that Guilden had been brought up among people who were not very trusting of the Sheikah, and the prejudice had affected him to the point that he did not even make an effort to see if all Sheikah were truly as bad as he had been told.

Either way, he was just a harmless, fat, old man who made his dislike very clear with his voice and words rather than actions, which suited Sheik just fine. The moment the man decided to do something to harm him, however, was the day Guilden got a taste of the Sheikah wrath.

He noticed that here too, the dirty water was sucked into some kind of drain and replaced with clean, clear water, but how they had been able to establish this advanced a mechanism in a simple shack was a mystery to him. He supposed the royal engineers had gone to extra lengths to make sure their monarch could still live comfortably while in forced exile…but it seemed to Sheik that they could have made an extra effort to make the house itself a bit more charming than just looking like the garden shed of Hyrule Castle…

He dunked his head below the water line, relishing in the feeling of his hair being cleansed. It seemed like such a foolish thing to get worked up over, but his hair was…precious. He couldn't describe it any other way. He had a feeling it had something to do with all the compliments he had received from Zelda when they were young. He distinctly remembered Zelda even braiding it at one point…Impa had not been pleased that day. Not by his newfound vanity, but by the way he was fraternising with the person he was supposed to protect. Zelda had not taken lightly to the scolding Sheik had received and defended him, claiming that she had ordered him to let her do it. Impa had accepted this, though Sheik knew that _Impa_ knew that Zelda was lying. As he recalled it, he still owed Zelda for that one.

Deciding that he had spent enough time bathing, Sheik exited the tub, grabbing the incredibly soft towels that had been left there. They were undoubtedly meant for Zelda, if he knew Guilden right, but the princess wouldn't mind. Shivering in the cold air, he opened the door slightly, looking around for the promised clothes. There they were. He quickly snapped them up and closed the door again, inspecting the garments. To Guilden's credit, they were not half-bad. A silk shirt with a high collar, perfect for hiding his face and a pair of high quality worker's shoes, probably made for the princess' entourage. The pants, however…he blushed as he slipped on the tight leather trousers, wondering where in Hyrule Guilden had procured them. They were snug and clung to his legs, showing off every bit of his lower body.

"Guilden!" he shouted, wondering if the fat man still waited outside. No answer. He opened the door again after adjusting the collar so it covered the lower half of his face. No one stood outside. Stepping outside, he shivered again as the cold wind clashed with his still wet hair. Something that was hard to get used to was the way he had to pan his head around in order to get a better overview of things, he noticed. "Guilden!" he shouted again. The fat man failed to materialise out of thin air, and Sheik sighed. He felt ridiculous where he stood, as if he was trying to parade his body around. He knew he was being a fabric-hypocrite, though. The exoskeleton was just as tight a material as the leather, but that was his uniform, and different…

At least his weapons were there, lying next to the rock on which Sheik had left his clothes. Terra and Kazuya glinted in the moonlight (the dinner had taken quite a long time) as he drew them form their sheaths. He did a few simple katas, going through what he remembered of fighting with two swords at the same time. As he did this, he thought.

Link and Zelda seemed to have bought his faked ignorance on the subject of the missing Triforce piece, which was a good thing. Also, none of them seemed to be aware of Speil's existence, another good thing. The longer he could put off the eventual confrontation between Link and his shadow, the longer he had to prepare a plan. He had to ensure that Link would win and take back the power Speil had unwittingly stolen from him.

He stopped, suddenly coming to the realisation that he had subconsciously just accepted that Speil was going to die. Or, he had accepted that fact a long time ago, but it was just now truly surfacing _as_ a fact. He shoved the swords into the grass, leaving them in a crossed position. He could see the entrance to the Forest Temple from here, the conveniently placed tree branch marking the position where Link was supposed to use his Hookshot to gain access.

Oh, how worried Sheik had been right then, sending an eleven-year-old (mentally, at least) boy into a place that would surely only be filled with death and pain. Sheik didn't know the history behind this particular temple; no one did. It was a secret lost to the ages, and only the prophecy of the Hero of Time mentioned it, and even that was only in passing. He had waited and waited, longing to see the green-clad youth touch down on the ivory platform. He had been so relieved when the blue light finally encased the platform and he heard the pitter-patter of Link's boots touching down on it.

Of course, Link hadn't noticed Sheik looking at him from the shadows, barely pausing to catch his breath before rushing off to find his next challenge. The revelation of his childhood friend being the sage hardly seemed to have fazed him. Sheik had smiled then, knowing that this boy and his fairy would surely complete the quest admirably.

But then the events at the Water Temple had nearly killed Link…

Sheik turned his back on the temple entrance, not wishing to evoke the memories of that night. It had been the start of this entire mess, and while he was grateful for the chance to get to know Link better, the chance to get so close…

"Nice outfit," said an all-too familiar voice. "Trying to show off the goods a bit more, eh?"

"I was wondering where you had gotten off to," said Sheik, turning around. Speil was sitting at the bottom of the broken staircase, his feet dangling in the air. "You disappeared so suddenly after we came back to this realm. I thought you wanted to fight Link right away."

The shadow nodded. "Our upcoming fight is a certainty, but I would still like to put it off for as long as possible."

"Why?" asked Sheik, pulling Terra and Kazuya from the ground and replacing them in their sheaths. He was growing weary, and he was nervous about someone hearing or seeing him converse with the Hero's darker half, which surely constituted as treason in some way.

"Because I want to spend more time with you," Speil replied, his voice taking on a sweet edge that was so impossibly fake it could rot the teeth of anyone who heard it. "I still stand by my words in Twilight, Sheik," he said, dropping down from the broken staircase. He slowly stepped forward, closing in on the Sheikah. "I have fallen for you…and I want you to be mine." He stopped just short of an arm-length, his eyes roaming over Sheik's form.

"That sounds awfully familiar," said Sheik. He put Kazuya and Terra down next to the bundle of daggers. "Although you said with an entirely different tone of voice back then."

"I was still young," the shadow said. "I had still not learned how to behave…and I had yet to realise just how amazing a person you are."

Rolling his eyes, Sheik turned to look at Speil. "As much as appreciate a compliment every now and then, I hardly think this is the appropriate place."

"Why?"

"Because the Hero is right there," Sheik said, pointing to the large tent not twenty yards away. "And he has damned good hearing."

"Ah, I see…" the shadow said, his eyes fading as he closed his eyes and put a hand on his chin, thinking. The pose was exactly like Link's, although it looked so… _wrong_ at the same time. Then his eyes flared up again, and Speil smiled. "Then inside the temple?"

"I do not think so, Speil," said Sheik, turning his back on the Hero's mirror image. "I am afraid the others are expecting me, and—"

"That's bullshit," said the shadow in a rare lapse in his elegant speech. "I know for a fact that they're not expecting you for another half hour at the least, even that fat attendant. He really does not like you, by the way," he added.

"Just how long have you been spying on me?" asked Sheik, not really surprised that Speil knew these things. It was just in the shadow's nature to be aware of them.

"Ever since you woke up in the field hospital," replied the shadow. "I even listened in on that conversation you had with that…ah, physician, as she called herself. I must say, that was quite a fiery woman." He shook his head. "But we are digressing at an alarming rate. Please, Sheik, join me in the temple. I have something to tell you." He turned around and began to walk toward the temple entrance.

"Why didn't you just tell me here?" asked Sheik.

"Theatricals, naturally," the shadow said, not turning around. And then he sort…blended into the shadows, and disappeared.

Sheik stared at the spot where Speil had disappeared for a few seconds before sighing and looking up. "What have I ever done to anger you three?" he asked. Receiving no answer, he sighed again and picked up his weapons. He started running, increasing his speed as he came closer to the staircase. When he was close enough, he bent his legs, summoning the strength it would take to make the jump. His feet touched down on the ledge, and he gasped in pain. His muscles still weren't ready for the strain. Gritting his teeth, he continued, walking through the small courtyard of the temple. He remembered that Link had been forced to scale the walls of the courtyard, jump across it with the help of the tree branches overhead and kill several Skulltulas before finally being granted entrance.

* * *

It was quiet. A cold draft blew through the dark hallway that greeted him behind the door, the temple's innards being none too friendly to newcomers. He could sense no hostile creatures inside, but it would do little to ignore the chance of hidden traps that Link had avoided by dumb luck or just forgotten to disarm.

His foot thumped into something, and he could feel by the object's general shape that it was—or had been—one of the large skull-like spiders. It had surely been blocking Link's way before it was hacked to pieces.

He was relieved to finally come into contact with the wall at the other end of the corridor. Fumbling around, he found the door itself and twisted the doorknob. As the door swung inwards, a gust of extremely warm air—a sharp contrast to the air in the hallway—blew over him, and he was nearly blinded by the sharp lights inside.

Every single torch, chandelier and candle inside the main hall had been lit. Some of the torches burned in different colours than the rest. Some had green flames, some blue, some purple and some an angrier shade of orange.

 _It must have something to do with the essence of the four poe sisters Link vanquished here,_ he thought, remembering the story Link had told him during their trek through the Gerudo Desert. The funny thing about Link telling a story was the way he seemed to relive the experiences he had had. He was always pretending to fight an invisible enemy with an imaginary sword or turning some heavy wheel or what have you. It was a very cute trait, Sheik thought.

The room was so warm, which was no wonder considering the amount of torches, but he was still feeling cold inside. It was the temple itself that was causing this. He had felt the same thing in both the Shadow Temple and Spirit Temple.

"Hm, where to now?" he asked himself as he came to stand in the middle of the large hall. There were five doors in addition to the one he had come through, several of which had small piles of chains and padlocks lying next to them.

 _Link's work,_ he thought as he tried the one on the west side of the hall. It wouldn't budge, despite having its overdone locking mechanism opened by Link. He tried slamming his shoulder into the grimy door, which only served to soil his shirt. _Fine, not this one, then,_ he thought and tried the next door, the one to the north-west. This too would not open. Neither would the next. Or the next. This left Sheik with only one remaining door, the one on the east side of the hall. He groaned when the doorknob rattled but refused to turn.

 _Who designed this place?_ he thought as he stomped back to the central area of the hall, in the middle of the colourful torches. There was a large, square depression in the floor, and the bottom was made of wood, unlike the rest of the floor in the hall, which was solid stone. Sheik hummed, suddenly wishing that he had his lyre so that he could cover up the oppressive silence that had suddenly descended upon the hall.

As his fingers roamed around the wooden surface in the depression, he noticed that there was about an inch of clearance between the wood and the stone, suggesting that something could move. He took a step back, trying to figure out just what kind of mechanism he was dealing with. Suddenly, a pulse went through the floor beneath his feet, and a mighty roar echoed in the hall as complicated machinery hidden in the walls started moving. From the depression, something akin to a wooden cage—with no bars—slowly rose.

 _A lift?_ he thought.

* * *

He had not expected such a thing in this ancient place. The lift slowly ground its way downwards, revealing a circular room with its floor divided up into equally large, coloured parts. Two sections of the wall on either side of the room stood sharply out, resembling handles. This must have been the revolving room Link had told him about. Luckily though, he would not be forced to solve this puzzle as his lover had. The door to the inner sanctum was right in front of him as he stepped off the lift. As soon as both his feet hit the floor, the elevator rose, preventing him from going back up.

 _If this is his idea of a joke, I am not amused,_ he thought as he approached the door. The large key which Link had used to open the door lay discarded to the side of the door, just like it had been in the Water Temple. The gem in the key was green, he noted, probably an emerald.

He froze when he saw what the room contained. The platform, the spiked poles…the room was an almost exact replica of the place where Sheik and Terra had fought Ganondorf's shadow!

 _Don't be ridiculous, Sheik,_ he snapped at himself. _The place in_ Twilight _was the replica…and you should have expected this, Link_ told _you he fought the shadow here…_

He forced himself to walk up the stairs, wondering if the Hero's shadow would be waiting on the platform. Nothing. Shivering, he stepped onto it, doing his best to push back the memories of his battle with the evil spirit. To take his mind off of them, he studied the four identical pictures that had been arranged around the platform. Ganondorf's shadow had used these to warp around the room, trying to surprise Link from behind. But the Hero had quickly figured out how to counter this.

"I picked the wrong place, didn't I?" asked Speil as he slowly embraced Sheik from behind, letting his chin rest on Sheik's shoulder.

"You could have chosen a more…appropriate place, one that does not evoke painful memories, yes," said Sheik, squirming out of Speil's embrace, putting some distance between them. He had finally decided on what to do. "The room above, for example," he added, nodding upwards.

"Ah, yes…the central hall. That's what I had in mind originally," said the shadow, scratching his neck in the same manner Link did, his pearly white teeth flashing in the weak light.

"Is that why the torches are burning?" asked Sheik.

"Yes, I thought you would appreciate the display," said Speil. He looked around, noting the limited aesthetic value of the inner sanctum. "At least more than this place, now that I think about it."

"It was…breathtaking," said Sheik earnestly. "It is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen, actually. And I suspect it had mostly to do with the differently coloured ones…"

"The poe sisters' remains do indeed fuel extravagant fires," said Speil, nodding. He took a step forward, and seemed perturbed when Sheik took one back, determined to keep his distance.

"How do you know about the poe sisters?" asked Sheik, doing his best to find a window in which to say what he had to say. It was so difficult, and he really felt like just shouting it out loud.

"The Hero's memories, of course," said Speil, raisin an eyebrow when Sheik took yet another step back in response to his forward one. "But I suspect that talking about dead souls' ability to create dazzling displays of illumination is not what you are interested in at the moment…or am I wrong, Sheik?" he asked.

_Damn!_

"You're right," Sheik said, his nerves giving a small jolt. It was getting hard to breathe, and his hands were shaking. He could feel sweat forming on his brow. It was like being grilled by Impa on Sheikah history again, and he didn't know the answer. "That's not what I wish to talk about," he said, trying to buy himself some time. There were really only two possible outcomes of what would happen next, and he was trying to ensure that it was the one he wanted to happen that actually would.

"Then what is it?" asked Speil. He tried to get closer to Sheik, but found that the Sheikah yet again stepped out of his reach. Something seemed to snap in his head. "And why are you avoiding me?"

"We can't do this anymore!" Sheik exclaimed suddenly, his mouth betraying his mind and blurting out what he had hoped to be an elegantly prepared and rational sentence.

"Excuse me?" asked Speil, his eyes wide.

"I said, we can't do this anymore," repeated Sheik. He sighed, dropping his weapons. Terra, Kazuya and his bundle of daggers clattered noisily on the stone floor, which turned out to be marble now that he looked at it. "Look," he continued, "I don't know how in Hyrule you ever thought that this would work out, you and me…being together. We're supposed to be enemies, for the goddesses' sake!"

Speil smirked. "Is that what you're worried about?" he asked, visibly relaxing. "History is filled with examples of people on opposing sides falling in love with each other…if my acquired knowledge is correct, there was even a Sheikah who fell in love with a Gerudo many years ago—"

"This is not the same thing, and you know that!" interrupted Sheik. He had hoped it wouldn't come to this, but it was obvious that Speil would keep trying to convince him that a relationship between them would work, and he couldn't have any of that. Not anymore. "You're going to die, sooner or later, at the Hero of Time's hands."

"How can you be certain of that?" asked Speil, pulling his left gauntlet off. "I have this, remember?" he asked as he showed Sheik the Triforce mark on the back of his hand. It lit up, painting the familiar gold triangle on the skin. "With this, My Light won't stand a chance."

"He has the temple medallions," Sheik reminded him. "Given to him by the sages themselves, created for the single purpose of weakening the effects of the Triforce pieces."

"The sages are weak, Sheik," the shadow said, slowly approaching the Sheikah, who found himself rooted to the spot. Speil had done something, he knew. Some sort of magic, most likely. Speil stopped, his face inches away from Sheik's. "They cannot even penetrate Ganondorf's veil of darkness…their medallions mean nothing." He leaned forward, softly pressing his lips to Sheik. Then he leaned back, smiling sadly. "I told you that I had fallen for you…do you feel the same about me?"

There was a desperate, almost pleading tone to Speil's voice, begging Sheik to say so, but the Sheikah could not. He had spent some time thinking about this, and he could not continue dancing with this creature of shadow, his lover's opposite in so many ways, yet also so similar.

"No," Sheik whispered.

Speil had expected him to answer differently, judging by the smile that was interrupted halfway from forming on the shadow's mouth. The glowing eyes narrowed, and Speil's ashen-grey skin seemed to darken a shade. "What?" the shadow asked, his voice low and trembling.

"No, I…I haven't fallen for you," said Sheik, cursing himself for the stutter. This was not a time in which to appear weak. Speil's hold over him seemed to soften, as he could move his arms ever so slightly. Anger was radiating from the shadow now, his eyes appearing as mere slits. "I'm sorry, Speil, I—"

"After all we have been through," the shadow said, interrupting him. "After saving each other's lives so many times…all you have to say is 'sorry'?"

 _Now he's being ridiculous,_ Sheik thought, narrowing his own eyes. "I have lost count of the times I have told you now, but you are my enemy, you always have been. History be damned, if you ever thought I would fall in love with you—"

"You didn't seem too unhappy with the idea when you kissed me in Twilight, pet," the shadow said. He cupped Sheik's face in both his hands, stroking his thumbs along his cheeks.

"I had to distract you so wouldn't die and leave me alone in that place," Sheik said, not missing Speil's use of his old nickname…or title. He gritted his teeth, trying to make his body move away from the fiend, but whatever Speil was doing only reaffirmed itself, making it impossible for Sheik to even move his muscles.

"I was…going to be gentle with you, pet…" Speil said, his voice dropping an octave in what seemed to be an attempt to sound seductive. "I could have given you pleasure beyond all expectations and dreams…"

"Speil?" Sheik asked, noticing the sudden change in the atmosphere around them. Where there had only been betrayal and anger in Speil's eyes, there was now lust and…something unidentifiable.

"If you will not give yourself to me willingly…I shall have to go with my original plan," growled Speil.

"What are you talking about?"

"I told you…when we first met," Speil explained. "Before I killed My Light…I would take everything he ever loved away from him…and I suppose I should start with you." With that, he crushed his lips to Sheik's. The kiss was different than the one from before. That one had been loving, appreciative, welcoming. This one was nothing more than an expression of lust and domination, a messenger of what was to come.

Sheik's eyes widened and he began to struggle against Speil's compulsion. Not even his jaw would obey, yielding for the shadow's invasive tongue.

This was not what Sheik had expected to happen. Speil was supposed to react in two ways: storm away in anger, or try to kill him. Those were situations he could deal with, but this…this was something else entirely.

Suddenly, he could move again. Wasting no time, he slammed an open palm into Speil's chest. The shadow stumbled away, coughing. Sheik spat, wiping his mouth as Speil straightened up, his teeth flashing in a wide grin.

"So, you're going to struggle?" he asked, rubbing the spot where Sheik had struck. "Very well, I gave you a chance, pet, but you didn't take it…I will make you mine once and for all!"

He stormed forward, tackling Sheik painfully to the ground. Sheik tried to roll him off, failed, and chose instead to kick his knee into the shadow's side. Speil let out a loud "Ooof!" and went limp, enabling Sheik to slip out from underneath him.

 _My weapons, where are my weapons?_ Sheik thought desperately, his eyes searching the floor. There they were…on the other side of Speil's writhing form. He tried to approach them, but Speil was on him within seconds, trying to swipe Sheik's legs from underneath him. Flipping away, Sheik really wished he was wearing other, more practical clothes. The leather pants were tight, constricting and limiting his movements.

 _He's faster,_ he realised as Speil suddenly moved in for a flurry of punches, kicks and shoves that he was barely able to keep up with. He was able to dodge them for a few seconds before Speil landed his boot to his cheek, which sent him flying into the spiked iron bars surrounding the platform. _And stronger,_ he finished the thought as he slowly picked himself up from the floor. His body was already aching from the exertion. Kaura would surely be shaking her head and muttering "Idiot", at him now. He caught a glimpse of the large gap between the bars that marked the "entrance" to the platform. The staircase lay just beyond it. If he was fast enough…

The soles of his shoes clapped loudly against the marble as he ran as fast as he could, trying to get away from the shadow. He heard the chuckle before it even happened. The hidden spikes in the floor seemed to appear instantly, completing the fence, trying to prevent Sheik from escaping. But Sheik had a plan. Four steps away, he jumped, putting all his strength into the leap. The bars were not that tall, and while someone like Link, who was more about raw strength than agility, might not be able to make it, Sheik certainly could…

…or he could have, at least. Had it not been for the bolt of lightning suddenly shooting out of the bars, he would have made it. As it was, however, Sheik screamed in pain as the waves of electricity made their way through his body. He hit the marble hard, the air getting knocked out of him.

"Do you like it?" the shadow asked mockingly as Sheik slowly tried to stand. Every part of him was pure agony to move, and his legs trembled as they tried to support his weight. "I took some inspiration from our friend back in Twilight…I must admit, that Ganondorf had some good ideas when it came to ensuring your opponent could not escape."

"Why are you doing this?" asked Sheik, his vision swimming. The lightning had made him dizzy, and it was hard to see with just one eye now. "I thought…you loved me…" he said, trying to appeal to the sympathetic side of Speil he had seen developing throughout their adventure in Twilight.

"As did I…but when you rejected me just now," Speil said, slowly moving toward Sheik, "I realised that I have just been your plaything this entire time…"

"What are you talking about?" Sheik shouted, not believing his ears. "You're the one who started all this! _You're_ the one who made your mark on me! _You're the one who made me your slave!_ " he screamed, launching himself at the dark form in front of him. He tensed his arm, putting all he had into a punch that would surely shatter the shadow's jaw.

Speil smirked, easily sidestepping the fist. He then grabbed hold of Sheik's arm and threw the Sheikah over his shoulder.

Sheik felt the back of his head hit the floor, and everything went black. He could see tiny pinpricks of white dancing across his vision. Then the pain and nausea hit him. He could vaguely feel his arms being pinned over his head over the physical noise that was assaulting his brain. When he finally came to, he was once again being violently kissed by the shadow, who was keeping his arms locked with a steel grip. With his free arm, Speil ripped Sheik's feeble shirt apart, revealing the rapidly bruising skin beneath.

Speil pulled away, leaving Sheik panting, unable to move. His legs were burning, the pain of moving them far too great.

"You cannot imagine how lovely you look right now," Speil whispered, staring down at the Sheikah. "It is a shame it had to come to this, pet."

"Let me go, you bastard!" Sheik twisted and turned, desperately trying to break free from Speil's iron hold. "Let me go!"

"Tut-tut," said Speil, licking his lips. "Do you truly think that you can stop me from taking you here on the spot? I was playing with you just now…your feeble attacks cannot hurt me." He let his free hand roam along Sheik's upper body, squeezing the forming bruises to elicit moans of pain from his pet. Then his hand slid lower, and lower. "You have such a nice body, pet…too bad it is wasted on that fool of a Hero…" His hand reached its destination, and squeezed.

Sheik whimpered, suddenly realising the implication of what was happening…and just powerless of he was to stop it.

"Please…don't," he whispered.

"Pardon?" asked Speil, grinning. "I could not hear that…please speak up."

"Please don't hurt me." He felt so ashamed. He was going to be…he could not even think about it. Speil was fully in control, and the only way to stop this was to appeal to the same softer side that had confessed its feelings to Sheik several times before…and hope it answered.

For a split-second, it seemed to work, but then an even uglier grin than the one before shined through and Speil shook his head. And then he slapped Sheik, again and again. It seemed to go on forever, and the pain was unbearable. Then he stopped. He said nothing, but leaned down and kissed Sheik again, softly, almost compassionately. "I will make you scream," he whispered afterwards. His weapons seemed to disappear from his back, dissipating into a mist-like substance. His hand moved to the hem of Sheik's pants, grabbing it, starting to pull…

**Thud!**

The iron grip on Sheik's hands disappeared, and the shadow's presence above him with it. An arrow had embedded itself in the stone wall right behind them. Speil stared at it for a few seconds before he turned around to look at the intruder who had dared to interrupt his moment of pleasure.

"Let him go, you son of a bitch!" Link yelled, another arrow notched and ready to be set free. His bow creaked as the wood protested against being treated like this.

Sheik's relief was short-lived, however, as Speil, acting on instinct, it seemed, yanked him up by his arm, his copy of the Master Sword suddenly reforming in his hand. Speil positioned Sheik between him and Link, the dark Master Sword's blade suddenly at Sheik's throat.

"Typical of you to interrupt us," Speil snarled at his counterpart. "But it was going to happen, sooner or later, I suppose."

"I said let him go!" Link repeated, angling the bow so the arrow would go through Speil's head. "Or I'll put this right between your eyes!"

"You won't dare shoot me as long as I have your precious Sheikah!" Speil shouted back, drawing a little blood from Sheik's throat as he spoke. "I am faster than you, My Light. The moment you let go of the string, I will make sure the arrow goes through him instead."

Ignoring the shadow, Link's eyes focused on Sheik's. Anger, shock and disappointment could be seen in the Hero's stormy, yet oddly puffy eyes. "Sheik, are you okay?" Link asked.

He could feel the tears gathering as he tried to stutter out a reply. Link was there! He had come to save him. Had this been any other time, Sheik would have scoffed at himself acting like a damsel in distress, but now…

"L-Link! I…I…" was all he could say.

"Quiet!" shouted Speil. "Pets do not speak unless told to do so by their master." The shadow looked at Link, who stared coldly back.

"Pet?" Link asked quietly, looking back and forth from Speil to Sheik.

"That's right," Speil said, smirking. "For the last few months, Sheik has been my little love slave. I suppose that goes against _your_ morals, Hero, but not mine…nor his."

"Shut up!" Link shouted, reaffirming the grip on his bow. "Your beef is with me, shadow! Leave Sheik out of this!"

"As much as I would like to fight you now, Hero…it is not the time," said Speil, shaking his head. "However, I shall leave you something to remember me by…like the last time we met."

Link's eyes widened. "No…"

Smiling evilly, Speil whispered into Sheik's ear: "If I cannot have you, then no one can." He then pushed Sheik forward, sending the Sheikah stumbling toward Link.

Sheik felt something hit him in the back, and then an agonizing pain as it went right through him, emerging right underneath his ribs. He heard Link shouting, the whistle of an arrow passing by. He looked down. A dark, almost black piece of steel was sticking out of his torso. It was shaped just like the Master Sword, he noted. Then it disappeared, slowly being pulled out from the other side, leaving a deep gash and blood pouring from the wound. He felt his legs give out. He saw Link running toward him, catch him, hold him in his arms as he desperately tried to stem the blood flowing freely form Sheik's body…

…and darkness consumed him.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 59**

* * *

Zelda was worried. Guilden had rushed into the tent, announcing that Sheik had disappeared. She had ignored his subsequent suggestions that the Sheikah was sneaking around, spying on them. But it was true that Sheik was gone, and that could not be good. Maybe she and Link had overdone their grilling about the missing Triforce piece, causing him to run away, worried about the consequences that would come from the inevitable exposure of his secret.

Link had deduced that there could only be one place Sheik could have gone, and that was inside the Forest Temple. Why this was, or how Link had come to this conclusion, she didn't know. Link hadn't seemed too sure himself, but it was better to look inside the temple than to do nothing. She had tried to go with him, but the Hero of Time had insisted she stay outside, not sure if he had disarmed every single trap inside.

She stamped her feet in the cold. Her armour did little to insulate her against the cold autumn nights. Guilden had gone to organise a search party through the camp, not taking her no for an answer. The man was the definition of wily, knowing just how to be disobedient without actually acting as such. Many were the times Zelda had wanted to fire the man, but the aging attendant had been a part of the royal entourage for the last forty years, and he would probably not know what to do if released from his duties.

She heard a door slam open from somewhere ahead, and breathing. Heavy breathing. She felt her heart skip a beat as laboured footsteps approached. She gasped when Link came into view at the top of the broken staircase…carrying an unconscious, half-naked and bleeding Sheik. Link saw her and gave her a pleading look.

"Zelda…I—"

"Hold on, Link," she interrupted, doing her best not to freeze in horror at the sight of her wounded childhood friend. She turned around, looking in the direction of her tent, where she knew at least two of her guards stood, ready to spring into action. "Guards!" she called.

The heavily armed soldiers were there in an instant, proving just why they were handpicked to protect their princess. "Your highness!" one of them said, his gaze focused solely on her. They seemed not to notice what was happening, but she knew that they did, but only Zelda mattered in their eyes, like they had been trained to.

"You," she said and pointed at the largest of them, "help the Hero with Sheik." She pointed at Link. The guard immediately went to help him get Sheik down from the staircase. "You," she said and pointed at the smaller, faster-looking one, "get the best doctors and physicians. Tell them it's an emergency, now!" He ran, disappearing from sight almost as fast as he had appeared.

When she turned her attention back to Link and the other guard, they had already gotten Sheik down. The guard was carrying Sheik, who seemed so small and child-like in his arms…which, she admitted, was not too far from the truth. The guard was waiting for orders. "The tent!" she snapped and pointed at the large silk construction that was more of a house than a tent. The soldier's armour clanked as he quickly moved inside. Link came up behind her. "What happened?" she asked, worried that the he and Sheik had come into an altercation with dire results.

"The shadow," Link spat, adjusting something on his back. Sheik's swords. "He didn't even stand a chance."

"So…Sheik was lying," she said, disappointed that the Sheikah had not been honest.

"I don't think it was voluntary," Link said, his voice strangely even and dull.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"The shadow said something…about Sheik being his slave," he answered. He was clenching his jaw, obviously hating the idea of Sheik being under someone's control.

She didn't know what to say to that. She put a hand on Link's shoulder, noticing how tense the Hero was. "Come on, let's go inside," she said kindly, leading him toward the tent, silently pondering just what had happened between Sheik and the shadow.

* * *

When the princess called, the doctors answered. When they came inside the tent, Link and Zelda were met with the sight of at least a dozen physicians and surgeons studying Sheik's wound, doing their best to stem the blood flow, making sure that no major organs had been damaged and…well, just generally making noise.

When they tried to get close, they were hounded away by a stern-looking elderly physician. "I am sorry, but his condition is serious and we need to concentrate," he said.

At that point, the gravity of the situation seemed to click in Zelda's head. At first, she had only been able to concentrate on Sheik's lying. It had hurt, she felt betrayed. But now… She had not been able to get a good look at his wound until now, but she could now see how deep it was…

"Oh, goddesses," she whispered, feeling dizzy.

"Come on," Link said simply and led her to the room with the large table, pulling on her arm as she tried to resist. He gently, but firmly pushed her into a chair before sitting down himself, keeping a hand on her arm in order to keep her sitting. "Calm down, Zelda," he said quietly. "Getting worked up is not going to help."

"How can you be so calm?" she asked, her voice quivering. "Sheik could be dying!"

"I know," the Hero said, his face still set in a steel mask. "But getting worked up is not going to help."

"You've already said that!"

"I know…"

The Hero was in shock, that much was obvious. Trying to take her mind off what was happening in the next room, Zelda decided to try and comfort Link, who looked like he was about to pull a muscle in his jaw.

"Link…when did you first realise you liked Sheik?" she asked, doing her best to smile, which became increasingly difficult every time she heard someone curse in the other room.

"Huh?" the Hero asked, his eyes staring straight ahead. There seemed to be some sort of strange trade-off going on between them, she realised. First, it was Zelda who acted rationally, then it was Link, and now it was her again. She tapped his hand, which made him slowly turn his head to look at her. She repeated her question. "Oh," he said slowly. "I don't know."

"Come on, Link, I've seen the way you look at him…there must be a story behind it," she said, trying to keep his attention on her. "Tell me."

He seemed to ponder the request. "I…liked him from the first time I saw him…in the Temple of Time," he said. "Navi and I were both confused. I felt so awkward, like I couldn't keep my balance…my legs were too long, I was too tall, my weapons were too small…"

Zelda nodded, encouraging him to go on.

"Then he appeared behind us, all quiet. I didn't notice him until he spoke," said Link, a small smile splayed on his lips. "His voice was so…beautiful, and I knew he was too just from the small part of his face I could see."

"Was he kind?" asked Zelda, remembering herself distinctly telling Sheik to be nice and friendly to the prophesised Hero of Time, of who Sheik had been rather sceptical.

"Very…straight and to the point, really," said Link. "He didn't seem to want to waste time."

"Sheik has always been impatient about certain things," Zelda said. "Unless he is working on an assignment that involves direct infiltration or assassination, he does not like to sit still…I guess he thought that watching over you was going to be rather uneventful."

"He was wrong about that," said Link. "I liked him from the first moment I saw him…but I didn't realise what exactly I was feeling for him until I talked with Navi about right before we fought…my shadow in the Water Temple." He chuckled. "I was actually going to tell him about it after defeating Morpha…but then we were ambushed, and Navi was killed…" His slight grin faded. "That's two people my shadow has taken from me…"

"Link, it hasn't taken Sheik from you," Zelda protested. "Not yet."

Someone cursed, severely undermining Zelda's comment.

"If Sheik dies…I don't know what I'll do," said Link, turning his eyes back on the thin cloth separating them from the others.

"He won't," Zelda reassured.

Link was about to reply when the smaller of Zelda's guards stepped into the room, bowing deeply to the princess. "Your highness, there are a couple of women demanding entrance outside."

"Tell them I am busy," said Zelda, wondering why in Hyrule the guard possibly could think such a request was important in light of what was going on.

"Uh," said the guard, struggling with deciding what to do. "They are rather…persistent," he said, raising his head. He had a black eye, a rather recent one.

Link perked up, looking closely at the guard. "What do they look like?" he asked.

"One of them has red hair and blue eyes, dressed like a nurse, the other is older. She has purple hair and spectacles," the guard said.

A shiver ran down Link's back. "Oh, no…" he said. "Zelda, I think you'd better let them in."

"Why?" asked Zelda. "What's so special about them?" The she froze, as if remembering something, and Link recognised the fear in her eyes as the same he had seen in Sheik's once. "Oh no, it's her..."

"Exactly..."

* * *

"I have never _seen_ such an irresponsibly maintained infirmary!" Doctor Kaura roared at Princess Zelda. "What were you _thinking_?" she asked.

"But Sheik was injured, and—"

"But nothing," Kaura shrieked. "You left dozens of patients without anyone to look after them, and for what? So they could stand bumbling and mumbling around him, not doing a thing to save him?!"

The angry doctor had stormed inside the tent with the guard in tow, Malon trailing slowly behind. Why they were there, Link didn't know, but it was not a pretty sight that had followed. Once Kaura had quickly checked up on Sheik (after scaring away the other doctors, who had long ago learned that one does not go up against Kaura and win), she had immediately let loose upon Zelda, who seemed to take it with good stride.

He and Malon were currently standing in the background, watching with embarrassed expressions at the exchange.

"I came here to check up on a few of my patients, and I find them alone, overlooked. There is simply no excuse for this, Princess," Kaura finished, glaring at the younger woman. "I'm disappointed in you."

"I'm sorry, Doctor Kaura," Zelda said simply, looking down at the floor in shame.

"What's going on?" whispered Link to Malon, who was blushing like a tomato at the sight of her mentor lambasting her monarch.

"Her Highness wanted to learn medicine a couple of months ago," Malon explained, "and she specifically requested Kaura to teach her. She agreed, but only if Her Highness would take her lessons to heart and truly care about every patient and not give special treatment."

"And by telling everyone to focus on Sheik…" Link said.

"Exactly. She went directly against Kaura's wishes, and now…well, she's angry," Malon finished, grinning nervously when she noticed the silence that permeated the air.

"I'm sorry," Zelda finally said, still not daring to look up at her teacher.

"Hmph, it's too late for saying sorry," Kaura snorted and looked at Sheik. "The wound is deep, his lungs have been punctured, and that's just at first glance." She narrowed her eyes at the unconscious Sheik.

"Can you save him?" asked Zelda, pleading.

"I don't know," said Kaura, turning away from the princess to focus on the Sheikah. She picked up a discarded apron and tied it on. "Malon, my bag," she said. Malon quickly gave her the bag that she had carried this entire time. Kaura started rummaging around in it. "I'm going to need two assistants. Zelda, Malon." She looked up and fastened her gaze on Link. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave, Hero," she said.

"But—"

"Link, you should know better than to disobey her," Zelda whispered and pointed him to the room with the table, yet again. "I'll have Guilden bring you something to drink when he comes back."

"Nah, I'll just go outside," said Link, not liking the idea of being banished from Sheik's side. "I need some fresh air." There was also something he wanted to do.

"Please do not do something stupid," the princess told him as he went outside. She slipped of her armour, revealing the leather outfit she had worn when she first met Link back in the Kokiri Village. Then she went to the table by Kaura's side.

* * *

Link certainly didn't think what he was doing was stupid. He was going to find the shadow, and he was going to kill it. The first thing to do was to go back to the place he had last seen it. As he stepped off the elevator, he felt the cold that had spread throughout the temple. The torches in the main hall had all been extinguished, and the stone did not store the heat very well.

Memories of his battle with Phantom Ganon popped up in his head as he stepped onto the platform, and he regretted that he had not finished off the creature instead of letting Ganondorf banish it to the place between dimensions, where it had been able to invade Twilight…in a way, Link had inadvertently caused Sheik's eye injury…and now he had been unable to save his lover from his own shadow.

"It's unfair," he whispered as he looked at the pool of blood—Sheik's blood—that had spread on the marble. Why was it always the people around him and not him who were hurt? Why didn't his enemies ever come after him directly? "It's fucking unfair!" he shouted, punching the wall between the bars. His voice echoed in the room.

The temperature seemed to drop by a few degrees suddenly, and Link did not fail to notice this. He drew the Master Sword and Mirror Shield, ready to attack whoever had arrived. "Who's there?" he asked. No answer. "Who's there?!" he shouted. He desperately wished it was the shadow, just so he could run his sword through it like it had done with Sheik.

" _There is certainly no need to shout,"_ said an unfamiliar voice. It was calm, collected. _"I am not deaf, only half blind."_

"Who are you?" asked Link, not trusting the voice. If the shadow had the Triforce, it could certainly mask its voice and other…illusionary tricks.

" _A ghost from the past, one could say,"_ the voice replied. _"And of the present."_

"You've lost me," said Link, not bothering trying to figure out what it meant. "Are you my enemy? My shadow?" he asked.

" _I am certainly not that creature!"_ the voice spat. _"I wanted to kill it the moment I laid my eyes on it."_

Link relaxed a bit, glad to hear that someone else wanted the shadow just as much as he did. "Can you…show yourself? I don't like talking to someone I can't see."

" _I am afraid that is impossible,"_ the voice said. _"I lost my ability to materialise not so long ago…thanks to the shadow creature that once dwelled within this place."_

"Shadow creature…?" Link asked himself quietly. Something clicked into place. "You're that Sheikah, aren't you?" he asked, remembering what Sheik had told them about his adventure in Twilight. "Terra, right?" he said, the name appearing in his head.

" _Yes, it is I,"_ confirmed the voice.

"But how?" asked Link. "You died."

" _My body did, yes…"_ said Terra. _"But my spirit did not."_

"Sheik said you went away, along with the other Sheikah spirits."

" _It is…difficult to explain,"_ said Terra, his voice hesitant. _"When I died, I gave my sword to Sheik. I have had it for the entirety of my existence, and because of this, a small piece of my essence had attached itself to it…the little piece that is speaking to you right now."_

"I don't understand," said Link. "Sheik hasn't said anything about speaking to you after you…or most of you, at least, died."

" _That is because I haven't,"_ replied Terra. _"The little piece of me, that is, I, am not strong enough to speak to him outside of this place. The magical energy aids me, but it is quite difficult just to speak to you right now. I tried to warn Sheik when he entered this place, but he could not hear me…the shadow was hampering my efforts. But now its corrupting influence is gone, and I could make contact with you."_

"Why?" asked Link. "Do you know where the shadow is?"

" _Alas, I do not. And even if I did, I would not do so."_

"What?" Link exclaimed. "Why not?"

" _Because I know how much Sheik means to you…and you mean to him. If you get killed trying to defeat your shadow, there is no telling what Sheik will do. Please, Hero of Time, he does not have much time. You should be there, with him."_

"Sheik's dying?"

" _You heard the doctor_ _, she was not sure of her ability to save him…and I could feel his spirit letting go."_

"Goddesses," Link whispered, leaning against the bars.

" _Even they cannot help now,"_ Terra said. _"They are no longer around."_

"Tell me something I don't know," said Link. "If they had been here, they would have stopped Ganondorf a long time ago…" He drew Terra from its sheathe. "Can you see me now?" he asked.

" _Not in the literal sense, no,"_ Terra answered. _"My eyes disappeared along with my body. But I can sense you, and I know what you look like from the images from Sheik's mind."_

"Huh," said Link. "You can read Sheik's mind?"

" _I can read the mind of whoever is holding the sword, Hero of Time,"_ said Terra. _"But you are wasting your time in here. The shadow is long gone, and Sheik is dying. There is nothing you can learn from me that you do not know from before."_ Terra sighed. _"While I appreciate the opportunity to speak with someone again, I highly suggest you go back to him…be at his side…goodbye, Hero of Time."_ As he finished the sentence, his voice faded away, marking the end of the conversation.

"Wait, don't go!" Link shouted. He had finally someone who knew what Sheik had been like during the Twilight incident. "I need to ask one more thing!"

"… _you really don't understand the intricacies of theatrics, do you?"_ asked the irritated voice of Terra. _"What is it?"_

"What…was the shadow with Sheik in Twilight?" he asked. Then his brow wrinkled slightly. "Wait, if you can read my mind, why did you ask what I was going to ask?"

"… _theatrics again,_ _Hero,"_ Terra answered. _"But yes, the shadow was with Sheik when he arrived in Twilight. As I understand it, the shadow had bound itself to him some time before they came here, and that bond interrupted whatever spell was cast on them in the Spirit Temple of this world."_

"Did…did Sheik act like he loved the shadow?" Link asked hesitantly, fearing the answer.

" _He acted rather neutrally at first,"_ Terra said. _"But there seemed to a lot of tension between the two…as expected. At one point, Sheik even punched the creature. But then…after they met Midna, the Twilight Princess, the tension disappeared. They even kissed on one occasion."_

"…" Link remained silent, his fears confirmed, and heart twisting.

" _Sheik was confused, Link,"_ Terra said, using the Hero's real name for the first time. _"He did not know what to do, and he was stressed. The shadow provided him with an anchor point, a place where he could calm down and relax. And I must admit, the more Sheik accepted the shadow, the more agreeable and…pleasant it became. I'm ashamed to say that I even had to accept its help at times when I could not walk by myself."_

"…"

"… _Hero, please do not judge Sheik based on what he did at the time. He always remained true to you. In the time after they came back to Hyrule, he agonised over what he had done for weeks. He even asked the terrifying doctor for advice, albeit with different wording. I did not understand much of the advice she gave him, but it seemed sound. And you saw yourself what was happening when you came here an hour ago."_

"The only thing I saw was Sheik and the shadow kissing, and Sheik didn't seem to be much against it…"

" _The shadow had just beaten him up!"_ Terra exclaimed. _"Sheik had just told him that he did not love him, and the shadow was enraged. He tried to take Sheik by force, and Sheik resisted. But the shadow is so strong now, Sheik didn't stand a chance. If you had not arrived at the time you did, I can only imagine what would happen…and I cannot thank you enough for doing so. Please, Hero, go back to Sheik…he needs you…"_

Link was already running back to the entrance.

* * *

"Stop bleeding!" Kaura exclaimed as she tried to repair the damage to Sheik's left lung. "Malon, I can't see what I'm doing!"

"Sorry," Malon said, wiping away the life fluid.

"Zelda, more potion," ordered Kaura.

Zelda tipped the bottle to Sheik's unresponsive lips, massaging his throat to encourage him to swallow the liquid. The potion would replace most of the blood that had been lost, but they could not keep up the artificial supply forever. Sooner or later, Sheik would reach the point of no return. Had it not been for the fact that his right lung was still functioning, he would have been dead long ago.

The three heard footsteps behind them, but only Malon and Zelda turned around to see who had arrived. Link was panting and sweating, the run from the centre of the Forest Temple to the tent having taken its toll on his still weak body.

"Is…he…okay?" he asked.

"No," Kaura said before Malon or Zelda could answer. "The wound is extensive, and I can't stop the damn bleeding."

Link stepped forward, walking around the table to get a good look at the unconscious Sheikah. He had yet to replace Terra in its sheath, thinking that Terra himself wanted to see as well…or feel, or whatever he did. "Will he…be okay?" he asked, still catching his breath.

"Did you just ignore what I said?" snapped Kaura, suddenly looking at Link. "I can't stop the bleeding!"

Link was shocked. Kaura had tears in her eyes. She had such a haunted expression in her eyes, reminding him of what Malon had told both him and Sheik about her losing patients. She took it personally, deeply so, and she and Sheik seemed to have become friends…and now Kaura was losing a patient that stood her close.

Not receiving an answer from Link, Kaura blinked the tears away and resumed her work on Sheik, wordlessly gesturing for Malon or Zelda to do little tasks such as wiping away blood, administering potion and other things.

Half an hour slowly trickled by in silence, the only sounds heard being Sheik's laboured breathing and Kaura cursing under hear breath.

The doctor had to give in eventually, though, and with a pained groan, she hurled her instruments to the floor, where it clattered loudly. "Damnit!" she shouted, storming outside, closely followed by Malon, who looked worried back at the unconscious Sheikah.

"I guess that means she gives up," Zelda said quietly and put the bottle of potion down, looking at Link. She was crying, pearly drops running down her cheeks. Link did as well. They had both accepted it twenty minutes earlier, but Kaura had refused to give up. Suddenly, the purple-haired physicians came back inside, her face blank and eyes dry.

"There's nothing more I can do," she said tonelessly.

Link and Zelda both nodded, acknowledging that she had done her best.

"Is…is it going to be painful for him?" asked Link, stroking Sheik's cheek, running his hand through the sweaty hair.

"He is unconscious," said Kaura, still emotionlessly. "He won't even notice it…but it will take a long time. His heart will slowly stop as less and less blood is circulated to his brain, his breathing will stop long before he actually dies…he may wake up, however…" As she said this, she deliberately looked at the pillow underneath Sheik's head. "It may be…better to…"

Malon entered the tent, a mirror image of Kaura, having steeled her face and posture. "There's a man outside," she announced, which went unheard.

"I'll do it," said Link, gently lifting Sheik's head to retrieve the pillow.

"You have to do it firmly, making sure to cut off the air completely," said Kaura.

Zelda turned away, unable to look at what Link was about to do.

"I'm sorry, Sheik," Link said through his tears, leaning down to gently kiss the unresponsive teen on the lips. "I love you," he said as he slowly lowered the pillow…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 60**

* * *

The tension was unbearable as Link held the pillow above Sheik's face, tears flowing freely down his cheeks. His arms were straining, trying to perform the task that his brain was telling him to do, but his heart was refusing. Sheik's breath was growing more and more shallow, the teen's body slowly giving up on keeping itself alive.

Zelda was still standing with her back to the scene, waiting for Link to do the deed. She was clenching her fists, sobbing. Sheik had been her friend for so long, and now he was dying just a few feet behind her…

Kaura and Malon had drawn slightly back, observing. Kaura's was expressionless, her eyes focused solely on the sad sight of Sheik. Malon too had tears shining in her eyes, despite having known the Sheikah for only a little while.

Link was sweating now, his arms shaking. He had to do this, or Sheik could suffer. He didn't want Sheik to suffer; he wanted him to have peace, peace from this wretched world that Ganondorf had created. But he couldn't even do that! Sheik's lips parted slightly, and a quiet, almost unnoticeable sigh escaped.

Hurling away the pillow, he growled. "I can't do it!" he shouted, sinking to his knees, resting his head on the table, crying his eyes out. "Damn!" He took hold of Sheik's limp hand, kissing it over and over. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"

Kaura slowly came up to the table, putting her fingers against Sheik's neck. The corners of her mouth twitched as she relocated her fingers several times. Ignoring the sobbing Link, she leant down over Sheik's mouth, twisting her head. With a heavy sigh, she pulled away, turning away from the table. "He's dead," she said with a low voice, almost a whisper.

Link clenched his eyes shut, burying his face in the unresponsive hand of Sheik, feeling the torrent of tears begin anew. He could feel something inside his chest expanding, breaking… A pain unlike anything he had ever felt before, both physical and emotional, was spreading through his entire being, pushing itself outwards, upwards. He tried to keep his mouth shut, tried to keep it inside lest it tear him apart. A scream began to form at the back of his throat, pushing forwards, outwards. An anguished howl echoed over the camp as the Hero of Time let loose the sorrow, misery and pain that had been building up since his shadow had wounded his companion, his friend…his lover.

* * *

"How is he?" asked Kaura. She and Zelda were standing outside the entrance to the tent, the princess having sent away her guards. No one in the camp knew what the commotion had been about save for the doctors, but Kaura had made sure they wouldn't talk. Link had inconsolable, refusing to let go of Sheik's body, threatening anyone who dared come near. It had progressed to the point where Kaura had been forced to drug him, putting a special chemical on a cloth, holding up against the Hero's face so he would breathe in the fumes. The poor messenger outside had been frightened away by Link's scream, but had been hunted down by the guards.

Zelda shifted uncomfortably. "He's still sleeping, but I'm worried about nightmares…" An hour had passed since Sheik's passing, and the princess was showing no outward signs of grief, but Kaura knew that the blonde-haired girl was just about ready to collapse inwards on herself.

"There is no need to worry about that," said Kaura kindly, patting her on the shoulder. "The kind of sleep the Hero's in right now is…not the kind that produces dreams. It is the same drug I use when operating as I can't have limbs flailing around when I'm trying to fix a ruptured spleen…" She permitted herself a slight grin, hoping to cheer up the princess a little, but knew right away that it was a lost cause.

"I see…" said the princess, trailing off, unsure of what to say next. Sheik was dead, and that was it. Her little brother…gone. She looked up when Kaura placed both her hands on her shoulders.

"What about you, Princess?" the physician asked. "Are you going to be okay? You haven't gotten any rest lately, have you?" Kaura looked her up and down, noting that the girl—for that was what she was, princess or no—seemed thinner, somewhat scrawnier than she had been when learning medicine from Kaura. The physician raised an eyebrow, waiting for the monarch's answer.

"No, I haven't," the princess admitted, looking down at the ground. "So much has happened lately…the move to this place, the arrival of the representatives from the other races, constant reports, meetings…I haven't found the time for sleep."

"Then your attendant is useless and should be sent away," said Kaura, grimacing. "How long ago is it that you had a proper night's sleep?" she asked.

"…a couple of weeks, a month?" said Zelda, unsure. "I've lost count, and days and nights sometimes blend together…"

"Then I highly suggest, Your Highness, that you go to sleep now," said Kaura, turning the princess around, leading her inside the tent. She avoided leading Zelda past the room that had been dubbed "The Operating Room", which still contained the deceased Sheikah, albeit covered with a blanket for decency's sake. The princess didn't need to see that. All Kaura cared about now was Zelda's well-being.

The princess' bedchambers (if they could be called that when inside a damn _tent_ ) were…as lavish as they could possibly be in such a place. The floor (or ground) had been covered in a fine rug, probably lifted from the castle by her loyal supporters, and a large bed had somehow been fitted in there along with a fainting couch, on which the Hero of Time was currently sleeping. His weapons lay on the floor, and all of his strange devices had been taken out of the many pockets on his tunic. Zelda regarded him with the same look of sadness she had given the doorway to The Operating Room, and Kaura felt a tug at her heartstrings. She looked at Zelda, who was now eyeing the large, silk-covered bed with what could only be described as perplexity and confusion.

"Do you need help falling asleep?" asked Kaura, wondering if she was going to have to drug the princess as well.

"No…I…" Zelda looked around. Tears were once again gathering in her eyes. Then she looked pleadingly up at Kaura. "…I won't dream, right?" she asked, inclining her head at the sleeping Hero. "If you use on me what you used on him?"

Kaura smiled gently. "No, you won't. And it will keep you asleep for at least half a day, so you will finally get some proper sleep. Shall I fetch my bag?" she asked.

"Please," said Zelda, nodding.

It was a quick matter, fetching said bag. She had left it with the contents spread about in The Operating Room. As she rummaged through the multitude of bottles, Kaura happened to sweep her gaze over the blanket-covered form on the table. Grasping the right bottle (sniffing it to make sure), she stood up and walked over to the table, lifting the blanket to expose Sheik's face.

"You weren't supposed to die," she whispered. "Soldiers, mages, warlocks, sure…but not you. You are just a child…" Shaking her head, she replaced the blanket and went back to Zelda's chambers.

The princess had undressed and slipped between the covers, leaving only her head exposed to the world. She looked so frail, her hair spread out like a second pillow behind her head. Zelda looked at the bottle. "Is that it?" she asked.

Nodding, Kaura took out her handkerchief, lambasting herself for forgetting to bring a cloth, poured a few drops into it. Then she crumpled it together to spread the clear liquid. She sat down on the edge of the bed, close to Zelda. "Remember, I will be staying here in the camp, and I have explicitly told your attendant to come get me if any problems arise."

"Thank you," Zelda whispered.

"You're welcome," said Kaura, covering Zelda's mouth and nose with the handkerchief. "Breathe slowly and deeply, Your Highness," she said gently. The princess did as she was told, and after three breaths, she was gone, sleeping deeply. Kaura pulled the handkerchief away; making sure the girl was asleep. She ran into the fat attendant outside the chambers. The man was smiling apologetically.

"Is she asleep?" he whispered.

"Yeah," said Kaura. Then she pulled back arm and slapped Guilden hard on the cheek, leaving his many jowls to jiggle. "The next time I find out you have been neglecting her health, I will do more than just slap you." With that, she walked into The Operating Room, leaving the attendant in stunned silence. She quickly and quietly gathered her things, packing them neatly into her bag, leaving without looking back at the body on the table. As she walked down the stairs, away from the plateau, she noticed that the sun was starting to rise, the sky growing just a bit brighter.

A tent had been erected in the small passage for her and Malon at Kaura's request as she was now, effectively, Zelda and Link's personal physician. No one else would be allowed to do anything if Kaura wasn't there to supervise. Malon was already asleep, having been excused soon after Sheik's death. The girl had cried herself to sleep, it seemed. Kaura stashed her bag in with her other belongings. She leaned against the central pole; wondering if now would be a good time to have a cigarette. It was. She lit the tightly-rolled tobacco leaves and took a deep breath. She remembered the conversation she had had with the Sheikah soon after the Hero had woken up, remembered how distraught the teenager had been.

"War…" she whispered to herself. "It's always the good ones who suffer." The cigarette didn't taste very good. She snuffed it out on the ground outside the tent and went back inside, laying down on the futon. And then, for the first time in years, Kaura cried.


	5. Chapter 5

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 61**

* * *

He didn't know much time had passed. When Link woke up, he felt like he had slept for a week, but he knew it had not been that long. He was lying on some sort of couch, he realised, with a raised back. He had seen one once before, in a furniture shop in Castle Town. The price had been ridiculous. His back was sore, and something popped back into place when he stretched. His weapons lay on the carpeted floor, but he did not feel like putting them on. He didn't feel…right. There was something wrong, but he couldn't place his finger on it. Candles placed on the various pieces of furniture burned brightly, illuminating the room. He was still inside the tent, he knew. Something moved to his left. Turning his head, he was met with the sight of a large bed in which Zelda lay sleeping. Why was he in the princess' room? And what was this…empty feeling in his chest?

Standing up, he saw that his clothes were muddy. Why were they muddy? Why couldn't he remember anything? It was all a big blur. He had a strange taste in his mouth, similar to the smell of the embalmed creatures he had encountered in the Shadow Temple…

"Shadow Temple…" he mumbled. His throat felt tight. A glass of water stood on a small table, which he drank greedily. As he put it down, he realised it might have been meant for Zelda, but he'd just have to apologise. Why did the Shadow Temple seem so important right now?

"Zelda?" he whispered, still wondering why he had been sleeping in the same room as her. Surely there must have been some sort of rule of decency that was being broken right now. When the princess did not react to his whispers, he tried to shake her, yielding the same lack of results. But she was breathing, so maybe she was just sleeping deeply…

He yawned, still tired despite having just slept. A clink of armour outside told him that guards were in place, and he wondered if they were there for Zelda's protection from Link, or something else. He peeked his head outside, seeing two armoured soldiers standing at the end of the "hall", close to the entrance. One of them inclined his head to the Hero. Confused, Link nodded back, wondering what was going on.

"Link?" Zelda's voice whispered. He turned around and saw that the princess was sitting up, looking at him. "What time is it?" she asked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"I…I don't know," replied Link. He looked at the guards again. "Do you guys know what time it is?" he half-shouted. It was hard to control the volume of his voice.

One of the guards cleared his throat. "It is approximately six in the morning, Hero," he said. He lifted the visor if his helmet, a black eye barely visible in the torch- and candlelight. "Are…are we going to have problems again?" he asked, his voice revealing his apprehension.

"Uh, no," said Link, not sure what he meant. "I don't think so…"

"Good," said the soldier, closing his visor again, clearly marking the end of the conversation at the same time.

Miffed at the exchange, Link went back inside Zelda's bedroom, taking care not to look directly at the princess, who was clearly bothered by the presence of Link in her room. "He says it's early in the morning," he said, starting to pick up his weapons and tools.

"We must have slept through the day, then," she said. He heard the princess slip out of bed, and made sure that his back was turned to her. He buckled the Master Sword's sheath over his shoulders, completing his attire. "Can I turn around?" he asked, wondering what exactly Zelda was doing behind his back.

"Yes, you can," she said. As he turned around, he saw that she had changed into her leather armour again, ignoring the heavy, ceremonial one. Her sword hung by her hip, and she had pulled her hair back into a loose ponytail. All in all, she looked the same as she had done when Link had first met her again in the Kokiri Village. His musing was interrupted when he noticed she was looking at him with a worried expression on her face.

"What?" he asked, wondering if she could possibly bridge some of the gaps in his memory.

"Are you…alright?" she asked slowly, as if worried about his reaction to the question.

"Yeah, I guess so," said Link, shrugging. "Shouldn't I be?" When she didn't answer, he looked at her closely. Her posture was tense, ready to move at any time. Her eyes kept flickering to the door, and her hand seemed ready to grab her sword. "Zelda…" he said, "what happened last night? Why was I asleep in your room, and why is everyone, including you, acting like I'm going to attack you at any second?"

Zelda's eyes widened. "You don't remember what happened?" she asked. Link felt something hit the bottom of his stomach, cold like a piece of ice. Clearly he had done something serious for her to act like this. But the last thing he could remember was arriving at the camp along with Sheik…

"No, not really," he replied, looking around, hoping to spot the elusive Sheikah. "Where's Sheik?" he asked. He seemed to remember something pertaining to the younger man, but it kept slipping out of his mental grasp.

Zelda remained silent. Link recognised the way her eyes were moving and the shuffling of her feet. She was thinking. Very hard too, apparently, because her feet were moving at a speed he had not seen before. What had he been doing last night? He asked himself this for the hundredth time. Had Sheik been hurt? Had…had _he_ hurt Sheik? It hit him like a horse cart. If Link had hurt Sheik, he would never have been able to forgive himself.

"Come with me," the princess finally said, taking hold of his arm and dragging him out of the bedchamber. She led him down the small corridor-like space. The guards at the end stood to attention, yet relaxed visibly when they saw that the Hero was acting docile, unlike right before he had been knocked out. She stopped outside a side room. She looked inside, nodding to herself. She looked at Link, who did not fail to notice the sudden sadness that had taken her over. "Inside," she said, pointing into the room.

Perplexed, he slowly stepped inside. The room was cold, he noted, like the ice cavern in Zora's Fountain. Small patches of frost had bloomed on the floor, which was covered in red blotches. His stomach lurched. What had happened in here? He could feel the slight tingle of magical energy at the tips of his fingers, suggesting that the chill in the room was not natural. A small table stood at the far wall, and something was lying on it, covered by a blanket. It hit him then.

"No, no, no," he whispered, repeating it again and again. If what lay underneath that blanket was what he thought…images kept popping up in his head, each one worse than the other. He bit his lip, grabbing the hem of the blanket. He slowly lifted it, exposing the face underneath. And the weight of what had happened, the memories of that night, slammed into him.

Sheik was dead, and he had been powerless to stop it. Stabbed to death by Link's own shadow, which he had failed to kill in the Water Temple, which had then enslaved Sheik to his will, from what he had been told. He felt a tug at his heart.

He looked down at the face of his lover. He could not recall the last time he had seen such a…peaceful and carefree look on Sheik's face. There had always been either a bored, restless flickering of eyes or a fierce look of anger... Of course, he had smiled, but those times were few and far in between. And they had always been when he was with Link. The Hero smiled fondly. Someone had washed Sheik of all the blood that had covered his face. He looked so…vibrant, despite what had happened. If Link hadn't known any better, he would have thought Sheik was just sleeping.

Link reached out, rubbing Sheik's cheek with the backs of his fingers. He was so cold, it was like touching ice. He pulled his hand back, not wishing to disturb Sheik any more. To his surprise, he didn't cry…he didn't even feel the overwhelming sadness he had expected to. As he thought about it, looking down at Sheik, images from the night of fateful event flashed across his mental eye. He thought with shame about how he had basically reverted to a wild animal, punching and kicking the guards who were trying to restrain him, trying to keep him away from Sheik's body.

He supposed he had purged the worst of the emotions from his system that night, and then Kaura had knocked him out with some sort of chemical… All he felt now, was a glowering hatred for his shadow, and a burning wish for vengeance. Sheik was gone, but he had been granted rest from the horrible world he lived in. But Link was still there, and he was angry. He felt empty without Sheik, and while there was nothing he could do about, he was going to make sure that the source of said emptiness would disappear. The shadow was going to die.

"Link?" asked Zelda, suddenly standing next to him. He hadn't heard her approach. The princess did not cry either, but if this was because she was done with it, or was holding it in to appear regal, he didn't know. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"No," he replied. She looked at him, worried. "But I'm done being angry," he clarified. He smiled down at Sheik. "He wouldn't want me to be angry…or sad, I guess."

Zelda smiled as well, taking Link's hand in hers. "You're right. Sheik would want you to be happy, no matter what. He loved you; I could see it in his eyes."

"And I loved him…no, I still love him," said Link, replacing the blanket over Sheik's face. He looked at Zelda. "Why is this room so cold…and how?" he asked.

"We're…trying to preserve his body until we can return to Kakariko and give him a proper burial," Zelda said. "And _I'm_ keeping the room cold, Link. I'm using a small piece of my power as the seventh sage to lower the temperature."

"You're a sage?" Link asked, surprised.

"Yes, I am," answered Zelda. "As the seventh sage, I am to lead the other six."

With no more explanation given, Link nodded. If she didn't want to elaborate, then he wasn't going to press her. Something she had said clicked into place. "You're burying him in the Shadow Temple?"

"Naturally," replied Zelda, looking at him as if he had just grown two additional heads. "It's the burial ground of his people…did…did he tell you that he wanted to be buried elsewhere?"

He shook his head. "No, he didn't…it's just…he didn't seem to like the place very much, that's all."

"Gravesites are enjoyed by few, Link," Zelda said. "Being surrounded by death is rarely going to cheer you up…"

"It wasn't that," Link protested. "He didn't seem to mind death very much…it was more about the fact that almost his entire people was buried there…he was sad about the Sheikah disappearing forever." Zelda didn't have anything to say to that, remaining silent. Link sighed. "I guess I just…I thought we could prevent it, you know? The Sheikah going away…"

"Link…if you and Sheik had continued your relationship…two males can't—"

"I know, I know, stupid, right?" He chuckled. "I just…I thought I could save him, like I am going to save Hyrule, apparently."

"But Link, you did save him," said Zelda, turning him to face her. "You saved Sheik."

"How?"

"I…I haven't told anyone about this, not even Impa, the person I trust the most in the entire world." She took a deep breath. She was shivering. "I…was sending Sheik to a very dark place, Link. All those missions I sent him on, all the assassinations…it was turning him into something unrecognisable."

"Zelda, I—"began Link.

"That's why I sent him to guide you, Link, so I could unmake the damage I had wrought," Zelda said. "I was hoping that that your…personality would affect him, bring him back from what he was becoming, make him more like my little brother, like he always was." She was crying now. "And it worked!" she exclaimed, looking up with a tear-filled smile. "He was more…cheerful, he regained his ability to make jokes…you saved him Link, there is no question about it."

"Thanks, Zelda," he said, still not feeling convinced. "But I couldn't stop him from dying…I even volunteered to smother him—"

"To spare him from pain in case he woke up…which he didn't," Zelda reminded. "Link, believe me when I say this: you did everything you possibly could to save him, and I am sure he would not feel otherwise." She pulled him into an embrace. "Sheik could not have found someone better to fall in love with."

After they parted, the princess and Hero stared at each other for a minute, smiling. They had lost a friend and lover, but nothing could make them forget Sheik. Zelda shivered again, but not from nervousness this time. Link smiled, leading her out of the room. "We're gonna freeze to death if we stay here any longer," he said.

Outside, Guilden waited. The fat man was smiling, which triggered Link's annoyance, but he kept quiet.

"Ah, Your Highness, you are awake, I see," the attendant said.

"Yes, Guilden, I am," said Zelda tiredly, not really in the mood to speak with her draconian servant at this time.

"I shall have the cooks prepare breakfast for you right away—"Guilden began.

"I am not…very hungry right now, Guilden," Zelda said, dismissing the suggestion with a wave of a hand. "What about you, Link?" she asked.

"Nah, I'll pass," said the Hero, his patience with the smiling servant growing thinner and thinner.

"Oh," said Guilden, clearly disappointed that he would not be able to whip the still-sleeping servants into action. "Then, shall I have the others prepare for the your…protector's burial?" he asked, stumbling over what to call Sheik. Link felt a sudden urge to punch the man in the face.

"No, that will not be necessary, Guilden," said Zelda, subtly putting herself between Guilden and Link, sensing the Hero's anger rising. "I will preserve his body until we can bury him with his ancestors in the Shadow Temple."

Guilden's eyes widened, and then hardened, looking back and forth between the entrance to the room containing Sheik's body and his princess. "I must protest against this, Your Highness. You will only expend your strength, and Doctor Kaura gave me quite clear orders to ensure your healthy recovery."

"I appreciate your concern, Guilden, but I will be fine. It's not very taxing to keep the room below zero degrees," Zelda said, also feeling a certain dislike for the man now.

"Really, Your Highness, I don't see how it could possibly be worth sacrificing your health for someone who has passed away!" exclaimed Guilden. "Especially not a filthy Shei—eh…"he trailed off, seeing flashes in both Zelda's and Link's eyes.

"Zelda…" said Link slowly, his fists clenching.

"Link," said Zelda just as slowly, turning around to look at him. "I…can't," she said.

"Then allow me," said Link. He pulled his fist back, and slammed it into the fat attendant's face, knocking him to the floor with a high-pitched, pig-like squeal. Then the Hero leaned down, turning Guilden over so the attendant could look him in the face. His nose was broken, and his breath came in short gasps. "Sheik was ten times the man you are," Link said quietly, almost whispering. "He was actually useful around here…what are you, a glorified chaperone?"

"I…I," Guilden stammered, his face jiggling as the man's mouth opened and closed repeatedly, struggling to find words.

Sighing, Link stood up, rubbing his knuckles. He hadn't warmed up the joints, and Guilden had been surprisingly firm underneath the excess fat. "Zelda, I'm going for a walk," he announced and walked out, leaving the princess alone with her two guards and her attendant.

Zelda sighed in a similar manner to Link, but for an entirely different reason. She finally had an excuse. Crouching down, she wiped away some blood from Guilden's face with the back of her hand. "Guilden," she said quietly. "I know you have served my family for most of your life…but you have just offended me—and the Hero of Time—in the worst manner possible. As much as it pains me to do so, I am afraid I must release you from your duties. You are free to stay in the camp, but you are no longer welcome in my tent or presence." She stood up, nodding to the guards, who quickly approached, lifting the unresisting Guilden between them and carried him outside.

She felt a momentary pang of guilt, but quickly smothered it with the memory of Guilden's harsh words. In her opinion, in these times of war and misery, tradition could not stand up to friendship or loyalty. Guilden was a product of a different time, having grown up and been affected by prejudiced people, and while she probably could have stood having him around in peacetime (Sheik certainly did), she found herself wanting the man to disappear more and more…and now he was gone.

"Sheik would be so disappointed in me right now," she said, sighing to herself.

* * *

It was still early in the morning, so there was little activity in the camp. Even so, Link decided to enter the Forest Temple instead, remembering that there was a pair of garden-like areas right beyond the main hall. He had briefly considered bringing Terra with him, but he decided that he wanted to be alone.

Sitting on the edge of the well he had once drained, he took a couple of deep breaths, enjoying the fresh air. The vegetation in the garden was a vibrant green, and it comforted him slightly, like the forest usually did. He supposed it was the way the vines and plants were taking back their rightful home by slowly, but surely, destroying the temple. The masonry was cracking up, and half of a wall was already gone. Nature prevails, as always.

"Well, I guess I'm alone again," he said to himself. "Facing Ganondorf…alone." A mental image of Sheik smacking him in the back of the head for being so pessimistic flashed across his mind, and he grinned. "I guess I'm just being a big baby." The door behind him opened, and Zelda walked in. "Hey," he said, waving, his peace of mind interrupted.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you," said Zelda. "But I couldn't stand being in that tent anymore…and I was worried."

"About what?" the Hero asked.

"You," the princess said. She joined him on the edge of the well. When she saw his questioning glance, she looked down at the sewers beneath the well. "I…people can do strange things when they're grieving…and I didn't feel comfortable leaving you alone, all things considered…"

"There's no need to worry about me," said Link, leaning back. "I…guess I've come to terms with Sheik's…death," he gulped before saying the last word. "I just need some time to think…"

"Guilden's no longer my attendant," said Zelda, trying to switch the conversation over to something else. "I let him go."

"Good," the Hero said and snorted. "I don't understand why the hell he was working for you in the first place…bigoted bastard."

"It's not his fault," said Zelda, still feeling guilty over the dismissal. "He grew up—"

"I don't care where he grew up," Link interrupted. "He knew how much Sheik meant to you, but didn't change his attitude…he's a lost cause."

Zelda relented, not wanting to start an argument. Things were bad enough as they were, no reason to add fuel to the fire.

Link sighed. "So what happens now?" he asked.

"More negotiations with the Gorons and Zoras, more preparations for war…more of the same, really," Zelda answered. "We cannot let you fight Ganondorf on your own, and we need all the military aid we can get. I still haven't received a reply from the Gerudo, and the Zoras and Gorons are showing a phenomenal aversion to actually fight…"

"So…what you're saying is that it's going to take a long time until I'm actually standing in front of Ganondorf with my toothpick?" Link asked, smirking when the princess giggled a bit.

"Yes, that's exactly what I am saying," confirmed Zelda, smiling at Link's question.

"Good," said Link, rising to his feet.

"Why?" asked Zelda.

"Because it gives me time to hunt down my shadow…and kill it," he said, his jaws clenching. "It deserves nothing but death for what it has done."

"Link, I don't think that's a good idea…" Zelda began; trailing off after Link pierced her very being with a stare.

"Are you saying I shouldn't avenge Sheik?" he asked.

"No, of course you should," protested Zelda. "I'm just saying that there is a time and a place for everything. Link, you still haven't recovered from your exhaustion at the lake, and now…you need time for rest."

"I'm done resting," Link said. "You can't honestly expect me to sit here on my ass while that… _thing_ runs around freely!"

Zelda sighed, still remaining seated. "I know how stubborn you can be, Link…so I am not going to stop you. I just want you to be fully aware of the fact that killing the shadow will not magically bring Sheik back…"

"The shadow also has my piece of the Triforce, and I have to get it ba—what did you say?" he asked, freezing in place.

"I said I am not going to stop you…"

"Not that, after that," Link said.

"It's not going to magically bring him back?" asked Zelda.

The Hero blinked, thinking deeply about something. "Zelda," he said slowly. "Where's Mugen?"

"Mugen?" the bewildered princess asked. "What do you want to talk to him for?"

"…something," he answered.

Zelda briefly considered not telling him, but the look in Link's eyes was the fiercest she had seen in them for a long time. Nodding slowly, she said: "He's still at Lake Hylia, cleaning up the area."

Link smiled, turned around and marched off. "I'm off to Lake Hylia," he said.

"Wait, Link!" Zelda called after him, but the Hero was already gone. She sighed, running her finger along the edge of the well. "Just be careful," she whispered.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 62**

* * *

As Link walked past Zelda's tent, he felt an urge to go back inside, to see Sheik's body one last time. He tried to stare straight ahead, trying to avoid looking at the opening. The ever-present guards nodded to him as he stormed by, a gesture he didn't notice. Time was of the essence, as it were, and he could not afford to lose any of it on trivial matters such as saying hello to everyone he met on his way. He realised he must have looked like a mess as he marched down the first flight of stairs on his way to the stables…or at least what could be _called_ the stables. The fleeing Hylians did not seem to have high standards at the moment, which was understandable.

He felt his steps go slightly downwards as he stepped over the indentation in the ground made by the gigantic Moblin that had stood in Link's way when he came to the Meadow for the first time as an adult. That had been a hard obstacle, but the creature's own stupidity had gotten the best of it as Link had convinced it to bash its own brains in with a little help from Navi. A tent of sorts had been put up in the small passage, he noticed, and the person standing outside, smoking a cigarette, he noted, could not be mistaken.

Kaura's head turned in his direction when he approached, her steely eyes having regained their lost vigour in the time that had passed between her initial arrival at the camp and now. She grunted, dropped the cigarette to the ground and stomped it out, turning her full attention on the Hero of Time.

"You're certainly looking focused and determined today," she stated, putting no emotion in her sentence. "How are you feeling?" she asked after a few seconds of silence, as if suddenly remembering what had happened the day before.

"Better," Link answered. He couldn't help but feel slightly resentful of the physician at the moment. It was irrational, he knew. She couldn't have done a thing to save the Sheikah in the state he had been in when she arrived. "Slightly woozy, though," he added after the physician raised her eyebrow in a way that clearly _dared_ him to tell anything but the truth.

"As expected," Kaura said. "The chemical is quite strong, and you were…not making it very easy for the guards, so I had to give you a double dose of what I usually give to rowdy patients." She looked down at the ground, almost remorsefully regarding the snuffed-out cigarette in the dirt. Perhaps she had expected Link to pass by without stopping.

"Hmph," Link grunted, having nothing to say to that. He was ashamed by his reaction, but felt fully justified at the same time. Sheik had died; surely Link was allowed to mourn his passing? Of course, that would mean pulling "punching someone's face in" into the definition of mourning, but he didn't care. Not now.

"Hungry?" the physician asked suddenly. Her hair had been once again been pulled into the tight bun the Hero had come to associate her with, which meant that she was in her professional mode right then.

He was about to say no, but his stomach, which had been skilfully ignored up to that point, gave a loud rumbling that sounded like something halfway between a gargle and grumble. Immediately, he felt his cheeks grow warm as a blush made itself evident on his face, screaming to the world that the Hero of Time was not the master of his own body. Quite on the contrary, in fact. Fighting the blush down, he nodded sharply. "A bit."

"Sounded like more than a bit to me," said Kaura, the corners of her mouth quirking slightly upwards in a shallow attempt at a smile. She reached inside the tent and pulled out a bright red apple and tossed it to Link. "I'd give you something else, but your stomach will be quite…unable to deal with anything too stressful for a couple of days, an unfortunate side effect of the drug." She looked on as Link almost immediately bit into the sweet fruit with great enthusiasm. "Besides, I don't think you're in the mood to actually _stop_ to prepare anything else."

Link looked at her sharply, wondering if she was reading his mind. "What do you mean?" he asked slowly, licking some juice from chin. The apple was unusually moist and sweet, yet firm and chewy, everything he looked for in an apple.

"I mean," Kaura said, pausing slightly, "that you will not sit still and wait. You are heading out." She looked at his appearance, mud-stained tunic and all. "And judging by your equipment and general…well, _being_ ," she said, "I would guess that you are going to search for whoever did that to your lover and make them pay." She smirked when Link choked on a piece of apple. "Did I hit the proverbial nail on the head?" the Terminan physician asked.

"Just about," Link was able to choke out before a series of violent coughs wracked his body. Kaura took pity on him and went and knocked him on the back a couple of times, trying to help him clear his airways. As the offending piece of fruit finally eased its assault on his breathing, Link straightened up, wiping away a few tears that had been provoked by the heavy coughing.

"Hmph, you should learn to eat slower, boy," Kaura said, returning to her previous position. She seemed to be leaning against a pole, Link noticed, but it didn't seem to be connected to any part of the tent…or knocked into the ground, for that matter.

"Yeah, that's what Sheik told me as well," he said, brushing some imaginary dust away from the hem of his tunic. He _had_ to make an effort at looking proper, even if the imaginary dust was only…well, imaginary. The caked-in mud didn't make the action seem half as useful as it had in his mind. He remembered all the times he and the Sheikah had eaten together, bantered lightly over inane and trivial matters. While Sheik seemed to have hated it, Link viewed their travel through the Gerudo Valley as the best moments of their relationship. Everything had seemed so simple, back then.

"And he was right," said Kaura, not skipping a beat. She may not have given any verbal indication, but Link saw that her expression darkened somewhat. She had mentioned Sheik as Link's lover, but hearing his name seemed to have hit something within her. Maybe hearing a deceased patient's name made it all so…vivid to a doctor.

Clearing his throat, Link turned to the second staircase. "I'd better go," he said, taking another bite out of the apple. "I'll be back soon." With that, he started walking, not looking at the physician. He finished the apple and tossed the core carelessly to the side, knowing that the forest would find a use for an apple tree somewhere.

"Hero!" Kaura called after him. He stopped, but still did not turn to look at her. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to…save him."

"Don't be," said Link as he turned around, smiling sadly. "You did all you could, and I'm sure he would ask nothing else of you. Goodbye, Kaura."

The sound of his boots hitting the stone steps echoed in the small passage. As they faded, Kaura started rummaging around in her bag, making sure that all her instruments and medicine were in place. She was about to start her rounds, and she would need everything to be in tiptop shape. "Kids these days," she grumbled under breath. "Too much energy."

* * *

The maze had grown even larger, Link noticed as he crossed the makeshift bridges. He had to admit, for such quick and haphazard constructions, they were rather sturdy. He was sure they could take the weight of at least a dozen armed soldiers at the same time.

Again, he noticed that people stopped to look up at him as he walked across the maze. Soldier and civilian alike ceased performing their duties to just have one glimpse of the legendary Hero of Time, their saviour. Link found himself clenching his jaw, annoyed and saddened by the attention at the same time. How was he supposed to save them and the entire kingdom if he was unable to save his most precious person? He shook his head, trying to stop himself from thinking about it. If all went as he had planned, then such regrets would be rendered inconsequential.

The stables had, for hygienic and spatial reasons, been placed outside the maze now, just in front of the small gate. The Hero had a creeping suspicion that the Hylian soldiers and civilians were quite willing to let their mounts suffer if they came under an attack…or maybe they were just confident that the Deku Sprout would be able to keep their enemies away. Either way, Link did not appreciate it. What had the horses ever done to deserve such a vulnerable place?

They couldn't really be called stables, either. It was just a series of wooden beams knocked into the ground to which the horses had all been tied and an improvised tarpaulin protecting them from the weather. The number of mounts had lessened drastically, Link saw, but he didn't know if it was because of most of the cavalry being assigned to a different camp or something else.

A small group of soldiers stood close by, watching the tunnel through which Link and Sheik had emerged. They all wore robes and hoods, just like the unit of Rusl and his son Colin. One of the hooded soldiers perked up when he noticed Link looking at him. He pulled back his hood, revealing the still very child-like face of Colin, his attempt at a beard still struggling and faltering.

"Link!" he shouted, running over. A collective groan was heard from the other soldiers, most likely because of the familiar way he was addressing the Hero in. Link couldn't be happier about the fact that _someone_ had finally gotten it through their head that he didn't want to be addressed by his title.

"Colin," he said as the _slightly_ older man stopped in front of him. "How are you?" he asked.

"Just fine," said the sergeant. "Father has gone back to Ordon to check up on the rest of the village, and—what's wrong?" he asked, interrupting his own sentence. He eyes roamed across Link's form, focusing on the mud splatters.

"Oh, this?" asked Link, pointing at the filth. "I just had a bit of a run-in with a vicious mud monster." He paused, noticing that Colin was giving him a look. "Alright, I had a mud fight with someone," Link admitted.

"I'll say," said Colin, looking him up and down. "It's even in your hair!"

"They say mud is good for the hair," replied Link, his eyes now scanning the rows of horses for the tell-tale white mane of Epona. He was going to need quick transportation.

"And your eyes, face…Link, you look like shit, if you don't mind me being so bold," said Colin, some part of his military discipline suddenly kicking in right after finishing the sentence as he clapped his hands over his mouth, not believing what he had just said.

"Being bold is better than being a liar," said Link, looking at Colin. "If you must know, I lost a good friend last night, and I haven't slept well."

"I'm sorry," said Colin, his horror increasing tenfold by the look of his ever-widening eyes. "I didn't know—"

"Only a few people do," said Link.

"Shouldn't you get some rest?" asked the young sergeant. "I mean, you look like you could need it."

"I want to, but I can't," said Link, gritting his teeth when he didn't spot Epona. How well could a conspicuous horse like her hide among not more than a couple of dozen horses? "I have to get to Lake Hylia right away." He remembered seconds after that Epona would not have accepted being tied down by anyone but him and was probably running around in the forest at this instant.

"Well, can't you teleport?" asked Colin, freezing when Link looked at him in confusion. "The stories always tell us that your instrument is magical and can take you places…"

Link slapped his forehead, cursing his lack of foresight. "Of course, the ocarina!" he exclaimed, fishing through his pockets until he found the little flute. "Thanks, Colin," he said. "Who knows how long I'd go before remembering that?"

"That's what little sleep does to you," said Colin, smiling. His light-blond, parted hair shone in the increasing sunlight. "It makes you forgot things, both big and small."

"Well, I'm glad you were around to remind me," said the Hero. He started to play the Serenade of Water, which would take him directly to Lake Hylia—and Mugen.

* * *

He would never grow sick of the blinding light that surrounded him as he slowly descended down to the temple seal, the feel of absolute weightlessness and elation. However, Link could not concentrate on enjoying it at right now. There was work to be done, and if he knew his luck right, he did not have much time.

Immediately after his feet touched the ground, Link raced off, running like mad across the bridges. The absence of the large soldier-like tree set off his instinctual alarms, but he quickly remembered that the warlocks had cut it down in order to make a large bonfire—though for what reason, he didn't know.

The ruins of what had once been the old alchemist's laboratory stood sadly at the edge of the cliff, overlooking a lake that still had not regained its former lustre and clarity, even in the bright sunlight. Link saw that there was still an almost unnoticeable sheen of red in the water, but it still looked better than it had done the last time he was here.

The area in front of the lab, where the enemy soldiers had been massacred, there remained no evidence of such an event ever taking place. The ashes of the bonfire were gone; the bodies moved somewhere else, the arrows stuck in the ground removed. The only thing that even hinted that something out of the ordinary had happed was the unusual, half-moon shaped crater in the ground approximately in the middle of the ground.

There was no sign of Mugen and his spies. Link looked around. A bird of some kind flew overhead, cawing. Link gritted his teeth. He and crows did not get along, much like he could not make friends with cuccoos. Just to be sure, he started reaching for his bow. Nothing happened. The crow flew across the lake, disappearing behind the trees on the other side. He sighed in relief, not knowing if he could take a massive bird attack at the moment. Instead, he turned to look at the small cliff overlooking the bonfire area, where Mugen and his men had drawn the enemy soldiers while Link took care of the warlocks.

"Hello?!" he called, hoping that he was not too late. No answer. "Hello!" he called even louder.

"There is no need to shout, Hero of Time," said the familiar, rough voice of Mugen from somewhere behind Link. The Hero whirled around, spotting the burly shape of the older man standing close to the remaining wall of the laboratory, gazing out at the lake. Mugen turned around, pulling off his mask to reveal his gnarly visage, missing eye and teeth.

"Mugen," Link said as he walked over to the scarred man, extending a hand in friendship. The older man shook it with a smile, which unfortunately revealed the extent of damage wrought on the spy's mouth. "How are you?" asked Link, doing his best not to look at the disaster area.

"Just fine, just fine," said the spy. "The lake is slowly but surely returning to its former state, and we're just about done cleaning up here."

"What did you do with the bodies?" asked Link, looking around.

"We buried them out on the plains," answered Mugen, pointing at the narrow passage that led to the Hyrule Field. "Just because we're enemies doesn't mean we can't give 'em that last rite…even if we can't expect similar treatment at _their_ hands," he added regretfully. He blinked, looking at the bedraggled Hero. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," said Link, gesturing at his muddy clothes. "An improvised mud bath with the help of a couple of skull kids, that's all."

"Skull kids…" said Mugen, trailing off as he clearly tried to remember. "That's the little…things with the glowing eyes, right? They play flutes…"

"Yeah, that's them," said Link, nodding in confirmation. "They like to pull pranks on people, even each other."

"Playful little creatures, then," said Mugen. "By the way," he said, suddenly remembering something, "did you find Sheik?" There was a bad attempt at hiding the hope in his voice.

Link paused. He was speaking to the leader of a group of men who had been specifically trained by the Sheikah to be his successors should he die. Mugen idolised the much younger man, and if Link revealed the truth, it might upset him. Why exactly Sheik would train men who was much more likely to die before him because of old age, Link didn't know, but he was sure his lover had his reasons. "Y..yeah," Link said slowly, trying to find the words. "I found him…but he was seriously hurt."

"How is he now?" asked Mugen, looking imploringly at Link.

"He's…resting," said Link, deciding that _that_ word would describe the situation with enough ambiguity.

Mugen relaxed, his entire being sagging. "That's good to hear…we were all worried about him."

Deciding that enough time had been wasted, Link looked directly into Mugen's eyes…eye. "Listen, as much as I enjoy talking to you, that's not what I came here for."

"That I guessed," said the spy. "What do you need, Hero?" he asked.

"I need to know where Vorpheus is," answered Link.

"The warlock?" asked Mugen. At Link's nod, he cleared his throat. "That is a secret, one that I cannot reveal to you. Not even Her Highness wanted to know where we put him."

So Zelda knew about Vorpheus. Why hadn't she told him? Link shook his head, frustrated at the lack of cooperation from the spy. "It's really important that you tell me!"

"No can do, Hero, I'm sorry," said Mugen, shaking his head to emphasise the rejection. "Princess' orders."

Crushing disappointment was all Link felt. A stone dropped in his stomach, crushing his insides. He could see his plans, his hopes fading. No, he wouldn't let this…this bastard stop him! Growling, he grabbed the front of Mugen's uniform and slammed the older man into the wall behind him. The damaged masonry grumbled in protest, dust and rock particles showering the two.

"Tell me where he is!" shouted Link.

Mugen, to his credit, didn't even flinch. Instead, he slammed his knee into Link's stomach, sending the Hero wheezing to the ground. Then he grabbed the Hero's left arm and twisted it until a sharp pain made Link gasp.

"Two more inches, and it'll break, Hero," Mugen warned.

This was humiliating, and Link felt his face burn with both rage and embarrassment. "Let me go!" he shouted. He heard footsteps and saw approaching shadows. The rest of the spies had probably heard the commotion and came to investigate. And what they found was the most powerful warrior in the land, the Hero of Time himself, on the ground in an impossible-to-break hold.

"I will as soon as you calm down, Hero," Mugen said, his voice still as even and pleasant as it had been while they had been talking. "I gather not everything's alright from your reaction," he added.

"Just let me go," Link said, letting himself go limp. Slowly, Mugen let go of his arm, and Link cradled it against his chest as he sat up, noticing that all twelve spies were there now, looking at him with mixed expressions of confusion, incredulousness and disappointment. He looked at Mugen, who was scratching his chin absentmindedly, as if the altercation had not occurred. "Mugen, I _need_ to know where the warlock is."

"And I _need_ to know what's going on before I judge whether or not I should tell you," answered the spy. He crouched down, levelling his one-eyed gaze with Link's. "Sheik's not alright, is he?" he whispered. "He's not…'resting' in the traditional sense, is he?"

"No," Link admitted, unable to look away from the sad face of Mugen, an expression he had not wanted to see. "He died two days ago."

"As I thought," said Mugen, sighing. "And your reasons for wanting to see the warlock are not…unrelated, I suppose?"

"No," the Hero said. "I…need to talk to him."

"There are some things that should not be trifled with, Hero of Time," Mugen said, speaking slowly and clearly. "Fate least of all."

"Fate can sod off for all I care. Sheik's death was _my_ fault and definitely not some magical stroke of fate!" Link exclaimed. He narrowed his eyes at Mugen, angry at the man now. "Are you going to tell me, or not?"

Mugen looked at him for a few seconds, as if contemplating on the matter. Then he sighed again, nodding. "Kokiri Village, ask the Deku Sprout," he whispered, low enough so that only Link and Mugen could hear. The other spies exchanged glances, not hearing what their leader was saying.

"Thank you," Link said as he was helped up by Mugen. His arm still ached from the grapple, and he wondered if that was something the older man had been taught by Sheik.

"Just remember, Hero," said Mugen, stepping back. Link noticed that he was holding a small, brown object in his hand. A deku nut. The other spies did as well. "Remember that if it's not meant to be, then it's not meant to be." The Hero knew enough to cover his eyes as the twelve men simultaneously threw their nuts to the ground, momentarily enveloping the area in a blinding light as they teleported away.

Alone again at the lakeside, Link looked up at the blue sky that had yet to be covered by Ganondorf's darkness. "It's meant to be, I'm sure of it," he whispered.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 63**

* * *

His heart lifted, his mind clear, Link took one last look at the lake. The sun was already on its way down, yet another sign of the capricious autumn season. Days were shorter, and nights longer. The Hero thought it was a funny—albeit morbid—coincidence that the events and world around him changed accordingly. The darkest even of all was all he could think about, and how he was going to rectify it. He sighed and pulled out his ocarina. As grateful as he was to Mugen for telling him where he could find the ancient warlock, he was also annoyed that he had to go _back_ to the main camp and then travel to Kokiri Village.

Or did he?

Now that he thought about it, with Sprout's recent rearrangement of the Lost Woods, the geography had changed so drastically that the Sacred Forest Meadow and Lake Hylia were just about equally far away from Kokiri Village. He would actually be _wasting_ time if he decided to teleport to the Meadow and _then_ find Epona and ride her to his childhood home. Grinning, he put the ocarina's mouthpiece to his lips and blew the oh-so-familiar notes of his mount's song.

He had barely finished the last note when the echoing whinny of Epona could be heard along with her thunderous gallop. When her white mane appeared, his suspicions were confirmed. A rather long piece of tope, tied to her bridle, was trailing behind her, whipping around dangerously whenever she made a sharp turn. She spotted Link, and made a beeline for him. Curiously enough, Maladict was nowhere to be seen. Sheik's mount had seemed to be attached to Epona's hip, in the lack of a better description, and his absence was…worrying. Had something happened to _him_ too? Or did he know that his master had passed away and was mourning? Did horses even mourn?

Shaking his head, Link didn't flinch when Epona stopped in front of him, muzzle inches away from smacking into his head. Smiling, he reached out and patted her, the smile growing when she snorted and bumped her muzzle into his face. She seemed to do this to people she liked, he noticed, though never with Sheik. Maybe she was afraid of him, though for what reason he couldn't imagine.

"Hey girl," he said, untying the rope from her bridle. "They really thought they could tie you up, huh?" He searched his numerous pockets for a treat, but found none. He had forgotten to stock up. Epona seemed to notice this and gave a disappointed snort. "Sorry," said Link, shrugging. "I'll just have to owe you for now." Throwing her head back, Epona whinnied, seemingly impatient now that the prospect of a treat was out of the question. Chuckling (nervously), Link climbed into the saddle and grabbed the reins. "Alright, back to Kokiri Village, then," he announced. He didn't know if he did so for his own sake or for Epona's, but it felt necessary to do so. "And we don't have much time." He kicked his heels into Epona's sides, urging her on.

Epona reared up, and then shot out like an arrow, quickly leaving the lakeside behind. In his wake, only the sounds of the water gently sloshing onto the shore and the cawing of crows remained.

And then the remaining laboratory wall collapsed, disturbing the peace for all.

* * *

Link had never experienced such speed before, not even while being thrown around by Bongo-Bongo. Epona must have understood his words, for she did not limit herself in any way as they shot across the plains. Behind them, Link could see the darkening sky. It was not a natural phenomenon, he knew. Ganondorf was exerting his power, and Link suspected that the only thing keeping the Evil King from darkening the entire lid of the world. Link turned his head back around, preferring to keep the comforting sight of the Lost Woods ahead in his vision instead.

It was strange, he thought. The forest seemed to be getting farther and farther away the more he rode towards it. His instincts told him that it was a trick, most likely something put up by Sprout to fool enemy armies. Even so, his thoughts keep telling him to turn back and ride toward the darkness. Perhaps the forest would come closer then.

Growling, Link ignored the traitorous elements of his mind. Surely the Evil King had put his own enchantments in place in order to lure him—and anyone else caught out in the open—close to his area of influence, where he could capture them…and murder them.

He passed by a burnt-out village, one of the settlements that had been burning the last time he had been here. There were numerous footprints on the ground he rode on, the kind that could only be made by extremely heavy boots. An army had marched by here not too long ago. Where were they now, he wondered.

Suddenly, the forest was right in front of him. The welcoming tunnel that would lead him to the bridge to the Kokiri Village yawned in front of him. Usually, Link would have let Epona graze outside, here in the field, but now he didn't dare to. Epona could defend herself against a stray monster or two, but what about armed enemy soldiers? If Ganondorf found a way to circumvent Sprout's defences, then he could easily march one of his massive armies here in a matter of hours, judging by the little time it took the Evil King to all but take over Hyrule entirely. No, Link wouldn't take the chance. He rode right into the tunnel, across the sturdy rope bridge and into the final tunnel.

The village was oddly quiet. None of the forest children were outside playing, like they usually were at most times of the day. No laughter. Even when parts of Zelda's army had camped here the Kokiri had been joyous and energetic, judging by the enthusiasm which they had pestered the soldiers for stories with. They still hadn't recognised him, thankfully, and he had done his best to not be spotted by them. How could he explain it to them? To the Kokiri, even the very idea of growing up was foreign.

It was strange how…tidy the village looked after housing an army that had erected tents on every bare spot. The small collection of houses looked exactly like it had done when Link left for the first time. Sprout had probably had a finger—or root—in this. If the Deku Tree's progeny was anything like its predecessor, then the forest children were in very good hands—branches—indeed.

Link climbed out of the saddle, deciding to lead Epona through the village, both because he wanted to limit the amount of noise he would make so he wouldn't attract attention, but also because he felt…nostalgic. He remembered the happy times he had spent here, playing with Saria and the others. He remembered in particular the time he had pushed Mido into the tiny lake next to the shop because the self-proclaimed "leader" of the Kokiri had been mean to him—as usual. If anything, the prank had only led the orange-haired boy to hate Link even more, but he hadn't cared at the time, having decided early on that Mido simply wasn't worth his time, not when he had Saria to teach him things.

He could see the faces of the forest children in the windows, silently looking at him with a mix of fear and wonder. They probably didn't recognise him, Link knew. The lack of his cap was most likely the biggest reason for this. He and that cap had been inseparable during his childhood. He smiled at the faces, which quickly disappeared when they noticed he was looking at them.

He finally reached the small corridor that served as the antechamber to the grove where Sprout stood. Here, he decided to leave Epona. Patting her muzzle, he said quietly: "Humour the children if they come out, yeah?" Epona blinked in return, leaving the Hero puzzled as to whether or not she understood or just…well, blinked. Shaking his head, Link walked through the corridor, eventually stepping onto the grove. The massive shape of what had once been The Great Deku Tree loomed ahead, still as impressive as it had been seven years before.

"Link, my boy!" exclaimed The Deku Sprout as the Hero approached. Sprout's entire form seemed to vibrate with joy. "What brings you here? Not that I mind your visits, but it's not too long ago you were here last." The enthusiasm radiated off the tree-like creature.

"Hey," Link greeted, smiling in return. "I…have some bad news."

The vibration stopped, and Sprout's smile faded somewhat. "What is it?"

"Sheik…Sheik died two days ago," Link said, surprised at how easy it was to say. He had expected to only be able to choke out the sentence, but now he said it like it was a common occurrence. Was his confidence in his plan really affecting him this deeply?

"I am sorry to hear that, Link," said Sprout, forming its mouth into a frown. "I only spoke with him once, but I could see in his eyes that he was a good person. It's sad to see one as young as him go…"

"Yeah," said Link, sitting down in front of Sprout, like he had done with the Deku Tree when he had been summoned to the grove seven years prior. "But that's not why I'm here, as you probably already know."

"While I appreciate news from the outside world, when have you ever come here unless you needed something?" said Sprout, his frown remaining. "Of course, I know that you are the legendary Hero of Time, but I would still like a visit every now and then out of…if not a familial relationship, then at least friendship."

Link blinked, surprised at Sprout's sudden change of mood. He tried to come up with something to say, but failed to find the words. How in Hyrule could he possibly be able to cheer up a demigod?

"But listen to me ramble on and on," said Sprout suddenly, perking up. "What do you need, Link?" it asked.

After a few second's pause, Link said: "I need to know where the warlock, Vorpheus, is being kept."

Sprout swayed back and forth for a minute, its eyes piercing Link with a gaze so intense. "What do you need him for?" it finally asked.

"I…" Link said. What could he say? What he was going to do was against nature…but then, the relationship he had with Sheik had also been against nature—at least, that's what he had heard from a couple of soldiers talking in the camp once. He didn't truly care about their words, for nothing that was against nature could feel so…right.

"It has something to do with Sheik, hasn't it?" asked Sprout, relieving the Hero of the burden of saying it himself. "You…wish to bring him back, don't you?"

"Y…yeah," admitted Link.

"And you believe the warlock is capable of this?"

"If anyone can do it, it's him," said Link. How he came to think of this, he didn't know. Something about the way Vorpheus had arrogantly proclaimed to be the most powerful sorcerer in the world had probably convinced him in some way.

"Some would say it would be a foolish endeavour, going against the will of the Goddesses, even," said Sprout, looking at Link with a blank expression on its face. "Are you truly prepared to face the consequences of such an action, Link?"

"Yes!" the Hero said without a moment's hesitation.

Sprout continued looking at him in silence. "The brashness of youth," it said. "Is both a blessing, and a curse." A small smile splayed itself on its lips. "That is exactly what is driving you right now, Link. Brashness. You are making decisions on whims, and you are not thinking clearly."

"I have never thought more clearly than I do now!" protested Link.

"You didn't let me finish, my boy," said Sprout, that tiny smile still in place. "Brashness is seldom alone. You are driven by brashness accompanied by an emotion that is so very strange, mysterious and elusive, Link. You are driven by love…and who am I to stand in the way of that?" The little smile developed into a full grin. "Link, Vorpheus the Immortal is inside my predecessor."

Eyes widening, Link looked at the mighty trunk of the Deku Tree. He hadn't noticed it before, but the gaping maw had been closed. With a loud groan, it now opened again, revealing complete darkness within. He looked at Sprout, which smiled back. "Thank you," he said.

"Don't thank me too soon, my boy," said Sprout. "There is a painstaking process behind the deed you are going to ask him to perform. He might not even know how. But if your words speak truth, then he is the one to ask."

Standing up and brushing errant grass straws from his bottom, Link started walking toward the gaping mouth of the Deku Tree. A cold wind seemed to emanate from it, and he shivered.

"Be careful, Link," Sprout called after him. "It has changed a lot since you were in there seven years ago…Ganondorf's taint has spread, and I can only keep it at bay for so long. If you can, please remove the source of the taint."

Turning back to Sprout, which could not move to look at him, he said: "Don't worry, Sprout. I'll find it and make it regret ever stepping inside!" He turned back, took a deep breath, and ran into the darkness…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 64**

* * *

Dark was the right word. The last time Link had been inside the Deku Tree, it had at least had some form of fluorescent fungus growths. Now, there was nothing, and it was freezing. The wood underneath his feet crunched at each step, suggesting that the mighty tree-creature was rotting from the inside and out. The floor bent under his weight, and Link was worried about crashing through to the level under, where it was not guaranteed that he would find a way out.

A loud boom behind him signalled that the entrance had once again slammed shut, leading the Hero to think that Sprout was not as in control as he thought it was. A groan echoed in the large chamber. It sounded like a door being forced off its hinges, which puzzled him. As far as he could recall, there had not been a single hinged door in here.

"Light…need light," he mumbled, waving his hands around in order to find something he could use as a torch. The Eye of Truth would probably have come in handy in here, he thought, feeling foolish for losing it during the fight with Bongo-Bongo in the Shadow Temple. It was probably a priceless cultural item as well, and the bumbling Hero had lost it forever. His hand found the wall, which felt moist and soft. He pushed slightly and grimaced as he felt his hand sink into the rotting wood. Something was crawling around inside, most likely some form of worm or termite. Brushing it aside, he continued feeling his way along the wall. His fingers closed around something long and thick. A branch! He roughly pulled the protrusion out of the wall, quickly forming a small fireball in his hand with the help of Din's Fire, igniting the branch. He put the small crystal back in the pocket along with his other spells.

And then he slapped himself on the forehead for not thinking of using a fireball in order to see in the first place. Shaking his head, Link looked around. The light wasn't the most powerful, but it allowed him to see most of the chamber. The walkways lining the walls overhead had long ago rotted and collapsed, lying in crushed heaps on the floor beneath. The hole in the floor, which had once been covered in the impressive web of a particularly laborious Skulltula, seemed to have grown, its edges crumbling. Something was gradually causing the Deku Tree to rot, and Link knew it had something to do with the taint Sprout had mentioned.

He looked up at the place where the walkways had once been, figuring that Vorpheus wasn't up there since the wreckage seemed to be much older than the…how long was it now? A couple of weeks? A month? In any case, the pile seemed at least a couple of years old judging by the layers of dust that had lay on them. He turned around, taking light steps in order to avoid an incident and peered into the hole in the floor. The torchlight didn't reach all the way down, but he heard the still water beneath washing against the walls.

Grimacing, Link contemplated on the merits of jumping into the hole, not knowing what was down there. Deciding not to risk it, he fished his Longshot out of a pocket and shot the hook into the edge of the hole, praying all the while that it would his weight.

It didn't.

Just as he swung himself over the edge, the rotting wood gave, and the Hero was sent tumbling through the air, cursing loudly as he expected to hit something on the way down. He remembered all the edges and raised ledges around the small pool and prayed he wouldn't hit any of them. As luck would have it, he did not hit anything solid. But he didn't hit anything liquid either.

With a loud squelch, Link impacted with the soft, jelly-like substance that the water had turned into. His torch landed somewhere to his right, quickly extinguished by the jelly. In the few seconds he could see, Link noticed that the jelly seemed to be…alive, and he could have sworn he saw a pair of eyes inside the slightly transparent mound. The sounds he had mistaken for water splashing against stone were actually this jelly-creature moving about.

Horrified, Link started thrashing around, trying to release himself from the jelly's hold, but the creature seemed to be pulling him in, absorbing him. Realising this, the Hero renewed his efforts, growling and yelling. "Let go!" he shouted. He couldn't see, which made the whole thing worse. He could only feel himself slowly being swallowed by the sticky jelly. Walls closed around him, smothering him. He couldn't reach his sword, and he had dropped the Longshot somewhere. The horrible squelching sounds increased in volume as Link felt the creature assimilation of him speeding up.

Now he couldn't move at all, and he could feel the foul substance closing over his face, eyes, nose…mouth. He couldn't breathe, and a sense of panic filled him. Clenching his jaw, Link screamed. He felt a ripple go through the creature, and an air pocket opened close to his left arm. Feeling it, Link ripped the Master Sword from its sheath, wildly swinging it around. He felt the blade slice cleanly through the mound of jelly, and the creature whined in pain.

Continually screaming, the Hero hacked his way out of the jelly creature. The moment he could finally breathe again, he fished Din's Fire out of his pocket, ignited a fireball in his hand and threw it down, incinerating the part of the creature still holding him in place. This time, the creature howled, and in the firelight, Link saw its eyes regarding him with fear and anger. Vaguely, Link noticed that said eyes were on stalks. They flopped uselessly around after the Master Sword gave them what for, and the creature finally ceased its thrashing, letting him extract himself from the hideous creation.

Panting, Link stumbled away from the quickly sagging jelly, leaning against one of the stone edges for support. That had been too close, he decided. The jelly was slowly dissolving now, turning back into the water that had once occupied the small pool. Finding one of the iron torches, Link lit it, finally shedding some light on the room. The walls down here had turned black with rot, and thousands of tiny, crawling insects were making their home here in the walls, the ceiling, the floor. Shuddering, Link climbed up onto the ledge, looking around for the Longshot. He spotted it lying next to the still-solid parts of the creature.

As he put the tool back in his pocket, he remembered what the jelly creature had reminded him of. "Morpha," he whispered to himself. While the Water Temple amoeba had been considerably more…articulate and delicate, it seemed to have been made of the same material as this one. That is, water solidified into a gelatinous substance. And those eyes…now that he thought about it, they looked less like eyes than the ball-shaped body of Morpha… Perhaps it—or they? There had been two "bodies"—was a young, underdeveloped version of Morpha.

Pieces of the creature were still sticking to his tunic, and he did his best to remove them, but found it nearly impossible to do so. But if the liquidation of the creature was anything to judge by, these pieces would do the same soon. He might get a little wet, but that was far more preferable than being covered in clumps of dead jelly monster. Sitting down for a second, Link scanned the pool room.

Two of the doors were blocked off by rubble, but he suspected that a simple kick to the frame would send open the portals. His heart was still racing, he realised. Was he really in that bad a shape? First he hadn't been able to overpower Mugen, and now he had been exhausted by this…jelly thing?

He sighed. "What would Sheik think of me now?" he asked himself quietly. "All tired from a little scuffle with a pair of blobs?" For some reason, he knew that Sheik would not care about his condition, only that he was still alive and breathing. Breathing quickly, of course, but still inhaling and exhaling.

He had to think rationally now. Time was wasting, and he had to figure out in which of the lower chambers Vorpheus was being kept. After giving it a bit of thought, he came to the conclusion that the warlock would most likely be kept in the chamber that once housed the parasitic creature that had killed the Great Deku Tree, Queen Gohma. He shivered when he remembered the hulking form of the insect queen. It had been terrifying to his eleven-year-old self to confront the gigantic parasite. For some reason, the idea of Vorpheus taking up residence in the same chamber did not seem too farfetched. But then, he had not gotten to know the warlock very well.

The pool was completely filled now, and the water looked black and muddy, most likely a result of the rotting wood raining down on the basin. His clothes were wet, he noticed, glad that the foul-smelling jelly was finally gone. He stood up, fastening his eyes on the second hole in the floor on the platform opposite of the one he was standing on. It too had been covered in Skulltula webbing once, but Link's flaming deku stick had quickly destroyed it. He looked down into the hole, determined not to fall into the same trap again. One jelly blob was enough.

If he recalled correctly, there had been a small chamber before the big one, and three Mad Deku Scrubs had tried to fool his young self with a password of some kind. Something to do with numbers and the order in which he had to send the stupid creatures' projectiles back at them. Another groan reverberated throughout the dead Deku Tree, and Link suddenly felt a sense of urgency washing over him, as if the tree itself was telling him to hurry up. Thinking ahead, Link lobbed another fireball into the hole, illuminating a small radius. The floor seemed to be solid apart from several moving insects which were burned to cinders when the flames spread.

Putting the crystal away, he felt dizzy for a moment, a sign that he was rapidly draining his reservoir of magical energy. He began to look around for another branch to use as a torch as to not completely drain himself of the potent energy, but his search was interrupted by a pale light suddenly emanating from somewhere down the hole, gently illuminating the chamber beneath.

Unlike the hole in the floor on the first level, this one had been hollowed out in the stone floor, so there was little risk of the edges giving out. Link tried to spot the source of the pale, white light, but no amount of twisting his head, repositioning his feet or lowering himself slightly the hole would help. In the end, he shrugged and simply jumped down. Foolish, some might say, but he was the Hero of Time.

He hit the floor rolling, forgetting that he was basically rolling in legions of insects, and quickly came to his feet. Shaking the little creatures out of his hair and clothes with a huff of annoyance, he looked at the massive door that led to Gohma's chamber. The source of the light turned out to be a small sphere planted neatly at the top of the door, presumably some sort of magical seal put there by Sprout. As Link came closer, the sphere shrunk and faded away. The large door then slid up and out of sight with a roaring creak. Link took a few tentative steps inside, expecting something to lash out at him the moment he lost his concentration.

There was nothing inside the chamber, save for a large fire burning merrily in the middle of it.. The four pillars—the initial roots of the Deku Tree—stood mighty as ever, giving the chamber an elegant look. But Vorpheus did not seem to be in here.

"Hello?!" Link shouted, wincing at how loud his voice seemed to be inside the chamber. As he looked around, he noticed that—curiously enough—the taint hadn't spread to this place, the wood looking healthy and strong as ever.

Something landed on the ground behind him, and Link cursed himself for not checking the ceiling. He lashed out with an elbow, screaming in pain when it collided with the steel of armour. Then he was kicked in the back and sent stumbling forward. Turning the fall into a roll, Link was quickly back on his feet, Master Sword and Mirror Shield in hand.

"Really, Hero of Time, that's the second time I have been able to sneak up on you," said Vorpheus, grinning. He was still clad in his armour, which Mugen had apparently not taken away from him. His mace was nowhere to be seen, though. There was something about the ancient man that seemed different, but Link couldn't put his finger on it. In the firelight, he could see that the old warlock's eyes were still completely white save for the tiny, black pinpoints. His skin was pale, as usual, and his long locks were…

"You have hair," said Link, wondering how the warlock had been able to grow a full head of hair almost as long as Sheik's in the short time they had been apart.

Taken aback by the unexpected reply, Vorpheus ran a hand through the hair. It was thick and black, making the warlock look even paler than he had done at Lake Hylia. "Yes," he said. "The temperature in this place is quite chilling, and I needed to insulate my head. Don't you like it?"

"Uh—"

"For I can change it," said the warlock. Suddenly, the hair shortened, shaping itself into a style very similar to Link's own. "I can change the colour as well," the warlock continued, turning his hair into a sharp white shade, then a dark red one, and finally a bright green one.

"Uh…" said Link, not really sure how to respond to the—admittedly—colourful display. "How do you do that?" he finally said.

"As I told you back at the lake, Hero," said Vorpheus, grin growing wider. "When you live as long as I have, you learn a few tricks."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 65**

* * *

Link found himself staring at the warlock, suddenly wondering if he had made the right decision in seeking him out. Vorpheus was grinning like a madman, his hair racing through the entire colour spectrum. The fact that his eyes were blank and revealed nothing did not help, and knowing the man's age and then seeing his mannerisms was…eerie. Of course, Vorpheus could have been lying all along and simply be an extremely powerful, sixty-something-year-old…but Sprout _had_ called him _Vorpheus the Immortal_ …

Focusing on the warlock, whose hair was now a bright burgundy, Link coughed. "Could you stop that?" he asked, feeling slightly nauseous because of the quickly changing colours.

Vorpheus' grin faded slightly, his hair returning to its seemingly "natural" colour of jet black. It then grew slightly to hang just past his jaw. "You fail to amuse me, Hero," he said. "I thought that you, of all people, would appreciate a little display, especially in these dark times."

"Well, I didn't," said Link sharply. He stared into the warlock's eyes. "Is that all you can do? Change your hair, I mean…doesn't make you seem very powerful if you ask me."

"No one asked you," said the warlock sourly. Then he shook his head. "But no, that is not _all_ I can do. A certain lake battle springs to mind, actually…had it not been for that sword of yours, you would not have survived, and the war would most likely have been over by now because of your side's dwindling potion supplies." As he said this, he pointed at the Master Sword, grimacing at the legendary blade. He sighed. "Had it not been for my current situation, I would have showed you just what I could do, Hero…unfortunately, that miserable little bush up there—"he pointed upwards, to the entrance to the Deku Tree—"doesn't like that I use my powers for anything but lighting a fire or changing my appearance."

"Lighting a fire?" asked Link. "In here?" Of course, he remembered having done the exact same thing in the previous room, but he had known at the time that this particular place had a dirt floor. But still…the large, roaring fire by the Deku Tree's roots made him slightly nervous. What would the demigod have said to this?

"It looks and sounds risky, I know," said Vorpheus, motioning to the fire. "But if I don't keep it going…well, I'll freeze to death, and I hardly think that would be a fitting end to my life. Besides, it keeps… _the thing_ away." As he said the last part, Vorpheus looked around with what seemed to be a nervous expression.

"The thing?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow, something he seemed to be doing a lot lately… He had probably picked it up from Sheik, who had abused the expression to the extreme. And would do it again soon. He was grasping at that hope. "What are you talking about?"

"What I'm talking about?" asked Vorpheus incredulously. "Surely you've heard it?"

Link shook his head, still not comprehending what the ancient man was speaking of. "Heard what?"

As if on cue, another loud groan passed through the tree, causing the ground to vibrate and dust to rain from the places in the ground where the roots grew. A cold breeze blew through the inner chamber, and Link finally understood the reason for why Vorpheus was afraid of the cold. It was _freezing_. An involuntary shiver went through the Hero.

"Hear it now?" asked the warlock.

"What _is_ that?" Link asked. He had thought it was just a general result of the decaying tree collapsing slowly but surely, but the groan had now sounded…alive, as if some sort of creature was growling in annoyance as it dug its way through the rotting wood.

"It's a thing," replied the warlock. At the Hero's dead stare, he shook his head. "I'm not sure, Hero…it has been burrowing its way around this place for weeks now. It almost broke through the wall here the day before yesterday, but the bush kept it out, I guess." The last of the tremors were passing now, leaving the chamber silent once again. "But I guess you are not here to listen to my woes and complaints, Hero of Time," said the warlock, focusing on Link. "Why are you here?"

His throat closed up. Link had been preparing a small tirade on why he was here and what he wanted Vorpheus to do, but now he found himself unable to voice it. How _could_ he say it. "I want you to revive my dead lover", while short, concise and straight to the point, sounded so…ridiculous in Link's head. This was why he settled on: "I need you to do me a favour."

"A favour?" asked the warlock, blinking. "This is…unexpected. I thought you were just here to gloat about your undeserved victory in our duel and laugh at my misfortune in dealing with whatever is trying to get to me."

Link blinked himself. "For some reason that sounds like something you would be doing rather than me" he said.

"Fair enough," conceded the warlock. "I can be a terrible winner." He turned to face his fire and removed his gauntlets, holding his hands above the flames to warm them. His hands were covered in scars and what seemed to be burns. The warlock turned his head to look at him. "What would this…favour entail, then, Hero?"

Link gulped. It was now or never. "How powerful are you?" he asked, mentally slapping himself for deviating from the plan at the last second, feeling ridiculous.

"That's an odd question coming from you," said Vorpheus, never taking his eyes off the Hero. "Especially since you saw what I was capable of at the lake…I blew up a tent, took down an entire forest singlehandedly, almost blew _myself_ up and opened a dimensional portal...I would say that makes me _quite_ a force to be reckoned with."

"I know what you're capable of offensively," said Link. "But there's something else…"

"And what would that be?" asked Vorpheus. The black dots in his eyes seemed to have disappeared, making him look very much like a blind man, but the sheer focus he was directing at the Hero told otherwise.

"Can you…" Link began, but trailed off. Mustering all his willpower, he tried again: "Can you bring back someone from the dead?!" he half-shouted, angry with himself for showing such weakness in front of the enemy.

Vorpheus stared at him for a few seconds, apparently not disturbed by the Hero's request. His eyes were rolling around, Link noticed on closer inspection, as if the warlock was thinking heavily.

"Yeeeeeees," Vorpheus finally said, drawing out his confirmation, sounding unsure.

"Really?" asked Link, suddenly feeling elated. Then there was hope after all.

"Well…" the warlock said.

Link felt another stone dropping in his stomach, his jaw clenching. "Well what?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"Well…" the warlock said again. "It depends on certain factors, Hero…if the person in question has been dead for many years, then no, I cannot perform such a task."

"He died two days ago!" Link exclaimed, refusing to believe that Vorpheus had actually just admitted to having limited powers. "That's not too long, right?!"

"It shouldn't be," the warlock said. "But then there are other factors to be taken into account, such as how attached the person was to life and so on…it's difficult to explain. If you would let me see the…deceased, then I could assess the possibility of a resurrection."

"Alright!" Link shouted, grabbing the warlock's lower arm and starting to tug him toward the entrance. "We'll go to the camp right awa—"

Vorpheus pulled his arm back, stopping the Hero in his tracks. "I'm not going to do this for _free_ , Hero," the warlock said. "You put me in this prison, and now you expect me to just do you this favour with no incentive?"

"What do you want, then?" asked Link, annoyed and giddy at the same time. He was tired, and the fight with the Morpha-like creature in the pool room had exhausted him terribly. His weapons were growing heavy on his back, and all he wanted to do was to drag the previously bald warlock back to the camp and get Sheik back and—

"I want a rematch," the warlock replied, his mouth forming into a thin line. His eyes pierced Link's. "And my freedom. This wooden prison…I will not return to."

"You know I can't let you go," said Link, sighing when he realised he was not even halfway done with convincing the warlock…and now he was most likely going to take five steps further back after this single step forward. "How would I know you won't go back to Ganondorf?"

Vorpheus shuddered at the mention of the Evil King's name, a curious reaction from one who had previously served the male Gerudo. "I never want to hear that man's name again," the warlock said with barely concealed loathing. "The man is pure evil, and I never want to associate myself with such people again. That night we first met…I was going to defect the very next day and leave Hyrule far behind me…but then you defeated me, and I was locked up here."

"Not to be an ass," said Link, "but you don't strike me as a particularly good person either."

"Of course I'm not a good person," said Vorpheus, shrugging. "How else could I attain such power? I have literally waded through the blood of legions in order to become what I am."

This was coming from a man whom Link remembered to claim not to be an aggressive person during their first encounter.

Vorpheus seemed to read his mind, and grinned. "They all had it coming, Hero… As for the Evil King…well, the difference between him and I is that I kill only when necessary. _He_ does it for sport. He is a despicable human being…if he even _is_ human."

"I still can't let you go," said Link. It had been a mere lucky strike that had taken the warlock down, and Link didn't know if he could defeat him again. And if Link lost…would Vorpheus then turn on Zelda and the remnants of the Royal Army?

Disappointment shone through Vorpheus' white pupils as he turned his back on the Hero. "Then I'm afraid I must refuse your request." He walked back to the fire, once again beginning to warm his hands.

"Wait!" Link said. "You…I…"

"No, Hero," the warlock said. "No freedom, no resurrection. That is the deal."

For the umpteenth time, Link felt utter despair filling his very being. His world was starting to crash around him. If he couldn't have Sheik again…if… Anger then took despair's place. Who was this man to refuse Sheik another chance? Who was this… _conjurer_ to refuse Link's request. He felt his hand go for the hilt of his sword, felt it being unsheathed.

Vorpheus seemed to not have noticed as he continued staring into the fire. Link took a step forward, pointing the tip of the Master Sword straight at the warlock's back. While Vorpheus' armour looked touch, it could surely not be resistant to the sharpest blade ever forged.

"Warlock…" Link uttered. "You will do as I say…or I'll kill you!"

Now Vorpheus turned around, looking at Link with what could be construed as a bored expression. His irises had grown a little, giving him an even stranger and unnatural appearance than he had previously had. "As much as I enjoy hearing death threats directed at me, I feel I must point out that you would not be able to kill me, Hero."

"Why not?" growled Link. "I've killed before!"

"You've murdered men in their sleep," said Vorpheus. "That's is just cowardly—"

"The Gerudo Witches! I killed them too!" snarled Link, feeling the anger growing. How _dare_ this man question his ability to fight?

"Now _that_ is an impressive feat," said Vorpheus, as if admitting something completely against his nature. "But I still doubt your ability to kill _me_."

"Why?" asked Link.

"Because I haven't given you a _reason_ to, Hero," said Vorpheus. "Those men you killed in their sleep…my former colleagues, if you will, were all poisoning the lake."

"You did that too!" protested Link.

"But I reversed it as well," the warlock pointed out. "I have made up for my mistakes, and the only reason I'm being kept prisoner here is because of your ruler's fear of my power. And those Gerudo witches…Ganondorf's mothers, as they were…well; they must have given you a reason…"

"They took Sheik away from me!" Link shouted. "And now _you're_ doing the same!"

"Not true, Hero," Vorpheus said, still remaining calm and positively disinterested. "If this Sheik is already dead, then he is gone…I am not doing anything to him. Your anger is illogical and irrational…"

"Shut up!"

"And yet," continued the warlock, unperturbed by the Hero's shout, "I feel I must point out that if you _were_ to attack me right now…I would be powerless to stop you. The only thing that will not kill me is age. And while you may not have been able to kill me if you were in the right state of mind, I also know that anger is the ultimate enabler… If you strike me down, you eliminate your source of anger and disappointment, yet you will also eliminate the only way of bringing your friend back." Vorpheus scratched his chin, where dark stubble was starting to appear. "Hm, what to do, what to do…"

Link had heard enough. The man needed to die _now_! He felt like he wasn't in control of his own body as he charged forward, sword ready and poised to strike deeply into Vorpheus' chest, ending the Immortal warlock's life. Time slowed down, and Link could see, through the red haze of rage that had fallen over his eyes, every single expression on Vorpheus' face.

Remaining calm, the warlock seemed to prepare himself for the strike, making no attempt to dodge or block the incoming strike. Acceptance, calmness and…relief? They were all painted on his features as Link came closer and closer. A roar—was it from him? Vorpheus?—grew in volume until it felt like the entire chamber was shaking, and dust rained upon them from the ceiling.

The tremors grew worse, and Vorpheus' gaze fastened itself on a point somewhere behind Link. Then all hell broke loose. Something exploded behind Link, throwing him forward and showering both him and Vorpheus with the remains of the strong gate that had kept the warlock inside the chamber. The warlock neatly sidestepped to avoid the hurtling cannonball Link had turned into, and the Hero almost barrelled right into the fire, missing it by inches and singing a few hairs on his head in the process. He landed face-down on the ground, the wind knocked out of him by a root protruding from the ground. He rolled on to his side, trying to get a glimpse of whatever had interrupted his attack.

"Hah! Just as I thought!" shouted Vorpheus over the roar of the thing. "I _knew_ my presence would attract one, but never one of _this_ size!"

Link stood up, unable to see the creature because of the warlock's insistence on standing in his way. He came up to the warlock's side, and choked.

Flashes of his first childhood enemy, the creature that had killed the Deku Tree, went across his mind's eye, brining back memories of restless nights where he was unable to sleep for fear of dreaming about the creature. The insect-like monster in front of them reared on its hind legs, regarding them with its singular, orange eye.

"Another one?" Link asked himself.

This one was different to Queen Gohma. It was smaller, but thinner, more agile-looking. Its carapace was covered in tiny little spikes that would probably shred anything that came into contact with it to pieces. Its claws looked like spearheads, capable of skewering anything. Its eye focused on Link, and the Hero felt a cold wave of pure hatred washing over him as the creature seemed to recognise who he was. It let out a roar that pierced the very marrow of his bones. It seemed to be radiating darkness, coming off as wisps of rapidly dissipating smoke.

"They like to feed on magical energy, and this one's been gorging itself on some rather nasty type…probably the Evil King's" said Vorpheus, having seemingly forgotten that Link had tried to kill him seconds before. "This one is still young, not even a decade old, but it's been harassing me for weeks."

"What is it?" asked Link, not remembering if Navi had ever told him the species' name.

"It's a Gohma, Hero. A female one, at that…and she doesn't seem to like you very much," said the warlock, still not moving.

"I think I killed its mother seven years ago," said the Hero, pulling the Mirror Shield from his back and brining it to bear. The insect-like Gohma seemed to be preparing to spring at him. Its multiple jaws were flapping, ready to bite and tear. "When I was a kid."

"You still _are_ a kid," the warlock said. "But you're right…Gohmas have good memories despite their insectile nature, and are very much capable of forming vendettas. And killing one's mother…well, that's the worst sin you can commit, apparently."

The Gohma was looking back and forth at the two, seemingly torn between its desire for revenge and its hunger for the magical energy inside the warlock. It made agitated clicking sounds, taking a few steps forward.

"Would this be a good time to tell you that I have offensive capabilities equal to a fly at the moment?" asked Vorpheus, looking at the Hero with an amused expression. "I'm afraid you're the only who can stop it."

"Are you serious?" asked Link, unable to take his eyes off the insect. "Can't you just blast it with some fire or something?" He tried to fumble his Din's Fire crystal out of his pocket, but he had expended all but a little shred of his own magic on lighting his way through the tree dungeon. If he suddenly needed it _during_ the fight and he was empty…

"I'm afraid not," said the warlock in his infuriating calm tone. "Your little friend up there, the bush, won't let me do anything, as I said. If he knew what was going on down here, then maybe…"

"It's not like I can just send him a letter, though," said Link. The Gohma had chosen its target, apparently, and Link seemed to be a much more tantalising victim than the warlock at the moment.

"I guess not," said Vorpheus. The Gohma's legs were bunching up, preparing to launch the creature at the Hero. "Might I suggest you duck?"

Link did just that, rolling forward as the Gohma sailed over his head, its many smaller claws desperately trying to grasp at his hair and head. He tried to get a strike in with the Master Sword, but missed. Coming to his feet, he was barely able to dodge another pounce. It gave him a good idea of its size. It was about the same size as a Wolfos, though how exactly it had been able to make such a racket during its digs was beyond him.

Judging by its speed and agility, it was obvious that the fight with this young Gohma would be completely different to the one he had had with its mother seven years prior. The only thing that he could even guess would work against it was doing something to its ever-vulnerable eye.

Staring at said eye, Link fell into his usual fighting position, sword pointing backwards and shield covering his front. "All right," he said quietly. "I've killed one before, I can do it again."

"That's a good attitude," drawled Vorpheus from his hiding place behind one of the massive roots.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 66**

* * *

There was no time to think. The Gohma pounced, its snapping claws barely missing the top of Link's head as the Hero ducked and rolled away. No sooner had Link gotten back on his feet did the Gohma pounce again, making Link dodge again. Again and again, the Gohma tried to jump on Link and tear him apart, and again and again he dodged, unable to get a strike in. It was—in the lack of a better word—annoying. Link was used to his fights boiling down to strike, block, strike, dodge, strike…not dodge, dodge, dodge into infinity.

Growling, Link looked over to where Vorpheus was still hiding, his eyes following the fight with interest. "Feel free to step in at any time," he called over to the warlock, who merely shook his head.

"I'm going to have to say thanks, but no thanks," the warlock said. "It looks like you're handling it pretty well over there. Duck!"

Link did so, and this time he felt the wind rushing by his head. A few hairs were also plucked.

"Vorpheus!"

"What do you want me to do, Hero?" asked Vorpheus, holding his hands out defensively. "I'm a trained warlock reduced to the stage of a bum because of your friend up there! All I can do is this." He snapped his fingers, and a small fireball the size of a pearl erupted in the middle of his palm. "That is hardly going to kill anything, is it?" He snuffed it out by closing his hand to a fist and looked at the Gohma, which had seized its attacks for a second to stare at the flame in his hand. "Hm, interesting," he mumbled.

Link saw the pause in the giant insect's attack pattern and seized the opportunity. He ran toward it, raising his sword for a powerful strike…or at least as powerful a strike he could muster in his current condition. "Let's see how you like being pounced at!" he yelled and jumped, bearing down on the insect which had just seemed to notice him again. It gave a sound that was halfway between a growl and a snort…and waited.

Link smirked, unable to believe his luck in that the creature wouldn't even try to dodge. He brought the Master Sword down on the creature, hitting the carapace right above its eye. The sword bounced off with a clang, and Link was rewarded with a powerful limb (An arm? A leg?) smashing into his stomach, sending him flying several feet backwards.

Coughing, he slowly climbed back to his feet, only to be greeted by the sight of a charging Gohma, its mouths salivating, wetting the floor in the way only a rabid creature can. He was barely able to raise his shield before it smacked into him again. The Mirror Shield was wrenched out of his grip and sent clattering away across the floor, leaving Link defenceless. Stepping backwards, Link raised his sword to block an incoming limb. They were covered in thousands of tiny spikes, and he felt his tunic being torn apart every time an arm (or a leg) came a bit too close for comfort.

The creature's large eye never wavered as it tried to tear the Hero apart. Link was forced to take several steps backwards as it started to smash him into the ground with overhead swings, culminating in a necessary backflip. What he hadn't taken into account, however, was how close to the wall he was when he attempted the jump, and he felt the soggy dirt yielding to his body as he suddenly found himself upside down, staring into the blackness. He let out an "Ooph!" and fell to the ground, cutting his thigh on the Master Sword in the process.

The Gohma let out a triumphant roar, staring down at the fallen Hero. Link tried to raise his sword again, but the flailing limbs of the giant insect knocked it out of his hand, the blade landing somewhere in the distance. Link looked up, angry with himself for being beaten by the offspring of a creature he had killed seven years ago as a child…and it had been _bigger_! The Gohma raised a claw, preparing to finish the Hero off, but suddenly, it screeched, recoiling away from the wall, turning around to face Vorpheus, who was forming another fireball in his hand.

"Alright, so it serves as a nice distraction," said the warlock, noticing that the creature was staring at him. A small wisp of smoke rose from its back where his first fireball had hit it. He looked down at his palm, comparing its size to that of the creature. He looked up at the Gohma again, which seemed to be switching its priority in targets. "Shit," he said.

Like shot out of a cannon, the Gohma hurled its body in Vorpheus' direction, thundering across the large chamber, its eye practically _glowing_ in indignation. Link had the pleasure of seeing the ancient warlock's widen in either surprise or fear and turn tail, fleeing from the insect. The sight would have been humorous had it not been for the perplexing event that had just taken place. Stumbling to his feet, he quickly located the Master Sword again. Ignoring Vorpheus' yelps and pleas for help, Link examined the blade. There didn't seem to be any damage to the blade itself, yet it couldn't slice through the Gohma's carapace. Was there something wrong with it?

"Any time now, Hero," yelled Vorpheus, who was running around and round one of the roots, providing Link with yet another humorous image. The rustling and clanking from the warlock's armour didn't really help either, nor did the Gohma's annoyed growls as it failed to catch up with the fleeing old man.

Running a finger along the blade, Link winced as he felt it slice easily through his flesh. Blood immediately welled up; leaving no doubt that the sword was just as capable as it always had been. There had to be something about the energy the Gohma had eaten previously… Perhaps it had augmented its exoskeleton.

"I said: Any _time_ now, _Hero_!" the warlock yelled again, feebly throwing another miniature fireball at the creature, which only served to anger it further. Its eye was completely blood-red now, evoking images of its mother.

Not replying, Link observed the Gohma as it passed him by a couple of times. There was not a single, unshielded part of that massive insect. Every natural armour plate fit over each other perfectly, very much like the plate armour of the Royal Guard. If every other piece of the carapace was as hard as the one he had first, Link was in trouble. Its eye was an obvious weak point, but this Gohma seemed to be very careful, rarely leaving the sensitive organ exposed. Every time Vorpheus hurled a fireball at it, it closed its eye, ducking its head to protect the organ, much to the warlock's chagrin.

"I _said_ —"

"I heard you the first two times!" Link shouted, interrupting the warlock, who was starting to pant heavily now. In the situation they were in now, Link could only see one solution and strategy. He gripped the sword hilt firmly; counting how many seconds it took for the Gohma and warlock to round the large tree root. Slowly, he began to walk toward the comical pair, picking up speed as he approached.

"Vorpheus!" he called. "When I say 'duck', duck!"

"What?" asked the warlock, his voice barely audible over the heavy breathing he was now doing.

"Just do it! And don't attack the Gohma!"

The warlock didn't respond, but Link knew he was going to do as he was told. As the last pair of claws disappeared from view behind the root, Vorpheus appeared on the other side, directly in Link's path, closely followed by the Gohma, which was apparently _glaring_ at the feeble human it was trying to stampede. Link smirked, preparing for what he knew was probably his stupidest plan yet…

"Duck!" he all but screamed at the warlock, who threw himself to the ground. Link pounced forward, quickly closing the distance between him and the Gohma, whose eye widened when it saw the rapidly approaching Hero. It seemed to understand what was going on, and Link saw that its eye was beginning to close. Grunting, he threw himself forward, thrusting the Master Sword frontwards.

The Gohma screeched in pain as the sword sunk into the eye, showering Link with a mixture of spit and yellowish green blood and gore. It continued thrashing and the Hero thrust the sword deeper, trying to hit whatever excuse it had for a brain. The Gohma tried to pull away, but it was quickly losing strength as its arms and legs flopped around uselessly, unable to support its weight. The small wisps of black smoke were disappearing as the magical energy it had consumed was released as it slowly died. Link wrenched the Master Sword out of its eye, quickly getting away from the dying insect in order to not get injured by its flailing limbs. In its throes, the Gohma seemed to shrink slightly, as if it had been artificially strengthened by something…or someone.

With a final shrill howl, the Gohma seized moving, a slurping sound issuing forth as blood and gore continued pouring out of the ruptured cavity that had once been its eye. Link looked with distaste at his clothes, which had all been sullied _yet again_.

"What kind of a plan was that?" asked Vorpheus as he picked himself up from the ground. His entire back was covered in insect gore, and his irises were now almost the size of a normal person's. What this signified, Link didn't know, but he had a feeling it didn't very often. The warlock was panting heavily, which wasn't very strange since he had been sprinting at full speed wearing the heavy, dark, pointy armour.

"A plan I came up with in seconds," replied Link, doing his best to clean the Gohma's blood off his blade with the edge of his tunic. "And I don't understand why you're so upset. It worked, didn't it?"

"If I had ducked too late, you could have impaled _me_ instead of _that_ ," the warlock said, shaking his hand in the carcass' direction.

"What a shame that would've been," Link mumbled, moaning when he realised he wouldn't be able to clean the sword with his feeble clothes. He looked at the warlock was doing his best to wipe his armour clean, and failing miserably. He realised something. "Did you know the black parts of your eyes get bigger when you're afraid?" he asked.

"Pardon?" asked Vorpheus.

"Your eyes look almost normal now," said Link. He looked around, found the Mirror Shield, picked it up and held it up in front of Vorpheus. "Look."

Staring at the polished, reflective surface of the shield, Vorpheus examined his mirror image. "You're right," he said. "I hadn't noticed that…oh look, they're going back to normal now." With that, his hair changed into a deep blue colour reminiscent of the tunic Link had been given by the Zoras.

Rolling his eyes, Link replaced his weapons on his back, not looking forward to the cleaning job he had to do on the Master Sword. Vorpheus' fire was still burning brightly in the centre of the chamber, and Link wondered why he hadn't thought of doing something with _that_ rather than taking the chance on just charging blindly at the creature and hoping he wouldn't miss. He sank to his knees in front of it, feeling his body starting to shake as the excitement was ebbing off. He wasn't quite fit for the fight yet, he realised, but he was getting there.

Vorpheus scratched his chin, which was, oddly enough, bereft of the beard he had displayed at the lake. He seemed to be thinking about something. Quietly, he came over to Link, crouching down next to him.

"I have reconsidered my demands, Hero," he said slowly, as if worried that Link would explode at any second.

"Yeah?" replied the Hero, not looking up at the warlock. Link felt incredibly fatigued, even though the fight was nothing compared to the ones he had had with the other creatures of Hyrule and its temples. Had he already peaked?

"I…" said Vorpheus, unsure of how to word it. "I still want a rematch…although it will probably have to wait until you feel better," he said, noting the shaking form of the Hero. "Instead of my freedom, however, I would like an audience with your ruler, Princess Zelda. I was never given a chance to speak my case when the spy wanted to know what to do with me…I wasn't even allowed to _see_ the princess."

"Why?" asked Link. He didn't have it in him to articulate the question any more. Sweat was pouring down his face now, which made him worry. If he couldn't handle a little running, jumping and pouncing, what good was he?

"Well," said Vorpheus, rocking slightly on the balls of his feet. The armour squeaked as the plates ground together. "You have technically saved my life, after all…if that Gohma had come in here while I was alone, I would not have been able to fight it off, and my long life would have ended on a low note…eaten by a ravenous creature in my earthen prison. As for why the change in my demand…well, I cannot guarantee that an eventual resurrection will be successful. If the dead wish to remain dead, they remain dead, Hero, and no amount of pulling or pushing will make it otherwise."

"But you'll try?" asked Link, his voice low. He craned his neck to look up at the ancient warlock. "You'll try to bring him back?"

Vorpheus nodded. "I will try…if you can guarantee me an audience with the princess," he reminded Link.

Nodding, the Hero tried to stand up, failed twice and managed on the third. "I will…put in a good word for you."

Grinning, Vorpheus slapped Link on the shoulder. "That's the spirit!" His smile fell seconds after, however, when he remembered something. "There is still my guardian, though…"

As if on cue, a circle of blue light erupted between them, just like the one that had appeared here seven years ago. Exchanging glances, they both shrugged and stepped into the light, feeling themselves being lifted off the ground, encased in a crystal made of pure energy, all became white…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 67**

* * *

Link's legs still shook when his and Vorpheus' feet hit the ground in the large grove. Sweat ran down his face, and his clothes clung to his form. The warlock kept giving him glances, though it was hard to see if they were of concern or just plain interest. As the last of the blue light disappeared from around them, Vorpheus took a couple of steps forward, breathing fresh air in deeply. Then he turned to look at Sprout, who was staring at him with a neutral expression. Vorpheus took another deep breath and strode confidently forward to the sentient tree.

"I say," he said, "that was some spiffy displacement magic. I'd like to learn that someday."

Sprout looked up at the tall, thin warlock, his expression not shifting an inch. "I'm afraid this magic cannot be taught nor learned…one simply knows it. It is a gift of the Goddesses, after all."

"Ah, I see," said Vorpheus, his smile faltering somewhat. He looked around the grove, his hair going through a rapid series of colours as the old man clearly struggled to find something to say. "Uh, I can't help but notice that I am out of the tree…and you have yet to throw me back in there."

"That is correct," said Sprout, its voice just as neutral as its expression. It was obvious that it did not like Vorpheus very much, perhaps even actively disliked him. Its eyes rolled to look at Link, who had sunk to his knees in the grass, unable to keep himself upright anymore. "Link, my boy, are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah," said Link, waving his hand, not bothering to look up. The effort of such an action did not seem worth it, the Hero thought. "Just tired, s'all…"

"Hm," said Sprout, clearly not believing the Hero. Apparently, it let the matter go and turned its attention back to Vorpheus, whose hair was now a dark grey, which fitted him considering his age. "I have decided not to incarcerate you in my predecessor again because you showed great valour in aiding the Hero of Time…although your methods could well be considered…crude."

"Had I been able to use magic, the creature would have been dead within seconds," the warlock said, his eye twitching at the poorly veiled insult.

"That may be," said Sprout. "Your magic is still sealed away, but as you know, the Hero requires you to perform an act which requires it. As it is my duty to serve the Hero of Time in any way I can, I am prepared to unseal it and let you reassume your identity as Vorpheus the Immortal…"

"But?" asked Vorpheus, expecting a catch.

"Once you have performed this task," continued Sprout, "I demand that you leave Hyrule and never come back."

"You're exiling me?" asked the warlock, his eyes narrowing.

"In essence, yes," said Sprout, a small smile finally appearing on its lips. "You have proven untrustworthy in that you once served the man named Ganondorf, our worst enemy, and I cannot allow a dangerous person like you free reigns to rejoin the Evil King once you have done what the Hero asks of you."

"So, 'in essence'," said Vorpheus, a sarcastic tone on his voice, "you're telling me to do my business and then piss off with no compensation whatsoever."

Sprout's eyes flashed, and the grove seemed to grow just a bit colder and darker, despite it being in the middle of the day. "You worked against us, we punished you. I am giving you a chance to redeem yourself in our eyes and an opportunity to leave this war torn land without fear of being pursued." Sprout's body creaked just a little as the little tree grew a few inches taller. "If you disagree, I can just as easily throw you back inside your dungeon, and this time I shan't allow you any visitors. There is also a third alternative, though I have doubts that you would enjoy it…"

Link looked at the Deku Tree's descendant with wide eyes and hitched breath. He had never seen or heard such words from the forest guardian, and now it had just threatened Vorpheus' life. Had the Gohma been the source of the taint? Sprout seemed to be stronger now, not to mention more aggressive. Link had not known it for long, but it had never seemed to be of an antagonising nature…

Vorpheus refused to back down and continued staring down into Sprout's eyes, a frown of displeasure splayed across his lips. "I had always thought that the proponents of light were forgiving and understanding…"

"I am neither forgiving nor understanding to those who threaten my home, warlock," said Sprout. "And by poisoning Lake Hylia, you permanently placed yourself on my bad side. I am only doing this for the Hero." Its eyes looked at Link again, seeing the confusion and bewilderment in the youth's eyes. Its expression softened slightly as it looked back at Vorpheus. "What is your answer, Vorpheus? Will you do Hyrule one last service and leave forever…or will you accept the punishment for over a century of killing and destruction?"

To his credit, the warlock did not blink at the ultimatum. He seemed to have dealt with situations like these before, although how many times he had been facing down a tree-like demigod appointed by the Goddesses to protect the forest, Link didn't know. All in all, it was a unique situation, and the atmosphere in the grove was tense as the seconds trickled by.

Vorpheus scratched his chin, an action Link now recognised as one of contemplation and thought. His hair once again changed its colour, settling on a deep shade of black. A small grin found its way to the warlock's lips as he put his hands on his hips (producing a loud clang as his gauntlets hit the metal armour) and said: "Alright, bush, you have a deal. I will help the Hero, he will give me a rematch, and then I shall leave Hyrule forever. Is that satisfactory?"

Sprout frowned at the mention of the rematch, but a glance at Link, who nodded, apparently calmed it down. It sighed, producing an odd sound. Link didn't even know that it breathed. "It is…adequate, Vorpheus. I shall unseal your magical abilities, though the second I detect it being used for anything other than the Hero's purpose…well, I cannot be held accountable."

Before the warlock could respond, a blue arc of lightning shot out from Sprout's chest-like area and struck Vorpheus with great force, throwing him several feet backwards. The warlock rolled onto his back, his body twitching as his body was once again directly feeding on an abundant reservoir of energy.

A roar escaped his throat as a cold wind swept through the small passage leading to the grove, making Link shiver as he observed the spectacle of an ancient warlock being given his power back. He felt so tired, the fight with the juvenile Gohma having exhausted him. He had been unable to defeat the large insect on his own, he realised with a start. The man writhing on the ground in front of him had saved his life. If Vorpheus hadn't distracted the Gohma when he did, Link would most likely have been torn apart by the insect's claws. What was happening to him?

Vorpheus' scream was cut short as the lightning abruptly stopped coursing through his body. A small wisp of white smoke puffed out from his mouth, and the warlock lay absolutely still for a few seconds. Suddenly, his eyes opened, and the old man sat up with ease, apparently unhindered by the sheer unwieldiness of his unusual armour. He looked at his hands with wide eyes, as if unable to believe what had just happened. He snapped a finger and a small fireball—of the same size like the ones he had produced inside the dead Deku Tree—materialised in his palm. He frowned, glaring down at the pathetic little flame. With a grunt, he seemed to concentrate more power to the fireball. With a loud boom, the fireball suddenly expanded many times its size, ending up with Vorpheus sitting on the ground with a ball of flame the size of an adult Goron in his hand.

"Hah!" the warlock said, staring with glee at the ball of death in his palm. Just as suddenly he had created it, blinked and closed his hand to a fist, extinguishing the magical fire. With a whoop, he jumped to his feet and looked at Sprout. "Thank you," he said in an earnest voice. "You do not realise how much you need magic until you lose it."

"Do not thank me, Vorpheus," said Sprout, pointedly looking at Link as he finished the sentence. "It is all the Hero's doing…I highly suggest you help him in return."

"Of course," said the warlock, spinning around. He walked over to Link and helped the Hero up with a hand. When Link almost collapsed again, the warlock had to throw an arm around his waist to keep him upright. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine," said Link, trying to break out of his hold. "I'm just tired."

"You look more than tired to me," mumbled Vorpheus and looked at Sprout. The little tree seemed to sag a bit when it looked at the exhausted Hero with concern. "Is there anything else?" he asked Sprout.

"No, that is all, Immortal," said Sprout. "Help the Hero, and the Goddesses may forgive you for your deeds."

"Alright," said the warlock, looking down at Link. "So, my lethargic friend, where to now?"

"The Sacred Forest Meadow," said Link, finally relaxing into Vorpheus' hold, realising that without it, he would be chewing grass for the rest of the day. "Do you know where it is?"

"I believe I have an inkling, yes," said the warlock.

"My horse is—"

"Horse?" asked Vorpheus, his voice feigning horror. "Hero, if I am to resurrect someone, time is of the essence. There is not time to ride to the Meadow. We shall teleport!"

Link gulped, unsure if he could summon the strength to play the Minuet of Forest on his ocarina in order to get them there. "I don't think I can—"

"Who said that you were going to do anything?" asked the warlock as he closed his eyes, held a hand out in front of him and hummed softly. The air around his hand seemed to distort slightly, and small cracks in the air appeared right in front of them. Then the air itself collapsed, revealing a spinning hole of pure light in front of them, similar to the portal the warlock had opened at Lake Hylia. "This place we are going to, that is where the Forest Temple is located, yes?" asked Vorpheus.

Link nodded, feeling a slight surge of happiness at the sight of the portal. One step closer to Sheik. He felt Vorpheus pulling him with him into the portal, just barely hearing the shouting voice of Sprout wishing them luck.

The portal cracked and flashed, growing more and more unstable as it slowly collapsed on itself after the two had disappeared into it. As it slowly disappeared, Sprout looked at the spot where they had once stood. Link's condition worried it greatly, and pairing the Hero up with the warlock seemed, in hindsight, a bad idea.

"I hope I did the right thing," it whispered.

* * *

The first part of the trip through the portal went by unnoticed for Link, whose thoughts were now completely focused on Sheik, whom he _knew_ would be alive again by the end of the day. He vaguely felt being thrown around by some sort of strong wind in the complete darkness, but Vorpheus kept a firm hold on him.

He remembered that the warlock had said something about the dead remaining that way if they did not wish to come back, but he knew, he just _knew_ that the young Sheikah would not shy away from another chance at life, which had been cruelly ripped away from him by Link's own shadow, a creature of such evil that Link had trouble imagining what it would do if left to its own vices. However, Link would hunt it down and kill it once and for all after this was done, not only to avenge Sheik, but to reclaim his rightful piece of the Triforce.

"On the way out!" Vorpheus shouted, pointing an unseen finger ahead of them, where a small, white patch of light was rapidly growing larger and larger as they came closer.

Surprisingly, getting out of the portal was a mere matter of taking a step, which was far from Link had expected from the tumbling ride through the portal itself. Vorpheus' aim had been impeccable, landing them on the small, broken bridge just before the temple's entrance. In front of them, they could see the large tent that housed Princess Zelda…and Sheik's corpse. Link tried to move, but Vorpheus held him back.

"My audience, remember?" the warlock asked, giving him a pointed look.

"Of course I remember," said Link, glaring at the much, much, _much_ older man. "Let's go!" He was eager to see Sheik again, and the warlock's stalling was annoying him greatly.

"Wait," said the warlock, causing Link to let out a small growl. "Calm down, Hero," said the warlock and put a hand on Link's shoulder. "You look like you're about to pass out…let me attend to that."

It was as if someone had thrown a bucket of ice-cold water on him as he felt the energy coursing through him. Link could feel every ache, every sore muscle being smoothed out, hidden beneath a blanket of soothing ease. His eyes did not feel as heavy, and neither did his weapons. His legs felt strong as steel now as opposed to the rubber-like quality they had assumed just recently. Link looked at Vorpheus with a raised eyebrow.

"Why didn't you do that right away?" he asked, making sure to show his appreciation with the tone of his voice.

"I didn't want to make the bush any angrier by making it think I was poisoning you or something," the warlock explained. "It cares for you greatly, that much is obvious…and it clearly did not approve of your mingling with the likes of me."

"Well…thanks," said Link, now feeling quite restless. Sheik was just there, not even a hundred yards away. When the warlock's heavy hand once again found its way to his shoulder, he was just about ready to scream. "What?" he asked, trying to keep his tone calm.

"I assume the deceased is inside the tent?" the warlock said.

"Yeah, so what?" asked Link.

"Well, I do not think it is a very good idea for me to just waltz into the camp and start resurrecting people left and right…besides, I believe the ambience of the temple will be a better catalyst for the process." Vorpheus looked at the temple entrance, apparently feeling something Link could not. "I shall go inside and prepare myself…it is quite a lengthy process and—if I may remind you—not a guaranteed success. You must fetch the deceased and bring him to me. Also, I do not believe you should alert the princess of what we area bout to do. She might not react…with enthusiasm." With that, the warlock turned around walked to the entrance, not bothering to look back, assuming that Link would do as told.

The Hero felt a vague desire to launch an arrow into the man's head, but fought it down and focused on the tent. There seemed to be an awful hubbub emanating from the section of the tent that housed the meeting room, suggesting that Zelda was having an important meeting or something similar. Jumping down the broken steps, Link snuck past the shed he assumed was the bathing area and up to the tent cloth. Inside, he heard the serene voices of Zoras speaking of something or other—it was hard to hear—and Link wondered why there weren't any more guards posted around the tent. It would be quite easy to launch a sneak attack from where he stood.

He mentally mapped the tent, trying to figure out approximately where Sheik's body would be located. After coming up blank three times, he sighed and snuck as far away from the voices as possible without exposing himself to the rest of the camp and cut himself an entrance to the tent with his sword.

He grinned when he saw the large bed within. "Zelda's room," he whispered to himself as he quietly made his way to the door. He carefully looked into the corridor. The guards were standing at the entrance, vigilant as ever…with their backs to the interior of the tent. Slowly, Link walked softly over to the dark portal to the artificially cold room. It was dark inside, but the little light from the corridor behind him provided just enough illumination to guide his way.

He felt his way to the small table, eventually reaching the cloth-covered furniture. He felt the contours of a body underneath the blanket. His breath hitched unexpectedly, and he carefully lifted the blanket to expose the face beneath. Link felt his throat close up and his eyes getting moist at the sight of Sheik, who looked like he was merely sleeping. Softly, Link stroked Sheik's cheek, surprised at how soft it still remained.

"Hey, Sheik," he whispered, sniffling slightly. "I've missed you…I wasn't gone for long, but…Goddesses, I missed you so much…do you miss me? I…I hope you do." He blinked, realising how stupid he was being. "I feel so foolish…talking to you like you won't come back…of course you'll come back. Why wouldn't you?" A loud, angry shout from the meeting room made him jump, and he realised how much time he was wasting and that he could be caught at any moment.

Leaning down, he planted a soft kiss on Sheik's cold lips. "We'll be together again soon, I promise," he whispered and covered him with the blanket again. Carefully, he lifted Sheik up from table, his arms locked under the Sheikah's knees and back. He was so light, and Link distinctly remembered having told the Sheikah to eat more. He smiled. Such banter would return very soon.

Still smiling, Link emerged from the hole in the tent. The sun was disappearing behind one of the mountain tops. Carefully, Link used his Longshot to climb back up on the broken bridge and ran inside the temple, his pace quickened by his elated mood.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 68**

* * *

Vorpheus had been surprisingly industrious in the little time Link had been gone. Every single torch in the main hall had been lit, much like they had been the night Sheik had been murdered, colours and all, and a large wooden table had been placed in the very middle of the large room. It was quite warm; contrary to the usually chilling temperatures that plagued the temples (except the Fire Temple, naturally). The warlock himself was pacing back and forth in front of the table, reading through a large tome of sorts.

Link raised an eyebrow as he slowly descended the staircase, careful not to jolt Sheik's body. He couldn't remember Vorpheus ever having such a book. His mace lay on the table, but Link distinctly remembered the warlock stating that it had been taken from him, and Sprout hadn't mentioned it. Again, he reminded himself to be careful around the ancient sorcerer. He cleared his throat slightly as he approached the table, jolting the warlock out of his reading.

"That was quick," the warlock stated with a neutral tone, not deigning to look at Link's burden. He motioned to the table. "Put him up there," he said and buried his face in the book again, mumbling quite loudly in a language Link had never heard before.

Frowning at the disconnected man, Link went over to the table and gently laid Sheik on top of it. The wood creaked in warning, and Link noted with distaste that it was absolutely _covered_ in a thick layer of dust and cobwebs. He carefully put Vorpheus' mace on the ground, making sure to take a closer look at the weapon. The twin snakes were covered in strange etchings, he noticed, and the rod itself had several foreign letters inscribed on it. Then he gently lowered Sheik's head onto the table and stepped away, worrying about the table breaking during the…event.

He turned to look at Vorpheus, who had begun pacing again. His hair hadn't changed colour in a while, and Link wondered if it only did so during times of great distress or boredom. The armour clinked and clanged, a sound Link had come to associate with the warlock forever because of its particularly recognisable pitch and volume. Not to mention the excessive amount of spikes and sharp edges. It was also marvellously built and fitted to the warlock. Every plate fit over each other like gloves, and not a single joint was left vulnerable to attack. Link realised that anyone attempting to fight this man exclusively with sword and shield would find themselves unable to penetrate his armour, leaving only his head as a viable vulnerable spot.

The Hero looked closer at the book he was reading. It was rather unremarkable, its cover devoid of any writing or symbols. Its edges were frayed, and it looked quite old. It was a wonder it didn't disintegrate upon contact with air, really. He caught a few glimpses of the page Vorpheus was reading, but could not extract any information as that writing looked foreign as well. A couple of diagrams and other illustrations had also been drawn, but they were even less comprehensible if such a thing was possible.

"Where did you get that?" Link finally asked, pointing at the tome. For all he knew, it could have been a book he found inside the temple, although he couldn't remember any bookcases or shelves inside the temple. When Vorpheus didn't respond, he cleared his throat loudly and repeated the question, only louder.

"Hm?" asked the warlock, looking up from his reading. "Did you say something?" he asked. Sighing, Link repeated his question yet again, and the warlock grinned. "This," he said and gestured to the fraying piece of literature in his hand, "is my personal journal. It contains notes from my many travels."

"That's not what I asked," said Link in a deadpan. "I asked where you got it from. You didn't have it back in the Deku Tree, and Sprout sure as hell didn't give you anything when we got out."

"I always have it with me," said the warlock proudly. Then he grimaced. "Though you may not wish to know where."

Taking the hint, Link nodded. "I see…"

"Are you sure?" asked Vorpheus and began to turn around. "For I can show you—"

"No thanks, I'm fine," said Link, shaking his head furiously and closing his eyes to shield himself from any eventual apocalyptic sights. "I can imagine…unfortunately."

"The mind's eye can be a terrible thing indeed," said the warlock with amusement. He opened his journal again and continued reading. "It has been…a long time since I performed this sort of magic, Hero, and I want to go over my notes just to make sure I don't make any mistakes."

"Take your time," said Link, not wanting to rush the warlock and possibly botch the entire resurrection. "Is there anything I can do?" he asked after a few minutes of hearing Vorpheus' mumbling in the strange language. The inactivity was getting to him, especially now that he had abundant energy again. He felt like he should have been doing _something_.

"Not really," replied Vorpheus, not looking up. "You can…hm…interesting…you can check the deceased for any wounds I need to heal before I begin the reanimation. There is little use in reviving someone who will just die from the very same wounds they bought it from in the first place."

"Alright," said Link and walked back to Sheik's body. He removed the blanket, covering Sheik's lower body for the sake of decency. The wound in his chest had only been hastily closed by Kaura, who had seen little use in making it pretty, all things considered. Link looked closer at the wound. It was no wonder the red potions had done nothing to help his lover. His lungs were completely ruined, it seemed, and Link knew that his shadow's sword had severed several important blood veins. "There's a lot of…damage," he managed to choke out. It was…difficult to see this, despite knowing that all would be well soon.

Slamming the journal shut, Vorpheus gave a small sigh and marched over to the table. Pushing Link aside, he looked down at the wound, grimacing. Then he let his eyes roam over the rest of Sheik's form. "You didn't tell me your friend was a Sheikah…I thought they had all died out."

"He's the last," said Link impatiently.

" _Was_ the last, Hero. He _was_ the last," Vorpheus said. "We still do not know if he wishes to return to life." He opened his journal again, flipping rapidly through its pages before apparently finding a desired spot. His eyes flew down the page before he once again closed the journal and laid it on the table. "Now, healing magic has never been a particularly important or often used part of my repertoire…but I believe I can repair this. Stand back."

He put his hands over Sheik's chest, almost touching the wound. He closed his eyes and started mumbling. The way he iterated them, it sounded more like instructions rather than any arcane spells to Link. A soft, green glow slowly formed around the warlock's hands, and the wound was shrouded in it. A high-pitched, almost unperceivable whine could barely be heard, and Link felt a small headache starting to rear its ugly face in the front of his forehead. The sound reminded him of the squeal Moblins made whenever they caught him sneaking across their territory, only much higher.

Vorpheus grunted and stumbled away from the table, looking dizzy and distant. Link, fearing the worst, rushed over to Sheik, but was relieved to find nothing but smooth, untouched skin where the ugly wound had once been. Link slowly brushed a finger across the skin, smiling when no sign trauma appeared. He smiled; feeling like some progress was being made. Then he thought of something as he looked at Sheik's face.

"Can you heal his eye?" the Hero asked.

"Excuse me?" asked the warlock, who looked just about ready to vomit half his stomach all over the stone floor.

"His eye…it was ruined in a fight in Twilight. He can't see with it…" said Link. He wondered if he should have asked if the warlock was alright, for he looked all but.

"Give me a few seconds to…collect myself and I will take a look," the warlock replied, looking like he was trying to put his head between his legs and pull it through to the other side.

It was a classic position assumed by those who were about to feel the effects of a long night of drinking, apparently, like Link had learned during his brief stay in Castle Town as a child.

He had learned many things in that town…most of them unpleasant, such as adults preying on children caught out at night. One such man had tried to accost Link as he took a stroll through town one night he couldn't sleep. Had Link been any other than the future Hero of Time, that encounter could have ended badly.

But as it was, the man had found a boy that did not care much for unwanted advances. The encounter had ended in the man losing two fingers to his Kokiri Sword and his face pounded with a high-quality Hylian shield.

"Alright, let's see," said the warlock as he returned to the table. "I don't see any wound or scar," he said seconds after. "Which eye is it?"

"The left one," said Link, pointing Sheik's injury.

Grunting, Vorpheus removed his gauntlets and carefully lifted Sheik's eyelids. "There it is," he mumbled. He motioned for Link to stand back, which the Hero did. He then repeated the gestures and mumblings he had done with the chest wound. Something seemed to go wrong, however, as the warlock began to mumble louder and his voice sounded…strained. The green light started flashing, its brightness increasing to uncomfortable levels. Link eventually had to look away as the light soon reached the intensity of sunlight.

"Damn!" the warlock exclaimed as he once again stumbled away from the table. This time he started retching, and Link soon heard the disgusting sound of a stomach being upended. He covered his ears, starting to feel nauseous himself.

"You finished?" he asked when the warlock ceased making gurgling sounds.

"I believe so," the warlock said as he sat up, wiping his mouth with a handkerchief he seemed to keep in the bracer of his armour. Replacing it in the arm guard, he turned to Link. "You can turn around now, Hero."

"What happened?" asked Link, making sure not to look at the ground where the warlock had expelled his stomach's contents.

"The wound is…tainted," the warlock replied, walking back to the table. Still carefully, he lifted Sheik's eyelids again. That milky-white line across his pupil was still there. "Whoever wounded him was a powerful magic user," Vorpheus said. "More powerful than I am…but then again, I am not very skilled at healing magic. Had I been better at it, perhaps I could have removed the taint, but there is nothing I can do at the moment."

"Oh," said Link, disappointed that he could not help Sheik with one of the things that had bothered him the most in the time before his death.

"Indeed," said the warlock, nodding slightly. "I'm sorry." He then clapped his hands together, apparently putting the failure behind him, shrugging it off like nothing. "Now, on to the evening's main event."

Link rolled his eyes, annoyed at the man's trivialising of what was about to transpire.

"You probably wish to know what is going to happen, yes?" the warlock asked. At Link's nod, he flipped open his journal to a specific, bookmarked page. It filled with the strange writing as well as an illustration of some kind of mist hovering over a person. "The reanimation process is divided into two," said Vorpheus. "The first part consists of locating and drawing back the deceased's soul, which can take time, depending on how quickly I find it."

"How are you going to find it?" asked Link, still not understanding the writing. He assumed that the translucent vapour over the person in the illustration was the soul, but beyond that, it was like trying to read the Sheikah writing.

"Morphic resonance, of course," the warlock said proudly. When he noticed the Hero's raised eyebrow, he tried to elaborate. "You see, every person leaves a distinctive…trail, or presence behind them when they die. This trace is shared by both the body and the soul. By searching for an energy signature similar to the one left by the body, I can find the soul. However, as I said, this can take a lot of time, and therefore it would help me if you could name some of his favourite places, as the soul has a tendency to return to these places."

Link thought about it for a second, still not sure if he understood this "morphic resonance" mumbo-jumbo. Had Sheik ever told him about any places he particularly liked to go? He couldn't remember. He distinctly remembered the Sheikah not enjoying the desert climate of Gerudo Valley and the desert, so those places were crossed off immediately. He knew that Sheik would always feel a certain draw to his hometown, though. "Kakariko Village," he said. "The Shadow Temple…"

"Anywhere else?" asked Vorpheus.

The Hero thought even harder. The only place he had met Sheik where he had seemed _completely_ comfortable was in the Ice Cavern in Zora's Fountain. Link also remembered that the Sheikah had looked absolutely stunning in the dark, star-lit chamber. He blushed slightly, remembering what his thoughts had focused on when Sheik had turned around to leave. "The Ice Cavern above Zora's Fountain," he added.

"Is that it?" asked Vorpheus. "That's only three places…out of the entire world."

"I'm sorry," said Link, wishing he could have been of more help.

"It does not matter, I suppose," said Vorpheus. The other times I have performed a task such as this, the souls were never outside their homelands. I can only assume he still remains in Hyrule."

"Okay," said Link, wondering if that last part was intended for Vorpheus or for him.

"Now, the second part," said Vorpheus and turned the page. The illustration had changed slightly, the vapour having disappeared _inside_ the person. "As soon as I locate and draw the soul back, I must bind it together with its physical shell. This is the difficult part, especially if the soul does not wish to return to its body. At worst, I need to first bind a willing, participant soul to the body first which I can then bind the unwilling soul to…it is a very complicated process, and it can backfire fatally if done wrong…not to mention that it would require another person to die willingly."

"He won't struggle, I know it," said Link reassuringly. "Sheik's not one to pass up another chance to defeat Hyrule's enemies."

"You sound very confident, Hero," said Vorpheus.

"I have to be," replied Link. "Or I wouldn't be able to go on."

Smiling, Vorpheus patted Link's head. "If it's of any consolation: every reanimation I have performed has ended in success."

"How many reanimations _have_ you performed?" asked Link, batting away the warlock's hand.

"Er…two," said the warlock, embarrassed.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 69**

* * *

"What you don't understand is that we simply do not have enough men or resources to mount such an attack," said Zelda for what felt like the millionth time. She sighed, rubbing her tired eyes. The Zora and Goron representatives were once again showing her just why the three main races of Hyrule kept mostly to themselves. They simply could not get along.

"Not enough men?" asked one of the piscine representatives, his head-tail twitching in annoyance. The Zoras were all clothed in what seemed to be blue tunics quite similar to the one Link had, she had noticed. Was it to honour the Hero of Time, or just to avoid offending the—admittedly—rather prudish Hyrulian generals? "What about the Hylian Royal Army? If I remember correctly, it is said to be the largest in the world!"

"Yeah!" said one of the Goron representatives. He was positively gigantic, and he dwarfed the rest of his colleagues. "The fish is right. Your army is the biggest!"

Zelda sighed again. "It _was_ the largest in the world, correct," she agreed. "But in case you did not notice, Dogron, over half of it was eliminated during Ganondorf's initial attack…and its numbers have been dwindling ever since. Between defections and injuries, we are not even at one tenth of the strength we once had…and Ganondorf outnumbers us ten to one."

"But we cannot simply sit back and watch as the Evil King continues his rampage," protested another Zora. They had been sent to speak for King Zora himself, although Zelda could not remember if the massive king had ever been this captious. "We have armies of our own," he said, gesturing to everyone seated around the table. "If we combine our strengths—"

"We would still not be able to field an army that could rival Ganondorf's," interjected Zelda. She looked to her own generals, the ones who had been able to survive the last seven years of constant warfare. "Mito, if you'd please," she nearly begged.

The aging, heavily bearded Mito straightened up in his chair and crossed his arms. He had been with the royal army for over half his life, and it was not without reason that he had been able to rise to the rank of general. He was also somewhat of a diplomat, though not much of a smooth talker, preferring to lay the facts straight on the table. He cleared his throat.

"Since you clearly will not listen to reason from the princess, I'm going to put it as clearly as I can," he said, leaning forward. "If we launch an attack upon the Evil King and his armies now, we will be slaughtered. We might be able to win a skirmish or two against the lesser equipped and trained legions, but once Ganondorf brings in his elite…well, I'm sad to say that our resistance will be snuffed out forever. The second Triforce piece will most likely end up in his hands, and he will be able to take over the rest of the world." He paused, looking for reactions from the other races' diplomats. The Gorons simply stared back, as if they could not fully comprehend what he had just said, and the Zoras were giving him annoyed looks. He too sighed when he realised just how stubborn these people were. "I'll say it again," he nearly groaned. "We attack, we die, and Hyrule will forever remain in Ganondorf's hands."

The silence that followed was tense as the three parts looked at each other. Zelda had hoped to be able to come to some sort of agreement regarding what to do in order to build up their strength as a resistance movement, but none of the diplomats wouldn't hear of it, much preferring to demand plans of attack. She felt an urge to call off the meeting and send the diplomats back to their races' hideouts, but that could only worsen the political relations she had with the others. It did not help that the Gorons were currently in a dispute on who should be the leader of the clan until Link, Darunia's son, became old enough to take the mantle. The Zoras were deeply stricken with the loss of their princess, Ruto, who had ascended to become a Sage, and King Zora appeared to be grief-stricken and unable to think clearly.

The result? A tent filled with bickering diplomats unable to move on to other issues than counterattacks or guerrilla warfare—something Zelda's army had been involved in for years, but none of the others would acknowledge it since it was Link, the Hero, who eventually had to come to their aid. Zora's fountain was thawing, freeing more and more of their numbers each day, but it would still not be enough to mount an effective offensive against Ganondorf, and the Gorons…the Gorons knew little of war in general, and their strategies seemed to consist of simply charging the enemy and pummelling them to bits, which would just get them all killed against the disciplined ranks of enemy soldiers.

Not a day went by where Zelda did not stand outside her tent, waiting for Anaruteir to return with the signed pact from the Gerudo, but the eagle did not come. In weak moments, Zelda feared that her proposed alliance had never reached the desert thieves at all.

"I still think attacking is the way to go," said the Zora diplomat after a long stretch of glaring at everyone in the room except for his fellow men. "If we continue on this path, there won't be any army left at all."

"Be quiet, fish!" snarled the large Goron, spit flicking from his lips. His compatriots tried to calm him down, but to no avail. "You haven't been fighting in this war for the last seven years, so you get no say!"

"Neither have you, you overblown piece of granite," replied the Zora. "You were captured and imprisoned by an enemy you have already defeated _once_. One would think you would have learned from the first time the dragon made herself a home in your mountain." He grinned when he heard a snicker from one of the other Zoras.

"What about you, then?" asked the Goron. "You were all frozen in your own damn lake! How pathetic isn't that?"

"Watch your tongue, Goron," growled the Zora.

"Enough!" shouted Mito. He had slammed a mailed fist into the table, which silenced the entire room. "None of you have fought in this war for as long as we Hylians have! The princess invited you here in order to see if there was some way our peoples could cooperate to further our survival, not for your incessant and meaningless arguing!"

"Mito, it's alright," said Zelda and put a hand on his arm to calm him down. The general nodded and sat down, glaring alternately at the Gorons and Zoras. Zelda looked at he gathered diplomats with what she hoped was kind eyes. "I understand your frustration and wish to exact vengeance upon the man who has done all this to our homes…but we simply do not have the strength in order to do so. If we attack prematurely, we will negate everything we have fought for in the last seven years." She left out the fact that only the royal army had been doing any fighting since the Gorons and Zoras had only come into play a few months before. "Remember, the Hero of Time is out there right now, fighting for all our sakes'. He will soon have gathered the strength he needs to challenge the Evil King, and we will support him the entire way."

This seemed to placate the diplomats somewhat, as they all owed Link for saving their lives. Suddenly, the Zora diplomats stood up, their scales shining in the candlelight.

"We gather that there is no need for our continued presence at this meeting," said the only one who had spoken during the meeting. He looked at Zelda. "Princess, as much as we owe the Hero, there is nothing the Zora can do until there is talk of an attack. We are still recovering from our…internment, and the only support we can offer is of a military nature. We will withdraw back to the fountain to speak with our king, and await your summon for our army." With that, they marched out of the tent.

"They don't want any responsibility," said Mito quietly.

Suddenly, the Gorons stood up as well. The largest one marched out, while the others remained to explain their departure. "We must confer with our people," they said in unison, quickly following their brother outside.

The other Hylian general, Kato, sighed. "That could have gone better," he said.

"Indeed," said Zelda. She looked at the table in front of her. A large stack of papers and maps lay on it, which she had intended to use to convince the others enter an alliance of sorts, sharing resources and so on and so forth. "So much talk, and we remain just as weak as we were before…"

"We're not weak, Your Highness," said Mito, giving her a sad smile. "Our soldiers are worth at least ten of Ganondorf's…but even they cannot hope to win against an army that numbers in the thousands."

"I know, Mito, I know," said Zelda, standing up and stretching her back. Her ceremonial armour lay in a forgotten heap in her room, the princess preferring to wear her leather jerkin instead. "I just wish…I just wish that old rivalries and bitterness could be put aside for once." She looked at her two most loyal officers and frowned. "I suppose I just don't have the diplomatic affinity my father did…"

"I have a hard time believing that anyone could possibly negotiate a somewhat peace between the Zoras and Gorons," said Kato. "They just aren't compatible, it seems."

Mito opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by one of Zelda's chambermaids, who rushed inside the room. "Your Highness!" she exclaimed.

"What is it?" asked Zelda tiredly, wondering when the problems would cease.

"Your…bodyguard…" the maid said, apparently unable to express her meaning.

The princess jerked to attention. "Sheik?" she asked. "What about him?"

"He…he's gone, Your Highness!" the maid said.

* * *

Link was leaning against a wall in the chamber, watching as Vorpheus mumbled and chanted over Sheik's body in what the Hero assumed was the strange language that was written in the warlock's journal. Every now and then, a small shiver went through the warlock, and small rays of light sometimes issued forth from his hands.

At least two hours had passed since the warlock had begun searching for Sheik's soul, and he was having difficulties locating it, it seemed. However, when Link had asked him if he needed help, Vorpheus had answered as he seemed to be in a deep trance. As it was, there was nothing for the Hero to do but wait…and hope.

Link knew he looked like a mess. He _still_ had not cleaned washed his hair after the impromptu mud fight he had had with Sheik, and his clothes were stiff from the aforementioned mud. He was tired, too. He hadn't slept properly ever since they had arrived in the main camp, and Kaura's drug had only left him exhausted.

He was fiddling with the ring in his ear, the origin of which still remained a mystery to him. The small, black, undecorated piece of coiled iron had felt foreign at first, but as he got used to it, he couldn't imagine not having it. It had become part of him…just like Sheik had in the short time they had had together. But there would be more time, he knew.

Suddenly, Vorpheus grunted, and blue light erupted around him as he apparently focused his full attention on his task. "Found…him…" he managed to stutter out.

Link was at his side immediately, defying the ancient man's order to stay away as the magic could be quite volatile. "You did? Where? Is he here now? How is he?" asked Link, the questions pouring out of his mouth as his eagerness more than made up for his lack of sleep.

"Not…now…Hero…" Vorpheus groaned. "He's…struggling…"

"What?" Link's eyes widened. Sheik didn't want to come back? He looked at his lover on the table. "Why won't he come back?" whispered Link.

"Never mind…that, Hero," said Vorpheus, his face full of sweat from the strain. "I can't…bind him…" An orb of light had started to form between the palms of his hands, but it was flickering in and out of existence, and seemed to be pulling in a different direction than Vorpheus did.

"Isn't there anything you can do?" asked Link, feeling like the world was falling apart around him for a second time.

Vorpheus seemed to lose focus slightly as he tried to tell Link quickly. "I can…bind another soul to his, remember?"

"But where can we find another sou—"asked Link, interrupting himself in the process as he remembered something. He looked at Vorpheus. "Wait here!" he said, running up the stairs that led to the exit.

"Hurry up, Hero!" Vorpheus shouted after him. "I can't hold him for long!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 70**

* * *

Link cursed inwardly when he stepped outside the temple. He could hear shouting and the thumping of feet as soldiers scurried all over the camp, apparently looking for something. He had a good idea of what they were searching for, but hoped he was wrong. As he crept along the little walkway, doing his best not to be seen, he noticed that there seemed to be less soldiers up in the meadow itself, the guards presumably having already searched the area. Why they hadn't entered the temple, he didn't know, but he thanked the Goddesses for it.

As he prepared to climb down to the meadow, he heard the sheer racket he was making with all his tools clanking together in his pockets, and the creaking and squeaking from his sword and shield. Deciding not to risk getting caught, he removed his bandoleer and emptied his pockets, wincing when he accidentally dropped his Longshot. The chain-shooting thing-a-majig made a loud **PING** as it hit the slowly crumbling stone, but no one heard it, to his relief.

Taking a deep breath, he decided to forgo climbing down to the grass-covered ground and merely jumped. He hit the ground, rolling to absorb the impact and was on his feet in a mere half second. He saw hundreds of boot prints in the ground, evidence of a major search party, which only served to further confuse on him why Zelda hadn't sent any soldiers inside the temple. Perhaps she knew what he was up to. They _had_ parted on a rather obvious note, in Link's opinion, and he knew the princess wasn't stupid.

Perhaps…perhaps she was _helping_ him by diverting the attention of the soldiers elsewhere in the camp? He heard the indignant shouts of civilians being forced to show that they were not harbouring any dead bodies inside their tents, and Link felt a small pang of regret that he was causing them so much trouble…

…but then again, had they not caused him much trouble by almost solely relying on him to save Hyrule? He shook his head and crept up to the tent, approaching the hole he had cut into Zelda's room some hours before. Light flooded out from the small slit, but he couldn't hear talking or breathing from the room within.

Cautiously, he peeked inside, making sure that he was not going to run in on Zelda changing or some other equally embarrassing situation. To his _immense_ relief, she was not there, nor anyone else. Slowly creeping to the hallway he was now getting so intimately acquainted with, he was surprised to find that he could not hear a single voice that did not appear to come from down the stairs, in the main camp.

The command tent was empty. Surely that was a tactical nightmare? What if a spy had entered the camp while this fruitless search was going on and stole all of Zelda's plans for any eventual attacks on Ganondorf and his armies? Granted, how a spy would gain access to this place now that Sprout was shielding it, he didn't know, but the principle still remained.

The room where Sheik had laid was warm now, Zelda having undoubtedly released the spell that kept it chilled. Looking around, Link's eyes searched for the one object he needed. He grinned when he spotted it leaning against the wall. He wished he had thought of bringing it the first time he came through here, but he had been too engrossed in apologising to Sheik's nonresponsive form. Gripping it, he slid Terra out of its sheath, looking at his own reflection in the cold steel. He knew the Sheikah within couldn't answer, but Link whispered anyway.

"I'm sorry, but we really need your help."

Then he stood up and sheathed the sword, quickly making his way out of the tent the way he came. He could hear footsteps coming up the stone staircase, and he knew that if he was caught with one of Sheik's swords in hand, there would be questions to answer. He heard the voice of Zelda, but could not make out her words. Her tone, though, left no questions about her mood. She was worried. Feeling another pang of regret, Link threw Terra up on the ledge and began to climb, wondering why he in his stupidity had left his Longshot up there.

* * *

The entire room was bathed in the blue light as Link descended the staircase to where Vorpheus was clearly struggling. He was drenched with sweat, his now-grey, matte hair wet and slick, sticking to his forehead. His face seemed to have grown much older in the short time Link was gone, making the Hero wonder if the continued use of magic was slowly but surely turning the man into a withered husk of what he head once been.

The warlock spotted him as he approached, giving him a grimace that seemed to be halfway between a smile of relief and a sneer of annoyance. "Took ya long enough," he groaned. He noticed the sword Link was holding. "I thought you said you were coming back with a soul."

"I have a soul right here," Link said, holding Terra aloft. "A Sheikah named Terra put part of his spirit inside. Will it be enough?"

The sphere of light Vorpheus was holding over Sheik's chest shrunk slightly as the warlock motioned for Link to give him the sword. The Hero did so, and then stepped back.

"Huh," said Vorpheus. "This isn't even half of a soul, if the energy signature is anything to judge by." He moaned and redoubled his effort in what seemed to be keeping Sheik's soul in place by his body. "Also, I think I know why it's so difficult holding him in place," the warlock said, referring to Sheik. "He's got one foot in Hyrule…and another in Twilight, it seems."

Again, the Hero wondered why Sheik didn't want to come back. Surely he wasn't mad at Link for not interfering soon enough? Did Sheik just want to go to Twilight, his 'real' home? "Will it work?" Link asked again, looking worriedly from Vorpheus to Sheik.

"I don't know, I'll just have to try!" shouted Vorpheus. A wind had started to blow inside the otherwise sealed hall. Link felt his skin tingle, a tell-tale sign of a massive magical discharge. The warlock was expending a large amount of energy just keeping Sheik in place, and he was worried that the _very_ senior man was going to exhaust himself before he could do anything. With a thumb, Vorpheus loosed Terra in its sheath, and in one, smooth motion, threw it into the air. Terra slid out of the sheath and was caught by the hilt by Vorpheus. Link caught the falling scabbard. Then the warlock closed his eyes, his lips moving in what seemed to be a silent conversation with someone, complete with arguments and concessions.

Suddenly, his eyes opened, and he looked at Link. "The spirit agrees…although have doubts it will be powerful enough to keep your friend in place since it is so fractured and weakened."

"As you said, you'll just have to try," Link replied, eliciting a small grin from the man.

"Very well," said Vorpheus and looked at the blade, which had small arcs of electricity travelling up and down the blade already. "Hope you're ready, Terra." What he did next shocked Link, leaving the Hero unable to move. Vorpheus plunged Terra into Sheik's chest, through the blue sphere hovering erratically above it. A piercing, white flash exploded from the contact, and Link was blinded. All sounds but those of his and Vorpheus' breathing were muted. Then the light was replaced by darkness. Link tried to say something to Vorpheus, but could not even form the words. He tried again and again, and the only thing he could say was:

"Vorph—"

* * *

_What's wrong with me? Why…can't I move? Where…where am I?_

It was so…difficult to keep thinking straight. Every time he seemed to get a grasp around a thought, or a statement, or a question, it seemed to just…slip out of his grip. Something was trying to pull him in three different directions at once, and he wanted to scream, but was unable to. His chest hurt, his head hurt, his eyes hurt…not that it mattered since he could not see.

Breathing. He didn't know if he was breathing or not. He couldn't draw a breath, but his lungs did not ache like one would expect them to do after receiving no air. He could feel…nothing. No wind, no touch, no…nothing. He could not move. He didn't even know if he had any limbs with which to do so.

_What…is happening?_

The last thing he could remember…he remembered a pair of burning, red eyes, staring into his very being, sneering and laughing at him, cold lips seizing his in an unyielding, violating kiss that seemed to be meant to defile him in the very worst way.

Then a voice…a strong, familiar, comforting voice…shouting in warning. The other had sneered, and then…there was nothing. Who were they? Who was _he_? It was all so confusing, his mind seemingly melting together into a pool of sentience that was trapped inside its own mental prison, sliding continuously into the sea of conscience…

_Not…even my…analogies make…sense…_

It was a small comfort, joking to himself when able to. How long had he been here? It felt like thousands upon thousands of years…if not millions. Or maybe it was a mere five minutes? Maybe ten. He could have been here for an eternity, and it would could just have been like a second to him.

_I…don't want to be…here…_

_Please…let me out…_

_Please…_

_**Here…** _

_Who…are…you?_

_**You know who I am. Listen to my voice, Sheik.** _

_You sound…familiar…_

_**Yes. We know each other quite well, even though our friendship was cut sooner than I had wanted it to be.** _

_I…know who you are…_

_**Yes.** _

_T…Terra?_

_**It's me, Sheik. You are confused.** _

_I'm…confused…_

_**You don't know where you are.** _

_I…don't…know…_

_**I'm here to help you, but you need to cooperate, if you are going to return to life without facing…problems.** _

… _life? I'm…dead?_

_**You have been dead for over two days, Sheik.** _

_Two…days?_

_**But do not worry. You will live again, which is why I am here…although there will be a price to pay.** _

_Price?_

_**Yes…I would explain it now, but I am afraid we are running out of time. Suffice to say that you and I will be…partnering up once again. Now, take my hand, Sheik.** _

_I can't…see you…_

_**Yes, you can. You just need to concentrate. Concentrate on my voice, and ignore the calls of your homes.** _

_I…can't…_

_**Yes. You. Can. Concentrate, Sheik, concentrate.** _

_I…_

_**Concentrate!** _

Slowly, an outline of a figure appeared in front of him, its edges invisible, but still there. The figure was reaching out its hand to him, but he still couldn't feel his body.

_**You can see me, Sheik…now try touching me…** _

He knew his arms were there. He knew his hands were there. He knew _he_ was there. With a groan, he tried to move. Agonising pain shot through him, causing him to cry out.

_**The pain** _ _**is not real. Ignore it!** _

_It hurts…_

_**It is not real. Pain is just a feeling, easily ignored and degraded. Take my hand.** _

Again, he tried to move, only to have the searing lance of pain once again spearing through, spreading through his…

_My body…_

He could feel it now. The flexing of his muscles, the slackening and tightening of his tendons, the grinding of joints… With tremendous effort, he sat up, having not realised that he was lying down before. The figure before him wavered, as if a massive source of heat was blocking the way between them. Sheik's muscles screamed in protest, but he proved to be the more stubborn one. With a groan of determination, he shot his arm out; aiming to grab at the figure's outstretched hand. He missed, falling a few inches short. Suddenly, the figure's hand grasped around his wrist, and another bout of searing pain filled him from head to toe, eliciting an agonised scream from the young Sheikah.

_**Bear with it, Sheik, bear with it…** _ _**soon; you will be home…where you belong…** _

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 71**

* * *

When the light finally faded enough for Link to be able to see again, he was disappointed to find Sheik still lying lifelessly on the table. Miraculously, Vorpheus stabbing Sheik with Terra had not even left a mark, though the blade itself had broken in half, looking as if it had exploded, littering the room with shards of metal. Both Link and Vorpheus were unharmed, which left him slightly puzzled as to why they weren't perforated by the thousands of metal pieces, but there were far more pressing issues at hand.

He walked over to the table, stumbling on the way as his legs—which had fallen asleep—was suddenly roused. The warlock was stumbling away from Sheik, his form drenched and breathing heavily, just like he had been when healing the Sheikah's wound some hours earlier. Link looked down at Sheik, who showed no sign of life, and felt his good mood sinking into a bottomless pit. Terra hadn't been strong enough to lure Sheik back. He felt a scream trying to escape his lungs, but fought it down.

"It didn't work," he said quietly, rubbing his eyes in order to stall the tears he knew were going to be making their way down his cheeks very soon. His last hope for his lover back…had turned out to be a dead end, _and_ Terra's spirit had been wasted in the process.

"Now, now," said Vorpheus from his spot on the floor. The old man didn't seem to have strength enough to stand. From what Link could see, the warlock actually looked his age for once. "If you'll be a dear and help me up from this cold floor, I will inspect."

He held out a hand, which Link grabbed and pulled the old man to his feet, grunting when he finally realised just how heavy Vorpheus' armour was. Vorpheus, still breathing hard and sweating like a pig, made his way to the table and looked down at the still Sheikah. He looked in his journal for a few seconds, then turned his attention back on Sheik. Removing a gauntlet, he held his index and middle fingers against Sheik's neck, just behind his lower jaw bone. He made a grunt.

"There is a pulse, although still weak," he said, offering the Hero a smile, which lifted Link's spirits slightly. If there was pulse, there was life. Link was about to voice his relief when Vorpheus held up a hand. The old man leaned down, holding his cheek just above Sheik's mouth. A small smile spread on the warlock's lips. "He's breathing, as well."

Vorpheus tried to turn fully to Link, but suddenly found himself with an armful of Hero. "Thank you," Link whispered. "Thank you so much…"

Smiling to himself, Vorpheus patted Link's head like a grandfather would, returning the hug right afterwards. "It was my pleasure, Hero of Time. I could see how much he means to you…not to mention that there was a clear benefit for me in all this as well. Now," he said and pushed Link slightly away, frowning when he noticed that the Hero was crying. "Hmph, there really is no need for tears, Hero."

"Yes, there is," Link said, wiping them away with a sleeve. He stroked Sheik's cheek with his hand, smile growing when he felt warmth starting to return to the skin. "You saved my most precious person in the world…and I am forever in your debt."

Clearing his throat, Vorpheus shook his head. "No need for debts, Hero. Just get me an audience with your princess, and we'll call it even."

Link didn't answer, but Vorpheus knew that the Hero was a man—boy—of his word.

"When will he wake up?" asked Link, wanting so badly to kiss Sheik, but resisted the urge to preserve the decency.

"Hard to say, Hero," said Vorpheus as he slammed his journal shut and stuffed it down his cuirass, making adjustments all the way. "Dying and being resurrected are traumatic experiences. At the moment, his body is getting used to performing vital tasks such as circulating air and blood around his system. The next step will be for the soul to reassert its presence and…well, 'connecting' with the brain again, making it work. Basically, he needs to take back control over it, and that can take as little as an hour or up to a month. It all depends on how stubborn and strong of will he is."

"Heh, Sheik's the most stubborn guy I know," said Link, looking fondly down at the now-visibly breathing Sheikah. "I know he's not going to let something as trivial as this stop him."

"Well, I hope you are right, Hero," said Vorpheus. He picked up the remains of Terra the blade. There really was nothing left of the thin, curved sword. Only the hilt and part of the circle guard remained along with just a tiny sliver of steel. "This sword is pretty much done for," he said, mostly to himself. "Though I believe it can be re-forged…with much time, naturally."

With that, the two conscious people in the room fell silent, both lost in their thoughts. The warlock made his way to the wall where Link had sat earlier and sank to his rump, leaning the back of his head against the cool stone behind him. Link remained at Sheik's side, too excited and happy to move. Too exhausted to move as well, really. The bout of waiting and sudden excitement had sapped all his strength away, even the extra boost of energy he had received from Vorpheus.

"We're finally together again, Sheik," he whispered. "Finally…"

"If you don't mind, Hero," said the warlock from his place at the wall. "I think I shall take a nap. Wake me up if there are any problems, eh?" He didn't wait for Link to acknowledge him, as loud snores issued forth right after he finished the sentence. He could sleep for as long as he'd like, in Link's opinion, he had earned it. Hell, he'd carry the heavily armoured man to Zelda right now if it wasn't for his own exhaustion.

* * *

Link wasn't sure for how long he stood there, just watching his lover peacefully coming back to his own. Sheik's pale skin was slowly but surely gaining colour, although the Sheikah had always been on the paler side of the spectrum. His hair, which had hung lazily and messily from his head, seemed to become more and more vibrant, as well as gaining a certain…spring? Whatever it was, Sheik's hair looked more like it had done when he had been alive the first time.

The first time…

It was an odd thing to think, Link knew, but it was also true. What was he going to tell Sheik? Did his lover even _remember_ what had happened in the chambers under them? Would Sheik even know that he had been dead? Perhaps the Sheikah would just think he fell asleep… No, Link thought and shook his head. Sheik had clearly been awake after Link's shadow had cruelly stabbed Sheik with its sword, so his lover would certainly know he hadn't fallen asleep.

Another loud snore echoed in the room, and Link had to stifle a laugh. As much as he respected Vorpheus now, the very old man still insisted on embarrassing himself at every given moment. But then, he _was_ very old, and old people most _assuredly_ needed their beauty sleep, at least from what he had seen in Hyrule.

Everything felt…right, now. The knowledge of the dreary situation of Hyrule did not drag Link down at all, for he knew that together with Sheik, he could do anything. Ganondorf would fall, and the land would be free. And his shadow…Link was personally going to make that monster's last hours of existence as miserable as he possibly could.

He was just about to start making up plans for what he was going to do with his darker half when a strangled cough spluttered from Sheik. Link quickly put a hand on the Sheikah's shoulder. A whole series of dry, racking coughs shook Sheik's frame, although he remained unconscious as ever. The old table creaked dangerously, and Link hoped that Sheik's coughing wasn't going to break it. That would be funny to explain later, he thought, doing his best to keep Sheik still.

Suddenly, seemingly without any intermediary stages, Sheik was sitting up, still coughing like he was trying to hack up a lung, his eyes wide. His coughs sounded more like choked screaming now.

"Sheik!" Link yelled, trying to get his lover's attention, but Sheik's eyes kept staring ahead, right into the stone wall. "Sheik, can you hear me?" Link asked, looking into his lover's eyes, gasping when he realised that Sheik was still unconscious. His eyes were staring, but not seeing.

The squeaking of armour behind him told Link that Vorpheus had woken up and was trying his best to get to his feet. Within seconds, the old man was by Link's side, studying Sheik's face carefully, holding a hand against his chest. A small light glowed between the warlock's fingers, and Sheik's cough stilled, though he still remained upright and staring.

"Huh, that was a more violent reaction than I expected," said Vorpheus as he continued studying Sheik, taking his pulse again and making sure he was breathing calmly.

"Wha…what?" asked Link, still reeling from the event.

"If my assumption is correct, I think they just kick-started his brain," said Vorpheus. "As of right now, I believe he is in control again, though it will probably take a while for him to start moving and talking."

"And the coughing?" asked Link, not liking the blank expression on his lover's face. It was deeply unsettling. Come to think of it, Link couldn't ever remember such an empty expression on his face. It reminded him of the faces of ReDeads…blank, unchanging and empty eye sockets couple with faces frozen in fear… He shuddered, waiting for the warlock's answer.

"I believe it was a confrontation between the forces of his involuntary, automatic muscle movements, in this case breathing, and his attempt to take control of it. Obviously, his body wasn't going to take this lying down—literally—and fought back, which resulted in this violent coughing fit. I merely calmed him down."

"But why isn't he…you know, lying down?" asked Link as he tried to push Sheik's back down to the table surface. The Sheikah refused to budge, however, and remained upright, looking remarkably like an L in profile…

"There is nothing to worry about, Hero," said Vorpheus. "The previous two cases of resurrection I was involved in had the exact same results. To be honest, this one's recovery is remarkably speedy. He must have incredible fortitude."

"Sounds like Sheik, alright," said Link.

"We should probably leave him alone for now, though. I am not sure how he is going to react to rejoining us here in the land of the living. Hopefully, Terra will calm him down long enough for us to…explain things to him," said Vorpheus. "You look tired, you should probably res—"

That's all he was able to say before the entire room shook, dust and pebbles hailing from the ceiling. Both Link and Vorpheus fell to the floor. Sheik's table didn't move, however, and the Sheikah remained blissfully unaware of the reeling room. The tail end of a loud booming sound reached their ears. Link quickly got to his feet, immediately making sure Sheik was okay. Then he went to help Vorpheus, who was in no condition to lift the several hundred pounds of steel he was clad in.

"What was that?" asked Link, worried that there could be some sort of repercussion for bringing Sheik back.

"I'm not sure," replied Vorpheus, thanking Link after finally having steadied himself on his feet. He listened for a few seconds, still able to hear the vibrations in the rock around them. "It felt like the shockwave of a much larger explosion…felt like it came from close by the temple."

"So…that had nothing to do with what we've done here?" asked Link, wanting to be absolutely sure.

"Something else entirely," said Vorpheus. "To be honest, it felt like a magical discharge…like someone trying to take down a building…or a gate."

Link felt his blood run cold. "We're under attack," he said, slowly turning his head to look at the entrance to the temple. "The camp is under attack…and all my weapons are outside." He cursed himself mentally for leaving his tools on the broken bridge by Zelda's tent.

"It appears so," agreed Vorpheus. He too was looking at the entrance. "And whoever's using the magic is getting closer to this place. I can feel her."

"Her?" asked Link.

"Yes, her," replied Vorpheus. "I don't know who it is, but she is powerful. Might I make a suggestion?" he asked and turned to Link, who was quickly looking back and forth between Sheik and the entrance. "I can look after your…friend," the warlock said.

Almost regretfully, Link began to head for the exit. "I'll just see what's going on," he said, looking back at Vorpheus. "Please, protect Sheik." He ran up the stairs disappeared outside, leaving Vorpheus alone in the silence and torchlight.

The warlock sighed. "I'll do my best, Hero."

* * *

The entire Sacred Forest Meadow was covered in thick, dark smoke. The screams of men, women and children could be heard all the way up to the temple. The heavy tang of metal lay in the air, making it difficult to breathe, difficult not to throw up. Link ran as fast as he could towards his weapons, hoping that no one had seen them and decided to claim them as a prize. Luckily, the Master Sword, the Mirror Shield and all his tools were lying there untouched. As he strapped his weapons back on his person, Link tried to look at the maze, where he could hear the screams and the tell-tale sounds of sword meeting sword. A fire burned brightly close to where he supposed the main gate was, but the smoke made it incredibly difficult to see. He climbed down from the broken bridge and hurried inside the tent, remembering that Zelda had come up the stairs just after he had gotten Terra back to Vorpheus.

The tent was empty. Not a guard, princess nor servant in sight. Link's eyes widened with worry. Had Zelda been captured? No, he decided. There seemed to be no signs of struggle inside the tent. Some chairs had been knocked over, but that could just as easily have happened because their occupants had rapidly risen from their seats. There were no scratches in the floor, and every piece of paper on the massive meeting table were immaculately and neatly arranged.

There was only one conclusion, then. Zelda had gone to meet the enemy head-on. Link sighed and stormed out of the tent, stopping briefly at the top of the stairs. The billowing clouds of smoke made his eyes water, and it was difficult to draw breaths without coughing. He ran down the stone steps, noticing that Kaura's tent remained untouched, though the doctor herself and Malon were nowhere to be seen. He wondered where they were, hoping they were okay.

Chaos engulfed the labyrinth the second he stepped inside. There were wounded soldiers and civilians everywhere, many being carried here by soldiers covered in blood. Link ran up to one of the carriers and pulled on his arm to get his attention.

"What happened?!" Link half-yelled, trying to make himself heard over the din of battle. The soldier was looking at him with a strange, empty gaze.

"Ganondorf found us," the soldier said, pulling himself away from Link and running back into the labyrinth.

Link was about to charge into the labyrinth himself, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He whirled around, only to come face to face with Malon. The former rancher looked frightened out of her mind, something Link had never seen before. Sure, Malon was no warrior, but she was a remarkably strong girl.

"Link…I…" she said, unable to come up with any other words.

"Malon, what happened? Where's Kaura?" Link asked, noticing that the strict doctor was nowhere to be seen around her apprentice.

"She…she went into the labyrinth after the princess, but…they haven't come back," Malon answered, her hands shaking. Link noticed she was holding a dagger, surely some sort of last defence. "She left me in charge of the wounded…but…but I can't…"

"Malon, listen to me," said Link, worried that the girl was going to slip into shock. "The wounded need your help. I know you can do it, you're a great doctor! Don't worry, I'll find Kaura and the princess and bring them back here!"

Somehow, to Link's surprise, his poor attempt at cheering Malon up worked, and the girl's expression changed into one of steel and determination. Nodding, she went wordlessly to the nearest wounded soldier, who had a large gash in his leg, and began tending to him. Link looked at her for a while, hoping that he had helped. Then he took a long look into the labyrinth, wondering where to search first. It would be difficult to see in there, he knew, not only because of the amount of chaos and fighting in there, but also because of the sheer size that Sprout had grown it to. He was just about to run inside when he noticed the ladder leaning against a wall, and slapped himself on the forehead. How could he have forgotten?

Surprisingly, there was no one up on the labyrinth walls. The smoke was thicker here, but the vantage point offered Link a much better view of what was happening below. The Hyrulian soldiers seemed to have established some sort of perimeter, herding the frightened civilians behind them in order to keep them out of harm's way. Link tried to gauge the enemy's strength, but all he could see was a black tide flowing into the labyrinth through the main gate. He jumped across a gap, desperately looking for Kaura and Zelda while also keeping an eye out for the supposedly female sorceress that had breached the gate.

It took him several minutes before he noticed the royal banner of Hyrule, which was usually carried by designated standard-bearers, being held high close to where the main fighting front seemed to be. Link quickly made his way there, feeling his breath coming in shorter and shorter as he jumped across the many gaps. He was so tired, and it couldn't have been at a worse time. It was strange, he noticed on the way. There seemed to be no archers involved on the enemy's side of the fight, only melee-equipped soldiers. They all wore the same black armour that the soldiers at Lake Hylia had worn. As he approached the Hyrule standard, the air got thicker with the smell of blood and smoke, producing a nauseating odour that almost overcame Link's senses.

Just as he came to look down at the royal guard—the only ones who were allowed to carry this particular standard—Link immediately noticed Zelda. She was still clad in her leather armour, and seemed to be coordinating the defence. Her sword was covered in blood as well as her face, which Link hoped wasn't her own. Just behind the small bubble of soldiers that stood around Zelda to protect her, Link saw Kaura, tending to critically wounded soldiers. She too was carrying a blade, which was also covered in the red life fluid.

Link carefully let himself down, hoping not to startle any of the soldiers and provoking an attack. One of the royal guards noticed him and yelled something Link couldn't hear clearly over the noisy fighting. He had called for Zelda, apparently, as the princess suddenly appeared among the soldiers, an expression anger on her face. Link braced himself and approached her.

"Link, where have you been?" she asked. The battle around them was so loud that she had to lean in close and yell into his ear.

"It's a long story!" he yelled back. "I'll tell you later! What happened here?"

"A small advance force of Ganondorf's soldiers found us!" she answered. "They blew up the main gate and began attacking the camp! We were able to relocate the civilians behind the frontline, and we're holding them off for now!"

Link was about to answer, but was interrupted by a Hyrulian soldier—a general, by the look of his armour and age—who came running over. "Your Highness!" he called. "I strongly urge you to retreat to your tent! We can deal with this rabble ourselves!"

Zelda tried to protest. "But, I—"

"No buts, Your Highness!" yelled the general. He turned his attention on Link. "Hero, please escort the princess to her tent! If she dies here, the rebellion is over!"

Link looked at Zelda, who rubbed her eyes tiredly in defeat. "Royal Guards!" she called to the bubble of soldiers around her. "To me!" She looked at Link. "Come on, Link!"

He wasn't even able to speak to Kaura before he was all but pulled after Zelda, back in the direction he had come. The labyrinth's corridors were heavily crowded, and progress was slow, but Link felt relieved that they were headed away from the fighting. He didn't know of how much use he could be in this fight.

Soon, they were back at the stone steps that led up to the temple. Everyone were breathing heavily, the guards most of all. Not a surprise, considering the amount of weight they all bore in their armour and weapons. The standard-bearer had fallen behind, and the banner was nowhere to be seen. Just as well, Link thought. That way, none of the enemy soldiers would see where Zelda was. Not that any of the enemy soldiers would make their way up here, of course. The fighting seemed to have stabilised now, and the Hyrulian soldiers were slowly but surely pushing Ganondorf's soldiers back. As they went upstairs, Zelda kept looking back in worry, clearly upset about having to leave her soldiers back there. But the general had been right, in Link's opinion. Zelda was the heart and soul of the Hyrulian Remnant, and if she died here, the will to fight would surely be zapped from everyone else.

The meadow was still empty save for them, to Link's relief. All they had to do now was to wait for the Hyrulian soldiers to defeat the enemy, and all would be well. Hopefully, at least. There was something about this whole situation that just seemed…wrong.

"How did they find us?" Link asked Zelda. The princess had sunk into a resting kneel, her eyes firmly fixed upon the labyrinth, watching and listening to the battle below. She blinked and looked up at Link upon hearing the question.

"I don't know, Link," she answered. "I thought that the Deku Sprout could keep them out…but somehow, these soldiers were able to not only enter the Lost Woods, but actually made their way to this place. They even blew up the gate."

Link remembered Vorpheus' talk of the female magic user who had done this, and suddenly felt nervous. What if she made her way up here? He wasn't sure of how good Zelda's personal guards were at fighting magic users, and Link's victory over Vorpheus had been a mere fluke. He wasn't sure if he could pull any other lucky manoeuvres like that one again.

* * *

Vorpheus shuddered as he felt another energy discharge. There was something…off about this magic user. She—that's what seemed to be most likely—used spells that were far above her level, and continued using them for much longer than any healthy person should have been able to. And she wasn't using them on the battle that was definitely raging outside, either. The warlock scratched his chin, wondering what all this meant.

A shuffling sound made him look up, and he saw that the Sheikah's posture had relaxed considerably now. This made him smile. Progress was clearly being made in the reassertion process. Much faster than he had expected to. The Hero had been right about this one's fortitude. Vorpheus picked up his mace, wondering if he was going to have to use it today. If that magic user found them down here, he wasn't sure if he could defend them both in his diminished state. The resurrection process had, as always, taken so much more out of him than he had expected. It had not helped that this Sheikah's soul had been particularly stubborn about staying where he was.

A small, weak cough came from the Sheikah, and Vorpheus looked up once again. The young man was looking around with tired, confused eyes, breathing heavily, clearly exhausted from his ordeal. His red eyes fastened on the warlock, who did his best to seem non-threatening, even going as far as spending a little energy on making his hair light-green. Surely there'd be nothing threatening about that.

"You're awake, I see," he said, trying to sound friendly. "Your name is Sheik, correct?" There could always be memory loss coupled with such a process, Vorpheus knew, and he hoped for dear life that this one's were intact. Or the Hero would have his head.

Sheik didn't answer, only kept staring at the warlock. The white slit in his eye was unnerving to Vorpheus.

"My name is Vorpheus," the warlock tried. "I am the one who has brought you back…although with the assistance of a couple of friends." Of course, he didn't consider the Hero or the helping spirit friends. How could he? They had been enemies not long ago. But if it put Sheik more at ease, then he was all for saying as such. "How are you feeling?"

"…thirsty…" Sheik answered, his voice cracking.

"Thirsty? Not a big surprise there," the warlock said and picked up the bottle of water he had placed underneath the table. He uncorked it and handed it to Sheik who, with shaking hands, drank greedily from it. Vorpheus was surprised to hear no coughing. The other two he resurrected had been particularly clumsy and ended up with inhaling at the same time as drinking, resulting in a cough that could easily have rivalled those of dying, old men.

Sheik finished the last of the water and nearly dropped the bottle. Vorpheus caught it and gently put it down on the floor. Sheik was still looking around with confusion. "Where…am I?" he asked, his voice sounding much better now.

"You're in the Forest Temple," replied Vorpheus.

"Forest Temple?" asked Sheik. He was rubbing his chest, clearly feeling a bit of sting from his injury there. "Why?"

"This was the best place for the ritual," answered Vorpheus. "The Hero and I—"

"Hero?" asked Sheik, suddenly looking up at Vorpheus with wide eyes. "Where is he?"

"Outside, I imagine," said the warlock. "The camp is under attack—"

"Sword," interrupted Sheik.

"Pardon?"

"I need a sword."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 72**

* * *

The battle raged on. Though Ganondorf's forces seemed to have been in full retreat while Link, Zelda and Zelda's personal guards climbed the stairs to the meadow, they now seemed to be attacking in full force. It was still difficult to see anything. The enemy had set fire to several of the surrounding trees, and the grass on top of the labyrinth's walls was smouldering. The air was thick and tasted of metal. The screams of the charging soldiers seemed to grow to a deafening volume whenever the enemy made another charge.

Link hoped that the soldiers Zelda had gathered in the meadow would be able to fight them off. There was no way the thirteen current occupants of the meadow could fight off an entire army by themselves. For this reason, Link hoped Zelda was right about the enemy being only a splinter group rather than the real deal. And then there was the magic user Vorpheus had mentioned. Where was she? The Hero had expected her to make her way to the meadow by now, but she didn't even seem to take part in the fighting going on below.

Zelda was restless, constantly shifting her weight from one leg to the other, fiddling with her sword, looking anxiously down at the labyrinth where her people were fighting…and dying. She kept giving Link these glances as well, as if imploring him to do something about the situation, to which he could only helplessly shake his head. What could he do? He was about to pass out from exhaustion, and there was little he could do against such a large enemy force.

The eleven remaining soldiers of the Royal Guard had positioned themselves so that they covered Zelda from every angle, as well as placing two guards at the top of the stairs, the only conceivable point of attack. Link rubbed his eyes, both because of fatigue and the smoke. He _so_ wanted to go back inside the temple and look after Sheik, but he couldn't just leave Zelda either…

He picked the Ocarina of Time out of his pocket and looked at Zelda, who was now pacing back and forth in front of the stairs. He supposed that if things went awry, he could give her the flute and have her teleport to safety. But would she even be willing to leave? If it hadn't been for her guards, Link knew that the young princess would gladly throw herself into battle in order to protect her subjects.

Unable to take any more of her restlessness, Link walked over to her and put a gentle hand on her shoulder, startling the blonde-haired girl. "You need to calm down…stressing yourself isn't gonna help if we're attacked up here."

Zelda nearly scoffed, but nodded in understanding. "I know, Link, I know…but…I just can't." She seemed to be putting some effort into calming herself, but Link saw that every time she seemed to have it, something—a scream, a clang of metal—jerked her right back into the stressful mood. She looked back at her tent, and then at Link. She sheathed her sword and grabbed Link's arm, pulling him towards the tent. "We'll be inside the tent!" she called to her guards, who acknowledged it with a chorus of: "Yes, Your Highness!"

One of the guards detached himself from his position and followed them. When Zelda gave him a look, he stopped, looking flustered. "I'm just going to guard the entrance, Your Highness!" he said.

"Very well," said the princess and continued pulling the unresisting Link with her, the Hero knowing fully well that struggling would be useless judging by the steel grip she had on his tunic. She led Link into the room where Sheik had been kept, and the princess gave him an accusing glance. "I can only guess that you're behind this," she said.

Link scratched his neck. There really was no point in lying. When Zelda saw what Link had done, she would probably be too busy fussing over Sheik to yell at him. But still… "Yeah, I guess you could say that," he said.

"What did you do to him, Link?" Zelda asked, crossing her arms. She looked annoyed. "I knew you were up to something when I was first told he had disappeared, and I even led the search party away from the scene so you wouldn't get caught. But now you're here again, sans Sheik." She grimaced. "Where is he?" she repeated.

Link stepped forward, touching the now-warm table where Sheik had laid a few hours before. He didn't want to reveal too much yet. Even though Sheik was alive, there was no guarantee that he would be…well, Sheik. Vorpheus hadn't said anything, but he could easily read the man's face whenever he had checked Sheik's pulse or breathing. He turned around and faced Zelda, trying to keep his expression calm and collected. "He's safe," the Hero said.

"Safe?" asked Zelda, raising a finely plucked eyebrow. "I am afraid I have to ask you to elaborate."

Link sighed. How was he going to explain this? "Well," he began, "the thing is—Look out!"

A shadow had detached itself from the wall behind Zelda, and had slowly been moving into striking position, blade poised to stab the princess from behind. Link charged forward, pushing Zelda out of the way, and tackled the attacker. They crashed to the floor—hard—and Link heard the attacker give a loud groan, and hands were scrambling for the weapon they had dropped. Link drew his hand back and was about to smash the masked attacker's face in, but suddenly found himself with a foot firmly slammed into his stomach, launching him away. He tried to keep his balance, but started falling backwards. Just as he hit the floor he shifted his weight backwards, resulting in a roll that quickly brought him to his feet in front of Zelda, who had drawn her own blade.

The attacker cursed—with a highly masculine voice that did not match the thin, almost skeletal frame—and charged forward with a raised dagger. Link felt sluggish, and did his best to intercept the attack. However, the attacker was faster and spun out of Link's reach, continuing on his path towards Zelda.

The princess was prepared. With a single step forward, Zelda raised her blade and parried the attacker's dagger away, tripping him at the same time. The lithe, masked man stumbled forward, but did not fall. But that was all Zelda needed. With a shout, she thrust her blade forwards, stabbing the man in the back. The attacker gave a shriek of pain, but Zelda only grabbed his shoulder and dug the sword deeper. It didn't take long for him to die. The attacker fell with a wet thump, his blood spilling over the floor.

"Royal Guard, attack!"

The shout had come from the outside, and both Zelda's and Link's heads jerked in the direction of the exit. Without a single glance at the masked assailant, they raced outside.

The guards had formed into what Link guessed was supposed to be a line of defence…however, since there were only eleven soldiers, the line came somewhat short. At least a dozen enemy soldiers had made their way up the stairs, hooting and screaming with delight when they spotted the Hero and the princess.

"How did they get here?" Zelda asked no one in particular.

"They came over the walls, Your Highness," answered one of the guards. The enemy soldiers had formed into a line as well, and both sides were now merely staring at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. The guard looked at his compatriots. "Don't let them get to the princess, no matter what!" he shouted, to which the other guards answered with confirming yells. "Your Highness, I highly suggest you seek refuge inside the temple."

Shaking her head, Zelda wiped the blood of the masked assailant off her sword and stood next to the soldier. "No, I'll fight. These people will pay for what they have done."

Link drew his weapons and moved to stand next to her wordlessly. There really was nothing else to do. It's not like he could force her to escape. Zelda was stubborn, a trait she shared with another blond-haired castle-resident, and the Hero was not in the mood for getting into an argument about who fights who. Instead, he focused his energy on being able to fight, reminding himself to stay close to the princess.

"Big words from such a little girl," yelled one of the black-armoured soldiers of Ganondorf. He wore a horned helmet with the visor down, which gave his voice a certain metallic sound, and he wielded a large morning star, stained with the red blood of hapless victims from the labyrinth. Link hoped Malon hadn't been nearby when these men came over the walls. "Let's see if you can back them up! Charge!"

It was like watching a wall flying at you at high speeds. The heavy-looking armour didn't seem to weigh them down the slightest, and they were clearly fully rested and fit for fight. Zelda's guards, while no amateurs themselves, were clearly at a disadvantage as their armour was much heavier, not to mention the fact that they were already tired from the fight in the labyrinth. But the defenders outnumbered the attackers. Zelda ordered a charge herself, and the last line of defence charged forward with their princess at the spearhead.

Link wasn't exactly sure what happened in the first few seconds of the fight, but the sound of swords, shields and maces meeting each other in mortal combat was deafening. The Hero found himself facing a large man who clearly hadn't been able to fit inside a standard armour and was wearing a mismatched outfit based mostly on leather. However, with the ridiculous size of man and clothing, there also followed a ridiculous-sized weapon. The man wielded a halberd, one of the biggest Link had ever seen, with the precision and speed one would have expected from a simple hand-axe. The man—who wore no helmet, exposing a grizzled, scarred, chunky mess of a face—grinned as he swung the gigantic weapon around in a high arc, clearly intending to cleave Link in twine. The Hero, however, had great experience evading such attacks, and dove out of the way.

Around him, the combatants seemed to be somewhat evenly matched. Every now and then, Link could hear a pained scream as someone fell and was finished off by their opponent, but it was impossible to know who as he had to keep his eyes on the giant in front of him. With another deep bout of laughter, the man swung the halberd again in a quick flurry that almost got Link in chest, but the Hero luckily managed to parry the blow, transferring the impact to the ground. He _felt_ the ground shake a little as the large blade smashed into the grass.

What to do, what to do. It was impossible to hit the man at the range Link was being kept in, the halberd easily reaching two meter's away from the enemy soldier. He had to keep dodging and dodging until he could find an opening and—

There!

The soldier attempted another cleaving blow, which Link once again dodged. The blade was driven deep into the grass, and the soldier had to use at least a couple of seconds to pull it out of the ground again. More than enough time for Link. With a roar, he brought the Master Sword down on the pole, easily cutting it apart, leaving the soldier unarmed. Or, seemingly unarmed, at least. He tried to draw a secondary weapon—a short word—from his hip, but it was too late. The last thing he ever saw was the angry face of Link and the shining steel of the Master Sword sweeping toward his neck.

The headless body of the soldier fell with a tremendous boom, said head rolling a few feet away before coming to a stop. Link felt disgusted, but reminded himself that he couldn't rest now. Turning his attention back on the rest of the group, he was dismayed to find that all but two of the Royal Guards had fallen. The remaining two were grouped around Zelda, with six of the enemy soldiers bearing down on them, including the morning star-wielding one. He rushed to intercept at least one of the attackers.

This one was an average-sized one, but he too wielded his weapon—a rapier—with skill equal to that of his fallen comrade. He flurried and feinted, scoring several minor cuts on Link's exposed form. He was simply too fast for Link to keep up with his sword and shield. There was something strange about this one, however. He kept a hand at his back in what looked to be a formal fencing position, suggesting that the man was anything but a regular foot soldier. It was impossible to see what he looked like, however, for he wore the same, anonymous armour as the rest of Ganondorf's armies. Link tried to block another strike, was tricked by the feint and suffered a stab to his thigh for it. Gritting his teeth, Link growled at the man.

"Goddesses be damned, fight fair!" he shouted.

The shout seemed to disturb the man somewhat. The rigidness of his stance lessened, and the grip on his weapon slackened. Link ran forward, knocking the sword out of the soldier's hand and rammed his shield into his helmet, denting it. When the man gave a groan and tried to get up again, Link slammed his shield into his head once more, knocking him out. Another scream to his left made him look up, and groan as he saw the last of the royal guard fall victim to the morning star, his head bashed in. Zelda finished another opponent, having stabbed him in the stomach with her sword, leaving him to bleed out in the grass.

There were two defenders left now, and four attackers. Both Link and Zelda were panting heavily and sweating profusely. Neither of them was in condition to fight. The horned soldier opened his visor, revealing a nightmarish, rotting face behind it. He grinned.

"Your guards are dead, Princess Zelda…surrender now, and Ganondorf the Great might go easy on ya." He looked at Link. "And it seems we have the Hero of Time here as well…hah, Ganondorf will be pleased."

"Damn you!" Link shouted and ran forward, ready to slice that grin off the soldier's face. The soldier, however, anticipated this and sidestepped away from Link's attack and slammed the hilt of his weapon into his stomach, knocking him backwards toward Zelda, who was loosing the grip on her sword. She had the beginnings of a black eye, Link noticed as she helped him up to a standing position again.

The soldier, who was obviously the leader of this illustrated bunch, laughed. "This is your final chance, Hero. Ganondorf the Great demanded the princess alive…but your condition did not matter."

The soldiers had moved into a half circle in front of them now, cutting off any chance of escape. It didn't matter, really. Link could barely stand, and Zelda seemed to have frozen—but not with fear, but anger. She glared at the enemy soldiers, undoubtedly cursing them from hell and back in her mind. Why didn't any of the Hyrulian soldiers down in the labyrinth come up to check up on their monarch?

Link said nothing, but spat at the soldier, who shrugged. He looked at one of his fellow comrades and motioned with his head at Link. "Disarm the girl…kill the Hero."

"With pleasure," growled the soldier and stepped forward, blood glistening on his blade. Link feebly tried to raise his sword so that he could at least have a fighting chance, but it was too heavy, as was his shield. Both sword and shield fell to the ground. The soldier stopped, surprised to see the Hero of Time give up. "Hah, this'll be easy!" he proclaimed and charged forward. Link closed his eyes, and waited.

"Is that so?" asked a voice behind them.

Link heard the **swish** of something flying past his ear at great speed, a **thunk** , some gurgling sounds and the sound of a heavily armoured body hitting the ground. He opened his eyes, and saw the dead soldier in front of him, a dagger sticking out from the impossibly small joint between the helmet and the cuirass. The voice had been familiar…

"I highly disagree."

Link could barely contain his grin as he turned around and saw the figure standing in the tent entrance. He was wearing the shirt Guilden had fetched for him, albeit with one sleeve ripped off and wrapped around his head to cover his face. The tight leather pants had been sliced up in strategic places to loosen them. His feet were bare, and his hair flowed in the wind that was slowly picking up. His eyes were glaring at the three remaining soldiers. Kazuya gleamed in the torchlight in his right hand, and a dagger was lazily being thrown up and down in his left hand.

Link smiled. "Took your sweet time."

"I needed weapons, Hero," replied Sheik.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 73**

* * *

An overwhelming sense of relief filled Link as he continued to stare at Sheik. It was one thing to see him breathing yet unconscious on a table, but to see him standing, talking, killing…well, maybe not killing, but standing and talking was great. The Sheikah was returning his gaze, but he seemed to be…conflicted, somehow. Then Sheik turned his head to look at Zelda, who was also staring at him, tears of what Link hoped was joy running down her cheeks.

"Sheik…" she said, her voice quivering.

Sheik nodded at her. "Princess," he said. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Y-yeah," she answered. She looked anything but. She had taken multiple hits during the fight, and the black eye was really setting in, a dark purple blotch spreading under her right eye. Link noticed that Sheik was staring at that wound in particular, and he could practically feel the anger radiating off the Sheikah.

"Who hit you?" Sheik asked, sweeping a glare over the three remaining enemy soldiers. "Which of these gutless, cowardly curs dared to lay a hand on Hyrule's rightful leader?" He looked at the soldier with the rotting face. "I don't know who you are, but what do you think gives you the right to strike someone so far above you, in all things?"

The nightmarish-looking soldier snarled and hefted his morning star, pointing it at Sheik, while at the same time barking at his soldier: "Kill them all!"

Sheik stepped in front of Link and Zelda, turning to look at the Hero. "Get the princess to safety. I will take care of these dogs." Link opened his mouth to protest, but was silenced by the Sheikah. "Don't argue, Hero. You are in no condition to fight right now." He turned back to the quickly approaching soldiers, bent down to jerk the dagger he had thrown out of the dead soldier's neck and waited.

Link wanted so badly to pick up the Master Sword and stand there with Sheik, but his lover was right. He was barely able to take the couple of steps required to bring him close to Zelda, and he nearly fell over when he tried to help her up and away from the fight. Her eyes had not left Sheik since he had arrived, and Link supposed that there would be hell to pay after her shock had worn over later. He pulled the unresisting princess back toward the entrance to the temple, hoping that he wouldn't have to climb up there.

"Don't let 'em escape!" shrieked the rotting soldier at his cohorts. "Kill the Sheikah!" Then he ran after his soldiers, who were just a few feet away from Sheik, who kept waiting. He fiddled with the pair of daggers in his hand, mentally debating on the merits of using them as opposed to slicing them to pieces with Kazuya. He came to a decision and looped both daggers around his fingers, spinning them around to gain momentum. Then he let them fly in a throw that seemed impossible to make.

The first dagger missed the first soldier, but sheared cleanly into the visor of the second, eliciting a shriek of pain. Reaffirming his grip on Kazuya, Sheik ran forward, meeting the first soldier head-on. The soldier tried to hit him with an overhead strike, but Sheik sidestepped and kicked the man in the chest, sending him stumbling backwards. Then he thrust Kazuya forward, neatly slicing through his armour and stabbing him in the chest. Just as he pulled his blade out of the body, the rotting soldier's morning star whirled through the air, missing Sheik's head by a few hairs' width.

The soldier was exceptionally skilled with his weapon, its considerable weight not bothering him the slightest as he launched strike after strike, forcing Sheik to dodge and block for his dear (regained) life. Seeing an opening, Sheik struck, scoring a hit to the soldier's thigh, though it did not penetrate the armour.

The opponents stepped away from each other, sizing each other up. The soldier was panting heavily. Sheik didn't even seem to have broken a sweat. There was en energetic spring in his step. He waited for the soldier's next strike. This man needed to suffer for what he had done to Zelda and her guards, whose bodies littered the meadow. He had been personally acquainted with many of them, and to see them like this… He shook his head.

"I suggest you surrender," he said, his voice neutral and controlled. "The princess might see fit to have mercy on you…despite all you have done." He gritted his teeth. Saying those words felt…wrong, especially when such an offer was given such a despicable man.

"Well, I don't really want to," replied the soldier between breaths. "You're all outnumbered, and there's just a matter of time before Ganondorf finds you…and when he does, the girl will _wish_ she had died here tonight!" He looked to where Zelda and Link had all but collapsed against the broken bridge's pillar. "Oh, I can only imagine what my lord will do to her…and the Hero, if I bring him back alive."

"You have just sealed your fate, then," said Sheik and struck. He launched a series of quick, precise strikes against the soldier, who was barely able to keep up to block them. It was not enough. Just as the morning star was brought up to block an incoming strike from the left, Sheik changed the direction and brought Kazuya in low, puncturing the man in a certain place where his legs met the rest of his body.

The soldier screamed, dropping his weapon so he could sink to his knees and cradle the wounded area. "You godsdamned piece of shit! You cut my—"

His shout was cut short by Kazuya slicing through his neck, separating his decomposing head from his rotting body. Blood squirted from the wound, staining the grass below the body a deep shade of dark, almost black blood. Sheik looked distastefully at the splatter on his sword and wiped it off in the grass before carefully returning Kazuya to its scabbard on his back.

"No one threatens the princess," he whispered. He turned around and walked over to Link and Zelda. They picked themselves up from the ground. Zelda reached him first, engulfing him in a hug that surely could have been used to crush someone's ribcage. At first, he seemed hesitant to return it, but slowly put his arms around Zelda, hugging her back.

"Sheik…I…" Again she tried to say something, but it ended up in a series of sobs. Sheik shook his head.

"No need for words, Zelda," he murmured. "I'm…sorry."

"For what?" asked Zelda, looking up at him with shining eyes.

"Never mind," he said, opening his eyes to look at Link, who was feeling an overwhelming urge to throttle the Sheikah and kiss him into oblivion. "Hero, you and I need to talk."

"Yeah," said Link, feeling deflated. "I guess we do."

"And it cannot wait," said Sheik. He looked at Zelda. "I need to speak with him in private…"

Nodding, Zelda detached herself from him and began to go over the fallen guards, closing their eyes and making them look somewhat peaceful.

Link and Sheik watched her for a while, neither of them sure of how to start the conversation. Link made what felt like a thousand false starts. Not that it mattered, for Sheik seemed to have quite a lot on his chest. In the form of a fist. It sounded like a whip crack as Link felt Sheik's punch connect with his jaw. Pain exploded in his face, and Link fell to the ground. He seemed to black out for a second, but began to rub his jaw and looked up at Sheik with an incredulous expression.

"What the hell?" he yelled.

"Do you have any idea of what you've done, Hero?" asked Sheik, glaring down at Link. "You resurrected me!"

"Yeah, I saved your life!" Link said. "Usually, people would be grateful for that!"

"Don't you understand?" asked Sheik. "By bringing me back to life, you've gone against fate." He shook his head. "Fate as decreed by the Goddesses…this will surely have consequences!"

Link slowly got to his feet, unable to believe what had just happened…and what had been said. "Is that all you have to say?" he asked. "'You've gone against the will of the Goddesses'? No 'thanks for saving me', no 'I love you', not even a 'good to see you again'?!" He was shouting at the end of that sentence, frustrated at Sheik's indifference.

"What's going on?" asked Zelda. She had heard the raised voices, not to mention the sound of the punch, and had rushed over to them. "Link? Sheik?"

"Nothing," said Link, turning away. He felt tears threatening to break the dam, and if there's _one_ thing he didn't want Sheik to see, it was the Hero crying over this.

"What?" the confused princess said. "Sheik, why did you hit Link?"

"I…" the Sheikah tried to explain, but didn't find the words. How could he thoroughly convey the message that Terra had given him.

"May I offer my views on things?" asked Vorpheus, suddenly appearing on the broken bridge, his hair still a violent shade of green. "I may be able to explain…"

"Who are you?" asked Zelda, her eyes automatically straying to the oddly-coloured hair of the warlock. Her hand slowly went for the hilt of her sword when she saw the mace he carried.

"No one special…other than the one responsible for that one's"—he pointed at Sheik—"continued living," Vorpheus answered. "Make some room, please," he said and climbed down from the bridge. He swayed a little on his feet, but his gaze was firmly fixed on the young princess. "My name is Vorpheus…Vorpheus the Immortal, if you want to get formal."

Zelda's eyes lit up in understanding. "You're the warlock who poisoned the lake," she said and drew her sword. "What have you done with my spies?"

"I haven't done a thing," said Vorpheus, raising his hands in defence. "The Hero was the one who released me from my prison inside the Deku Tree."

Zelda looked at the Hero. "Link? Is this true?"

"It was the only way to bring Sheik back," said Link, wiping his eyes to remove any signs of crying. "But I guess it was a mistake…"

A rousing cheer could be heard from the labyrinth. The Hyrulian soldiers had chased off the attackers, apparently. The battle was over, and Zelda's forces had come out the victors.

Sheik looked about to answer, but Vorpheus interrupted him.

"Listen, I know it has been a very…difficult day for all of us, and tempers are rising. I suggest that we go inside, have something to drink and calm down so I can expl—" He stopped, his eyes glazing over for a few seconds. "Oh, bugger," he whispered.

Sheik raised an eyebrow at the warlock. "Pardon?"

"I said bugger!" shouted Vorpheus. "Duck!"

Link had known the warlock for long enough to react immediately. In the corner of his vision, he saw Sheik grab Zelda and throw them both to the ground, his body covering hers. For a split second, it seemed that Vorpheus had pulled a joke, but then a deafening roar ripped his eardrums apart as something incredibly hot smashed into the broken bridge. The structure exploded violently, showering the meadow in slightly molten pieces of stone and debris, setting fire to Zelda's tent in the process. Link was barely able to look up before he felt someone grabbing the scruff of his tunic and pulling him away. He saw Vorpheus slowly standing up, his eyes staring in the direction the blast had come from. Sheik's hand firmly guided him to a small alcove-like overhang in the rock. Zelda was there too, he could hear her panting.

"What's goi—"Link tried.

"Shhh!" Sheik silenced him. "A powerful magic user came within inches of killing us all!"

Link was finally able to tear himself away from Sheik's grip and turned to look out at the meadow. Zelda's tent almost silently collapsed as the last of the cloth disappeared in a burst of flame, along with the small shack that served as the baths. Vorpheus was staring at a cloaked person standing in the middle of the meadow. The figure was quite short, but Link could feel a sort of…pressure emanating from it. Was this the magic user Vorpheus had talked about?

Speaking of the warlock himself, he was stepping forward, approaching the figure with a certain rigidness in his gait that Link had never seen before. His hair had changed back into a jet black shade, and the mace was firmly hefted, as if the sight of it would scare the newcomer away.

"So," said the warlock. "You've finally showed up. I have been waiting for you…ever since I heard the news of your survival."

The cloaked figure did not answer. Instead, it raised a hand, generated a fireball and threw it at Vorpheus, who deftly blocked it, sending it straight up into the sky. The figure tried this again, and the old man repeated his block.

"You know as well as I that such conjurer's tricks will not work on me," said Vorpheus firmly. He looked down at the ground, sighing heavily, and then he looked back up at the figure. "I was…hoping that you had ceased your foolish quest in wiping us from the face of the planet. Obviously, you have not. I am severely disappointed in you, Dehl."

The figure started, and then harshly tore the hood from its head, revealing the face of a young girl who could be no more than fourteen to fifteen years old. It was hard to see any details, but Link saw that her long hair—which reached well past her lower back—seemed alternate colour every couple of inches, resulting in a very odd-looking rainbow of colours cascading down her back. Her face was locked in a sneer, her eyes glaring at the old man in front of her.

" _You_ are disappointed in _me_?" she asked with a harsh voice that clearly did not belong to such a young girl. "Old man, look at yourself! I thought joining forces with Ganondorf would make you stronger, but the only thing I see in front of me now is the same old, weak, pathetic geezer that tried to kill me back in Termina!" She made another fireball and threw it at Vorpheus, who sidestepped it this time. He was showered with glowing rocks from behind, but his eyes were firmly fixed on the young girl in front of him.

"Five years, Vorpheus," Dehl said. " _Five_ years, I have been searching for you. Five years, I have prepared myself to watch you die."

"And yet, you still haven't killed me," replied the warlock. "I am greatly weakened at the moment, for I have performed another resurrection. I am barely able to block your attacks, yet you hesitate to use anything more powerful than fireballs. Is it possible that you still harbour love for me?" A small, sad smile accompanied the last sentence.

Link tried to move, wanting to come to the old man's defence. He had been of great help to Link, and now it was his turn. Sheik's hand on his shoulder held him back, and no matter how hard he tried to get away, he only felt the grip tensing, soon growing painful.

"Don't be foolish, Hero," whispered Sheik. "There is nothing we can do against that girl…your first and foremost duty right now is to survive and protect the princess."

"Shut up," Link whispered back. "I don't care what you have to say right now."

"Hero, if—"

"Quiet, you two," Zelda interrupted. "Something's happening."

Dehl was laughing, a sound that reminded them of grinding metal. Her voice truly did not match her appearance. "Love? _Love_? Don't be a fool, old man. You and I are the only ones left. You're the only one who knows how to reverse the process. You will tell me this, and then you will die."

Vorpheus sighed. "Still an impatient, unthinking girl you are." He held out a hand, crackling electricity arcing all over it. A small, dark sphere was forming in his palm, and the arcs seemed to be drawn to it. "That secret will die with me, Dehl…and then where will you be? I urge you; stop this madness before it is too late. I am still willing to forgive you!"

"Shut up!" shrieked Dehl and thrust her hand toward Vorpheus, who was suddenly picked up from the ground by some invisible force and slammed into the remains of the bridge. Again and again, he was picked up and crushed against the stone. When Dehl's assault finally ceased, Vorpheus was bleeding profusely, and his armour was dented and broken.

Link once again tried to break free from the grasp Sheik had on his arm, but was held back by Zelda as well this time.

"Link," she whispered. "No."

Dehl was standing over Vorpheus now, staring down at the old man with disgust. "Last chance, old man. Reveal the secret to me!"

"No," snarled Vorpheus and threw the still-arcing orb into her chest, which sent her flying backwards. However, it was a weak attack, and she neatly flipped through the air and landed on her feet. She threw her head back and laughed again, making the gathered onlookers shudder. The sound was horrible.

"Is _that_ the best you can do, Vorpheus? You said you were weakened, but not even Milo was this pathetic, even when I killed him," Dehl said. With a snap of her fingers, an orb of electricity many times larger than the one Vorpheus had made exploded into life in her palm. The electric arcs made a sound similar to chirping birds and filled the meadow with a blinding, white light. "Die!" she screamed, running at the prone warlock.

Suddenly, Vorpheus rose to his feet, holding both hands in front of him, as if touching a wall between them. Dehl noticed it too late. She stopped abruptly, the electric orb fizzing out. Then she stumbled backwards, holding her head.

"Wha…what did you do?" she shouted, unable to gain proper balance.

"I have struck at your inner ear," explained Vorpheus, panting heavily, his posture slouching. "Your balance will be ruined for days."

"Bastard!" Dehl screamed and threw a fireball, missing by several meters at least.

The battle would most likely have escalated, had it not been for the shout that echoed over the meadow at that second.

"For Hyrule!"

Several dozen soldiers were coming up the stairs, having heard the commotion at the meadow. They had driven off the enemy, leaving their scouts in the forest with the assignment to hunt them down and capture any routers. Now they could finally focus their attention on keeping their monarch safe. They were only greeted by the sight of a young girl and an old man apparently having a shouting match in front of the burning remains of Zelda's tent. It was only natural for them to charge.

Dehl reacted first. Still swaying, she cursed loudly and threw something to the ground—a deku nut!—and disappeared in a flash of light, shocking Sheik in the process. As far as he knew, he and Zelda's spies were the only remaining people who could perform that such teleportation.

The moment she was gone, Link and Zelda burst from their hideout, leaving a puzzled Sheik behind to analyze the situation. They both waved their hands to stop the soldiers from running the poor warlock down.

"Thank you, thank you," said the warlock after the stampede finally ceased when Zelda decided to stand right in their way. He looked down at the princess. "Your highness, as inappropriate a moment this is, may I ask for an audience?"

Zelda looked confused. "I…suppose."

Nodding ,Vorpheus smiled. "Good. Now, if you will please excuse me, I will pass out."

And so he did.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 74**

* * *

Night had fallen over the camp once again, yet no one slept. The attack had been more costly to Zelda's forces than she had initially thought. As of the last count, the death toll had reached 373—140 of them were civilians. The rest were soldiers who had either been caught off guard and murdered, or had fallen in battle while trying to protect the unarmed women and children caught in the chaos of the sneak attack. Most of the attackers had been killed, the rest driven off. Scouts had been ordered to seek them out and capture as many as possible. If they put up a harder fight than they thought was worth it, they were to be executed on the spot.

The moon shone bright and full, for once giving the inhabitants of the sick land beneath it some light with which to guide their actions during the night. The temperature had dropped harshly, and most were shivering as they worked hard, digging the graves for those who had not made it. In addition to the high casualty rates, there was an unknown number of wounded. Kaura and the other physicians were working nonstop, desperately trying to save those who still had a chance while doing their best to make the passing as pleasant as possible for those who were too badly wounded.

Link and Zelda were standing at the bottom of the staircase to the labyrinth, watching the activity unfold. They weren't entirely sure where Sheik was. The younger teen had excused himself to go help with the wounded, but had then disappeared. In the condition the two were in, they were in no mood to go look for him. As glad as they were that Sheik was once again living and breathing, they also knew that something had obviously happened to him during the resurrection process. Something had…frightened him. Link wanted so badly to ask him, but his jaw still ached from the punch Sheik had thrown at him, and every time he was going to excuse himself to go look for his lover, he chickened out, as if his own brain was trying to prevent him from doing it.

Another stretcher was carried past the two, the body of a badly burnt guard lying still on it. He seemed to be one of the unfortunate individuals who had been on gate duty that night. They had all perished in the blast that had also blown the strong gate apart. One of them had even been impaled by one of the bars. The air still smelled of blood, sweat and ash. There were still small brush fires smouldering away all over the camp, but everyone was to exhausted to put them out…or plainly didn't care. The screams of the wounded was an agonising sound to Link, who wanted to do nothing more than to stick his fingers in his ears and block them out, but even that would take too much of an effort right.

He looked at Zelda. She too was tired, he knew. Mostly because of the fact that they were both sort of leaning against each other, each propping the other up. There were no guards around Zelda right now. Her Royal Guards were all dead, save for one, whom Kaura had not believed would make it through the night. He had died ten minutes after she had given this message to Zelda. She would have to establish an entirely new guard force for her own security now. She did not look forward to the task. Link turned his eyes to watch the constant procession of stretchers now coming by. The bodies were at least covered with blankets this time, he thought with relief.

"Where do you think he is?" asked Zelda suddenly, her eyes following each and every stretcher that passed by.

"Who?" asked Link, feeling a massive yawn coming on.

"Sheik," answered Zelda. "He said he was going to help…but I think we both know he was lying."

"Not necessarily lying," said Link after his jaw-snapping yawn had finished. "In his eyes, it was probably just bending the truth. Maybe he's helping out…by not being here."

Zelda shook her head. "I still don't understand what happened between you two up there," she said, jerking her head in the direction of the meadow, where another massive tent was being put up by some of Zelda's attendants. The princess had tried to say no, that she would sleep among her subjects tonight, but the stubborn servants had not taken no for an answer. "Why did Sheik punch you?"

Link shrugged. "Beats me." He felt the princess' burning gaze at his side, and he did his best not to get caught in the vortex. "My guess is that…well, he did say something about fate. Maybe he really believes in it…believes that he was supposed to die in the Forest Temple and…stay dead."

"You would be a fool not to believe in fate, Link," Zelda said carefully. "After all…your status as the Hero of Time is all _because_ _of_ fate…"

"Or maybe I was just the first _lucky_ kid who stumbled into the temple with all three gems," countered Link. "I refuse to believe that all my actions are following some sort of sick, twisted plan by the powers that be, and not something I'm in control of myself." He felt like spitting on the ground for emphasis, but remembered that he was with royalty right now. "But what do I know? I'm just a guy who grew up in a forest…"

Zelda didn't answer. What Link had just said surprised her. Not the words themselves, but the sheer…maturity behind them. Maturity that should be well beyond his grasp. No matter how hard she tried, how badly she wanted to convince herself that Link was a grownup, a man, capable of handling anything thrown at him, she still only saw the eleven-year-old within him. Did Sheik see him as well? All she wanted to do right then was to give him a hug. Which she did.

Link didn't resist, taking comfort in the embrace. Everything had seemed to go so well, but then the camp had been attacked, and Sheik had seemingly started to hate him, and Vorpheus…

…Vorpheus had a mortal enemy he had not told anyone about that could easily smash her way through a magically reinforced gate built to keep anything out, a girl that could pick the ancient warlock up and throw him around like a ragdoll, leaving him beaten and broken, hospitalised under the watchful eye of a mistrustful Dr. Kaura. Link had a couple of questions for him as well…mostly revolving around Sheik and the mysterious girl known as Dehl. He hadn't noticed it during her appearance, but she had the same type of hair as Vorpheus—transformable, that is.

If Ganondorf could reinforce his army with that kind of magic users, then what could Zelda's soldiers possibly do to even the battlefield? As far as Link knew, the only ones capable of performing magic—that was on Hyrule's side—was him, Zelda, Sprout…and that was all. He supposed that perhaps there were a few lowly conjurers among the civilians, but they were of little use if all they could do was to make flowers appear out of thin air and pull rabbits out of their stupid little hats. He tiredly rubbed his eyes. It was all coming apart.

And there was still the issue of his darker counterpart. His shadow was still running around somewhere, probably relishing in the death of Sheik and the fact that he had stolen Link's Triforce piece. Link _had_ to get that back before he could have any _hope_ of defeating the Evil King, but where would he begin? He needed to find the shadow, but it hadn't shown its face until it emerged to kill Sheik, and then it had promptly disappeared.

Sheik…

His eyes widened, and started to look around, hoping to catch a blimpse of the long, blond hair that belonged to the Sheikah. It wouldn't be hard to spot him as he was the only one who wore the mismatched, one-sleeved shirt and cut-up leather trousers. But he was nowhere to be found. He cleared his throat and moved a little, hoping Zelda would take the hint and stop leaning on him. She did, looking at him with confusion.

"I'm gonna go find him, the stubborn ass," said Link, waving his hand vaguely into the labyrinth. "If I don't, he'll probably start blaming himself for what happened, and then a whole new slew of trouble is going to open up." Without another word, he strode off into the labyrinth, leaving Zelda alone.

The princess raised an eyebrow. "Blame himself? How could he? He was _dead_."

"He'll find a way," Link called over his shoulder before rounding a corner, disappearing from view.

Zelda stood staring after him for a few seconds before she chuckled to herself. "Idiots, the both of them." She looked down at the ground, feeling guilty for what she had just said. "And me, the biggest fool of them all."

* * *

_Why did I hit him?_

That was the sentence that echoed in Sheik's mind while he looked at the soldiers trying to rein in the horses, who had been scared half to death during the attack, with little success. Maladict was gone. He had looked after the black steed, but there was no sign of him. He hoped that the stud was running around with Epona, like he had usually done whenever he and Link hadn't needed them.

 _ **Well, you were quite mad at the time,**_ said the voice of Terra.

 _Even so,_ thought Sheik. _The news you gave me were bad enough, but for me to take it out on Link…it is unforgiveable._

 _ **All things considered, I think he would be quite willing to forgive you…if only you spoke to him,**_ said Terra.

 _And I plan to,_ Sheik thought. _I just…need to find out how to apologise. I can't even begin to imagine the amount of trouble he went through to get me back, even going as far as to bind your soul to mine…_

_**Well, technically, it was the warlock who did** _ **that** _**, but he did indeed go through the quite a bit of trouble…and I must say that he did** _ **me** _**quite a favour by using me as a splice.** _

_Really? I thought you would…well, take offense, especially since your sword was destroyed in the process._

_**While I do feel a bit of regret concerning my blade, I am** _ _**happier that it could be used in such a way…how would the sword be of use to you if you were dead. Also, this…er, arrangement, allows me to talk to you again. I was sad when our time together was cut so short.** _

_As was I._ Sheik smiled. _There was so much I wanted to ask you, talk to you about…_

 _ **And now we have all the time in the world,**_ replied Terra, and Sheik could hear the smile in his voice. _**There is one thing I would like to know, if you don't mind me asking.**_

_Not at all._

_**You seem oddly at ease with disembodied voice in your head…if I had to guess, I would say that you have had such an experience before, and I believe I know who with.** _

…

_**As I thought. The shadow possessed you, did he?** _

_Not as such…it was more of a mark that seemed to allow him to…I don't know, invade my thoughts from a distance. He turned my dreams into nightmares. It was nothing like this. Your presence is…a comfort._

_**That is good to know.** _

_But I am worried about…well, there are certain things only meant for some people to hear and see…especially concerning…er…_

_**Lovers?** _

_Yes…lovers…_

_**Are you worried that I might listen in on something…shall we say, inappropriate?** _

_Among other things, yes._

_**You know, just because I have no body does not mean I have a certain control of myself anymore. I can lock myself away at a moment's notice and not come out until you say so.** _

_That is good to know,_ thought Sheik, mirroring Terra's sentiment. When the other Sheikah did not make a comment on this, he raised an eyebrow to himself. _Terra?_

"Sheik?"

Sheik looked down. Link was looking up. Sheik was sure this looked like some scene out of a romance novel, probably written by one of the many hundreds of hack writers who had lived in Castle Town. He smiled underneath his makeshift mask. There was no such smile on Link's face.

_This…cannot be good._

"Hero, you and I need to talk," he said, pausing slightly when he realised how familiar the sentence sounded.

Link nodded. "Yeah, I guess we do. But no punches this time."

"I'll try to control myself."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Alright, give me a hand, will you?"

Sheik stood up, leaned down, held out a hand and braced himself. Link took a couple of steps back and ran full speed at the wall. With a jump, he got quite a few feet up the wall, and grabbed Sheik's hand. The Sheikah pulled the Hero, groaning when his chest gave a quick sting.

"You alright?" asked Link, hearing the harshly suppressed sound from his lover. Sheik let go of Link's hand and rubbed the pained area, shaking his head.

"Yes, I am fine. It still hurts a bit, though."

"Oh." Link looked around, seeing just how much damage had been done to the camp. Most of the area right behind the gate had been burned to cinders, the ground and walls black with soot and ash. The rest of the labyrinth wasn't in much better condition, but it was still habitable, although whether or not Zelda intended to remain here, no one knew. He sat down on the edge where Sheik had been sitting, looking at the Sheikah, who was staring right back at him with a strange look in his eyes. He patted the ground next to him. "Sit with me?" he asked.

Nodding, Sheik slowly moved to sit next to him, their feet dangling over the edge. Soldiers and other people walking by noticed them, but quickly went on their way. Carefully, Sheik removed the improvise cowl, revealing his face to Link again.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry."

They looked at each other, surprised at the chorus.

"I didn't mean to—"

"There were so many problems—"

Link began to laugh, and Sheik smiled in return. He looked Link over, noting the ugly bruise that had formed on the Hero's cheek in the aftermath of his strike. He frowned, which Link didn't notice, having closed his eyes from the bout of rambunctious laughter.

 _He's exhausted,_ Sheik thought. _He isn't thinking clearly right now._ He waited for Link to stop laughing, which took a good two minutes.

"How long has it been since you slept, Hero?" asked Sheik.

"I don't know," replied Link. He rubbed his eyes. "I…I couldn't sleep the night you…the night you…er…"

"Died?" supplied Sheik.

"Yeah," said Link, pausing. "The night you died, I went kinda berserk."

"Berserk?"

"Kaura had to drug me," said Link, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I may have punched a few people too."

"Knowing you, that is not a big surprise," said Sheik drily.

"Hardy-har-har," said Link sarcastically. "The drug didn't really put me to sleep…more like knocked me out. And when I woke up, after talking to Zelda, I decided to…well, bring you back. I've been on the move ever since then…so it would probably be safe to say I haven't slept in three days."

"Idiot."

"That's me."

Sheik chuckled, wondering how Link could be in such a good mood, despite everything that had happened…despite the purple bruise on his cheek. He sighed and turned to look at Link fully. The Hero noticed, and paid rapt attention. "Hero, I'm—"

"Link."

"Pardon?"

"My name is _still_ Link, Sheik," said the Hero. "I don't know how many times I've had to remind you, but 'Hero' is a title I hate more than anything in the world, including Ganondorf. So call me Link, or I'll have to _make_ you remember it for all time."

_How he would do this, I do not know. Perhaps I don't…_

_**Sounds interesting to me.** _

_Shush!_

Sheik smiled. "Fine, _Link_ , I shall try and remember." He recaptured the Hero's gaze with his own, trying to seem solemn and serious…although doing so while wearing a shirt missing a sleeve and revealing leather pants was difficult. "I am sorry for striking you."

Link seemed relieved at hearing those words, though he covered it up with a smile. "Nah, don't be, I understand why, since you believe in fate and all that—"

"No, you _don't_ understand, and that's the problem," Sheik said, interrupting Link after recognising that the Hero was about to launch a tirade. "No matter what my beliefs are, it gives me no right for hitting for merely doing what you thought was right. While it may have been the Goddesses' intention for me to remain dead, I am now alive, and I shall simply have to live with it."

Link snickered, causing Sheik to glare at him.

"No pun intended," the Sheikah added. "But yes, it is true that I was upset at you for reversing divine will at first, but I reconciled myself with that fact minutes after I woke up again."

"Then why were you so mad at me?" asked Link, glad that they were getting to the bottom of it.

"Because…well, it is hard to explain."

"Try me." Link gave Sheik a crooked smile. "I know I don't impress you often with my intelligence…or lack of it, anyway, but let me try to understand."

 _What did I ever do to deserve this?_ Sheik thought fondly.

"Very well, Hero, I shall try. After Terra helped me back to my body—"

"You talked to Terra?" asked Link excitedly. "How was he?"

"Have _you_ talked to Terra?" asked Sheik. "Never mind. Yes, I talked to Terra, Link. He helped me, guided me back to my body…and explained some things to me. One of the things he explained is what upset me enough to…" he motioned to Link's cheek. "The truth is…"

* * *

_I'm going to die?_

_**Sooner or later, yes.** _

_But that is a fact of life. No one escapes death. I didn't…even though I still live, I have merely postponed it._

_**That is true. We all die. Our bodies first, our souls later. The souls in the Shadow Temple, while exceptionally long-lived, will fade out and disappear.** _

_Then why warn me about this?_

_**Because you…** _ _**you will die sooner than you think. And your soul…will be severely weakened.** _

_What?_

_**Let me explain, Sheik. The…procedure this Vorpheus person has performed puts a severe strain on both the caster and the affected one. A soul reattaching itself to its dead body—two, in your case—is intensely traumatic for one's mortal remains, and the system will invariably be affected in a negative way in the long run.** _

_So what you are saying is…_

_**Basically, your original lifespan, Sheik, has been halved. Had I not been forced to step in, it only have been shortened slightly…but then, had I not been forced to step in, you would still have been dead.** _

…

_**Sheik?** _

_I have to wake up._

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 75**

* * *

The horses had been calmed now, although the soldiers had been forced to spread them out in the area in front of the gate. For some reason, the close proximity made them nervous now, quite unlike their behaviour before the attack. Of course, having one's habitat becoming a violent battlefield is bound to make anyone nervous and jittery, but Hyrule's horses had always been bred for war.

Perhaps it was the intense magical energy that still lingered in the air, left behind by the girl Dehl, who had been quite powerful. It made Sheik's hair stand on end to think about what she could have done to the camp had she not obviously been holding back. Speaking of which, why _did_ she hold back? She could probably easily have killed Vorpheus, wiped out the soldiers attacking her and _still_ be able to finish of Zelda like she was a mere ant to be stepped on. It pointed to an evident personal agenda, perhaps even vendetta against Vorpheus, but why? He remembered the warlock mentioning something about trying to kill her in Termina, but there seemed to be a somewhat familial relationship between the two, if their morphing hair was any indication. Or perhaps they were part of some secret order, and Dehl had gone rogue? Sheik could literally have come up with hundreds of theories, but until she showed up again, there was no way to know.

 _Maybe she's his daughter,_ Sheik thought. _Or granddaughter…I know literally nothing about this Vorpheus apart from that he is over two hundred years old, was defeated and then saved by Link, and that he resurrected me. They_ did _look quite alike. Or maybe I'm overanalysing._

There was no answer from Terra. Apart from the slight comment from his fellow Sheikah, he had remained silent, as if understanding that whenever Sheik and Link were alone, he was to stay away…although he still listened, prompted Sheik to believe that Terra was some sort of voyeur. Well, he would be disappointed if he expected to hear anything _exciting_. They weren't quite there yet…

Thinking of Link, Sheik looked at the Hero, who was currently resting his head on Sheik's shoulder, his eyes half-lidded. He was about to fall asleep, Sheik knew. Link's reaction to Sheik's shortened lifespan had been…underwhelming. Well, underwhelming coming from Link, at least. Sheik had half-expected him to embark on an outraged rant, claiming that he could reverse the entire thing even if he had to challenge the Goddesses themselves. No, instead, the Hero had looked at him with a sincere, compassionate expression, and whispered apologies. There had been a rant about fixing it by "talking" to the Goddesses, but it had never really reached a peak. Sheik wanted to snort, but that would disturb the near-sleeping Hero. As if Sheik's current condition had _anything_ to do with divine power. This was purely physical. He could even feel it now. His heart would skip a beat here and there.

_Does this mean that I have little time left, or is it just a reminder of my degenerating mortality? As long as it does not impede my efforts in protecting Link and Zelda, I suppose it does not matter._

Link shifted, groaning at the same time. Sheik smiled and pulled him closer, realising that Link was practically lying in his lap. Of course, had he done so fully, Link would most likely have fallen off the labyrinth wall. And he seemed to be conscious of this problem, as he never moved to do so.

Sheik liked it, sitting like this. Usually, it was the Hero who did the holding and he who did the leaning. It also reminded him of the more…well, it was perhaps wrong to say the more carefree times of their journey through Gerudo Valley and beyond, but that was what it felt like. No rush, just themselves and the road ahead…except the road ahead now only contained more pain and misery, more death and destruction. Ganondorf had found them, and unless Zelda's scouts managed to capture all the routing enemy forces, he would be able to launch a full assault on the Hyrulian Remnant. And they would not survive another attack like this. Regardless of Link's lack of a Triforce piece, Zelda had no choice anymore. She had to attack, if only to distract the Evil King while Link snuck inside and finished him off. If the Hero also managed to take down whatever barrier that kept the Sages from entering the fray, all the better.

"I still don't get it," said Link slowly and quietly, his voice slightly muffled by Sheik's shoulder, which he was speaking into. "So you're going to die…but much quicker?"

Sheik sighed. This had been the sixteenth time Link had asked the question, and the sixteenth time he explained it. "Sooner, Hero. It means I will die sooner."

"But what if—"

"Look, let me give you an example," said Sheik, interrupting the now near-whining Link. He thought for a second. "Imagine a hypothetical future. Imagine that we defeat Ganondorf, vanquish evil from Hyrule and live happily ever after. Imagine that I do not fall in battle or succumb to any diseases—"

"Are we together?" asked Link.

"P-pardon?" asked Sheik, losing his train of thought.

"Are we together in that future?" asked Link, a smile on his face that most certainly would have been categorised as adorable by the princess.

"Well…yes, I suppose so," replied Sheik. "We are together. Anyway, imagine that I do not fall in battle and—"

"I'll knock on the table for that," interrupted Link yet again.

"There _is_ no table, Link, now stop interrupting me, or I will give you a matching bruise on your other cheek," said Sheik, feeling an urge to bonk Link on the head to stop him from talking. Goddesses knew he loved the Hero, but he could be such an annoyance at times. He knew Link did it on purpose too, which made it even worse. " _Anyway_ , imagine that I don't die from diseases or swords to vital parts."

"Okay."

"…okay. Normally, that would mean that I would live well into old age and eventually die from it." He let out an involuntary sigh, which Link without a doubt heard as the Hero stiffened at his side. "I won't live to old age…if Terra is right, I probably won't even live to see my fiftieth year pass."

Link didn't answer. Instead, he took Sheik's free hand in his own and squeezed, as if trying to reassure him that he was there. Sheik was touched. A few minutes passed in silence.

"At least we got to know something positive out of this thing," said Link eventually.

"Really?" asked Sheik. "And what is that?" He was eager to know this. If anyone could see something positive in a situation, it was the Hero of Time.

"We now know…that you were not supposed to die in the Forest Temple," answered Link. "Otherwise, you would probably have died again the second you woke up."

Sheik thought about it, and found the logic sound. "I suppose I owe you another apology, then, for insisting that you were wrong."

"Everyone's wrong every now and then," said Link. "It's only normal…and you were due for one sooner or later."

Sheik smiled and chuckled a little. "You are oddly perceptive and serious when you're tired, Link. Did you know that?"

"Must…be a…fluke," said Link tiredly, his speech slowing down. Then his entire body relaxed against Sheik's, and the Sheikah knew the Hero was asleep, his body finally claiming its right after being forced to work irregularly for the past 72 hours.

"Sleep, Hero," Sheik whispered. "You've earned it."

* * *

Zelda was not surprised to see Sheik approaching her carrying the sleeping Link, and wordlessly motioned for him to follow her up the stairs to her new tent. Her servants had been very fast in pitching it up after removing the burnt remains of the previous one. The new tent seemed…bigger. It wouldn't surprise Sheik if this had been the original tent the servants had wanted to put up, but the princess had denied. Zelda had never been much for unnecessary luxury, despite being the princess of the most powerful nation in the world. Or, _had_ been the most powerful nation in the world.

 _And will once again be,_ he thought as he carried Link inside, led by Zelda. A wood panel floor had even been laid. Torches burned brightly, and new furniture had been arranged everywhere.

 _Where do they keep these things?_ he wondered.

"In here," whispered Zelda and pointed into a small room. Inside were two simple beds, and a wash basin. It was intended as a bedroom, nothing more. "I had the servants set up a room for you two," she said as Sheik carefully laid Link on one of the beds, carefully easing out his clunky tools of his pockets and carefully laying aside his weapons.

"This is really not necessary, Zelda," whispered Sheik as he was finally able to slip Link out of his mud-encased tunic. Then he gently laid the blanket over the Hero.

"Nonsense," whispered Zelda. "I don't want you two too far away considering everything that has happened in the past three days. Besides, I am going to need you both to calm me down after the flurry of meetings that will surely be held in the aftermath of this disaster."

Sheik blew out the one lamp that burned inside the room and followed Zelda to the new meeting room, where a new table had been set up. This one was smaller, more octagon-shaped than circular. With a sigh, the princess sat in a chair, motioning for her bodyguard to do the same.

"Am I to assume that you two have made up?" asked the princess after Sheik had seated himself.

Sheik nodded. "I suppose so."

"What happened, Sheik?" asked Zelda. "I want to hear, in your own words, everything."

"Well, I woke up after being re—"

"No, not just the resurrection, Sheik," said Zelda, her face set in a grim mask. "I need to know _everything_. Your involvement with Link's shadow, why you have been harbouring him and what has become of Link's missing Triforce piece."

Sheik sighed, knowing that this moment had been inevitable. He was kind of relieved, and glad that it had come sooner rather than later. Leaning forward, he nodded. "Very well, I shall tell you. It is a lengthy tale, and I have doubts about my coherence—"

"Your storytelling ability is not of consequence at the moment, Sheiky," said Zelda, smiling at him. "I just need to know…I need to know why you have seen fit to endure so much trouble when Link easily could have ended it with a swipe of his sword."

And so Sheik talked. And talked, telling Zelda everything that had happened the day Link had come bloodied and beaten out of the Water Temple, how Sheik had found the Hero's shadow still alive and well after feeding on Navi the Fairy's blood, how he had nearly enslaved Sheik to his will and the emotional ups and downs that the shadow had seemed to experience while holding Sheik in its thrall. He left out the embarrassing part of their stay at the Gerudo Fortress, aphrodisiac aside, and told her the entire tale behind his exploits in Twilight. He told her about Terra, who and where he was, and that the _shadow_ had the symbol of the Triforce on the back of his hand instead of Link. The entire tale behind what happened inside the Forest Temple, how the shadow had tried to violate him in the very worst possible way, at which point Zelda's eyes had widened and she tried to comfort him while he continued talking. The event had shaken him to the very core, and even now he shuddered when thinking back on Speil's words at the time, the chilling threat the shadow had made just before he had plunged his evil copy of the Master Sword into Sheik's chest…

By the time he was done reciting his story, the sun was creeping over the trees, and a rooster somewhere crowed the new day in. The camp was still in full activity, the soldiers trying to organise the distraught civilians so that they would be safe once more as well as trying to rebuild the camp's shattered defences.

Sheik leaned back in the chair, feeling his back cramp up slightly. "That is all, Zelda. The shadow has the Triforce, and is no longer…around me, shall we say. Perhaps he still thinks I am dead and has lost interest."

"You mentioned it by name once," said Zelda. Her eyes were moving around, looking at everything in the room. This meant she was thinking, Sheik knew. The princess had never been hard to read. "Sp…something. What was it again?"

"Speil," answered Sheik. "It means 'Mirror'."

"Did you give it to him?"

"No, he chose it himself."

"I see…" she trailed off, still looking around. "Thank you for telling me about this, Sheik. Link and I have been wondering about where Link's Triforce piece was, and now you have confirmed our theory." She cleared her throat and rubbed her eyes, hissing when she forgot about the bruise under one of them. Sheik wanted to resurrect the one who had done that to her and kill him a thousand times over. "You said that the shadow has lost interest?"

"I don't know," said Sheik. "As I said, I haven't seen him since he killed me. He may have lost interest in _me_ , but he still harbours a great deal of hatred for Link, whom he calls 'His Light', whatever that means."

"Well, Link _is_ the counterpart to his own shadow…his light, if you will."

Sheik wanted to slap his forehead for not making that connection. It just went to show how little he actually had paid attention when it came to matters concerning Speil. "Of course," he said, blushing slightly when Zelda noticed his annoyance with himself and smiled.

"So you think it may come back to attack Link again?" the princess asked.

"From the way Speil spoke of him, I would say almost without a doubt that he and Link will once again clash swords, yes," answered Sheik. "The question is who will seek out whom."

"What do you mean?"

"Speil hates Link for…well, being Link, and Link hates Speil for killing his fairy companion as well as me. Also, Speil carries Link's Triforce piece. Either Speil will come to Link, or Link will come to Speil," said Sheik. "It is unavoidable, in my opinion."

Zelda nodded, sighing at the same time. "Very well, I will keep that in mind." She then yawned, stretching at the same time. Sheik heard something pop into place.

"May I suggest that you go to bed, Zelly?" he asked, using his old nickname for her. It always made her happy whenever he did this. "You've been up for a long time."

"Yes, I suppose so, Sheiky…mostly because of you," she added with a wink. "I do believe I shall retire…and I order _you_ to do the same. It will do Link good to wake up to you, I think."

"Whatever my princess commands," said Sheik, sharing a laugh with Zelda before they both retired to their respective beds.

* * *

It was the best sleep he had had in days. Not very strange since, by and large, he hadn't been "sleeping" per se. Still, when Sheik finally recognised a need to wake up and get out of bed, he felt incredibly rested. He heard the voices of the many inhabitants of the camp below, and came to the conclusion that it was still day. He had half expected to sleep through the entire thing and wake up in the evening, but there he was. His clothes—his _real_ clothes, not the travesty that Guilden had brought him, lay on a chair next to his bed, cleaned and ready to be used and abused in battle. A groan to his left made him look at Link, who was sprawled out on his own bed, his blanket on the floor. The Hero was an incredibly restless sleeper at times.

 _But that's just part of him, I suppose,_ he thought and began dressing, glad to finally have his exoskeleton back. The other clothes, while acceptable in a pinch, really could not compare to the stretchy material. He bandaged his hands and pulled on his tabard. His cowl was the last piece of clothing to be put on. He decided not to tie on his turban, knowing that Link would take great offense since he did not have his cap anymore.

Suddenly, a pair of arms encircled him from behind, easily lifting him up. He struggled briefly before he remembered who else was in the room with him, upon which he relaxed slightly. Before he knew what had happened, he was lying on top of Link, who was grinning lazily at the Sheikah.

"Mornin'," Link slurred, voice thick with sleep.

"Good morning," said Sheik in a deadpan, feeling something poking into his thigh. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah, especially since I know you're back," replied Link. Slowly, he reached a hand up and pulled Sheik's cowl down before leaning up and kissing him softly, pulling him closer.

Sheik relaxed, relieved that the Hero did not bear any grudges, rough reunions aside. When he felt Link's tongue gently probing at his lips, he opened his mouth and welcomed him, lightly and playfully pushing back when the Hero got overly ambitious. Then he felt a hand cup his right buttock—and did the only thing proper.

He squeaked, jumping off the bed. He turned his back on Link, covering his beet-red face up with his cowl. Link was laughing, much to Sheik's annoyance. He did not deign to look at the Hero as he tied Kazuya to his back.

"Did you just squeak?" asked Link, giggling slightly to himself. "That's the cutest thing you've done yet!"

Sheik sighed. "No, I did not, Link. You're still tired, you must be imagining things. Go back to sleep."

"Alright," said the Hero, rolling over. Within seconds, he was snoring loudly. Sheik stared at the sleeping form in disbelief for a few seconds, wondering if the conversation had just taken place or if _he_ was still sleeping as well, having some sort of surrealistic dream. But then he remembered that it was Link he had just talked to, and when talking to Link, logic would go hide in a deep hole somewhere.

Smiling fondly, Sheik picked up Link's discarded blanket and put it over the sleeping Hero. Then he left the room. Stepping outside the tent, he saw that the skies were overcast, the clouds heavy and dark with rain. A freezing wind blew in through the camp every few minutes as well, making him shiver.

"Good morning, Sheik," said the voice of Zelda behind him.

Turning around, Sheik came face to face with a still-tired Zelda. Rubbing her eyes, she yawned loudly. Her leather armour was still her preferred attire. Sheik was about to wish her a good morning as well, but she sidestepped it and gave him a hug instead. He hugged her back, and the princess laughed.

"What is so funny?" he asked when they parted.

"Nothing, really," the princess said, smiling at him. "It's just that I've missed you…and your hugs."

"For some reason, I keep thinking I am overstepping a boundary of sorts when I hug the person whose life I am to protect," said Sheik, wondering if he really _was_ going against everything a bodyguard was supposed to.

"Oh, shush," said Zelda and slapped him on the shoulder. "Your princess demands hugs from her bodyguard, and that's that. Your oath requires you to follow my orders."

 _And this one is till tired as well,_ Sheik thought and groaned mentally. However, he knew that suggesting that Zelda go back to bed would be a futile quest, so he changed the subject instead. "How are you feeling? The bruise looks quite…eh…"

"Ugly, I know," the princess said, gently touching the blue-black bruise under her eye. "But some red potion, and I will be fit for fight again." She looked around. "Is Link still asleep?"

"Miles away," answered Sheik. "He has been up for several days…added to the fact that he is still tired from our little…er, ordeal concerning Twilight and other places."

"To be expected," said Zelda. "But then again, he deserves it. After all, he brought you back."

"And I am grateful to him for that," said Sheik. "Even if my lifespan was halved because of it."

"What?"

He winced. He had forgotten to tell Zelda about that particular little detail. "Yes…er…due to the incredible strain the resurrection process puts on one's body, it essentially cuts into your life. And in my case, in which _two_ souls had to be bound back in my body…well, you can figure it out for yourself, I'm sure."

"Oh, Sheik…I'm so sorry," said Zelda, reaching out a hand. Sheik took it in his own, squeezing it reassuringly.

"There's no need to be sorry, really. If Link hadn't done what he did, I wouldn't even be alive right now. I'd rather have half a life than not live at all," said Sheik, smiling. "It was a shock, at first…and that was why I punched the Hero, by the way."

Zelda didn't answer, and the two stood there for a while, alone. Today, Zelda was going to have to promote the best and finest soldiers of her army to her new Royal Guard, a task she surely did not look forward to. Not because she didn't like her soldiers, but because it was hard to replace the men who had been her protectors for the past seven years.

"You know," she said. "I thought this was all going to be over within weeks of Link's awakening in the Temple of Time…I thought Ganondorf would have been defeated by now."

"As did I," replied Sheik. "But things rarely go the way we expect them to."

"Even when they're prophesised," said Zelda.

"From what I have seen, _especially_ when they are prophesised."

"And there's the cynical, pessimistic and downright negative Sheik I know and love," said the princess playfully and slapped him on the shoulder yet again.

 _This girl has clearly been around soldiers and a masculine society for too long,_ thought Sheik, rubbing his shoulder.

"Your Highness! Your Highness!" someone shouted. They both turned to look at the stairs, up which a scout was running at full speed. He stormed across the meadow, coming to a stop a few feet away, breathing heavily.

"What is it, Colin?" asked Zelda.

 _Colin? That name sounds familiar…_ thought Sheik.

"We have received reports from the other camps, Your Highness," said Colin, still breathing heavily, sweat streaking down his chin, on which the scraggly beginnings of a beard was struggling to keep hold of. "They've been attacked as well!"

"What? What happened?" asked Zelda.

"We've been betrayed," said Sheik, looking at Zelda with a dire look. "The only way someone could find any of the camps, if I understood the explanation correctly, would be if someone led the enemy to them."

"It's true, Your Highness," said Colin. "We captured the traitor while we hunted down the routing enemy troops."

"Were you able to eliminate all the enemy soldiers?" asked Sheik, ignoring the traitor part for the more important one. If even a single enemy managed to escape and tell Ganondorf of what had happened, all would be lost.

Colin looked from Zelda to Sheik with a look that clearly conveyed a negative reply. "No, some of them managed to slip by our perimeter. They escaped through one of our checkpoints. It was completely devastated. We think that's where they entered the forest as well…killed all our scouts before they were able to alert the rest of us. I apologise, Your Highness."

Zelda nodded in understanding. "Don't apologise, Colin. You did the best you could. Where is your father? I expected Rusl to give the report, no offense."

"Father…died during the attack, Your Highness," said Colin, his eyes steely. "We arrived after the enemy attacked, but we managed to defend a substantial portion of the civilian population."

"I'm sorry, Colin…" said Zelda, looking sadly at the young man in front of her.

 _He's taking it considerably well,_ though Sheik.

 _ **You of all people should recognise someone bottling up their emotions, Sheik,**_ said Terra suddenly. While Sheik was surprised by the other Sheikah's voice suddenly making an appearance in his mind, he was able to contain himself physically, only reacting with a small twitch, unnoticeable to the casual observer. _**He's grieving…I can feel it. But he also knows that there is a time for everything, and right now he has a job to do…reporting to the princess. Undoubtedly, he will mourn his father afterwards.**_

_Hm…_

"What of the other camps?" asked Sheik, not wanting the report to suddenly dwindle away as Zelda gave out condolences. As much as he disliked any Hyrulian soldier falling in battle, the fate of thousands more rested on this report and how quick Zelda could react to it. "What did they have to report apart from being attacked?"

Colin looked at him for a second, as if gauging whether or not he should answer the Sheikah's questions. Only when Zelda nodded did he nod. "The other camps were only lightly hit. They were most likely only meant to be occupied so they could not come to the aid of the Meadow."

"And the field hospital?" asked Zelda.

"Unharmed, Your Highness," answered Colin. "They have reported no incident. They were too well hidden."

"That's a relief," said the princess. "Where is the traitor?" she asked.

"We have him in one of the barracks," replied Colin. "We do not have a prison here, so we thought it best to stow him close to our soldiers."

"Under protection, I hope," said Sheik. "Goddesses know what the soldiers would do to him if they found out he was the one responsible for the many deaths last night."

"Of course," said Colin, looking offended. "We scouts are not stupid, Sheikah."

_Ah, here we go…_

"My apologies," said Sheik, inclining his head in a sort of informal bow. "I did not mean to offend."

"No, no, _I'm_ sorry," said Colin, shaking his head. "I'm just…I'm kinda jittery right now."

"I understand," said Sheik, glad that he was not dealing with yet another Sheikah-hater. "I believe we all are…but you have good reason to."

"Is that all, Colin?" asked Zelda.

"Yes, Your Highness," said the scout.

"Then you are dismissed. Take the day off, rest and bury your father," said Zelda, smiling sympathetically at him.

"Yes, Your Highness. Thank you, Your Highness." Before he turned around to walk away, Colin looked at Sheik once more. "Again, I'm sorry—"

"And I said it is fine," said Sheik, waving it away. "I was being rude."

Nodding, Colin trudged away, down the stairs.

"The barracks, he said?" asked Zelda. "I think we should have a word with this traitor of ours, what do you say, Sheik?"

Sheik nodded. "Indeed."


	6. Chapter 6

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 76**

* * *

The barracks had been hit the hardest during the attack, being located just beyond the gate. The soldiers had been caught unawares, the lookouts having seen nothing before it was too late, and the gate lay in ruins. This was where most of the casualties had been suffered, in the chaos following the explosion that had let the enemy enter the camp unhindered. The ground was covered in splotches of blood and discarded weapons. The fallen Hyrulian soldiers' bodies were in the process of being buried outside the camp, close to the tunnels, where a memorial of sorts was to be placed, Zelda told Sheik. The enemies' bodies, however, had merely been placed in a pile, surely to be burned later, or tossed into a pit and forgotten forever. Sheik could spot the pile through the open gate, noticing that several of Ganondorf's troops were Hylians. He felt like spitting on the pile, but knew that this was not the time.

Only a single tent remained standing, presumably the one in which the traitor was being housed. As Zelda and Sheik passed, they both noticed the tense atmosphere surrounding the tent, as if the soldiers, who were idling about, were just about ready to storm inside and kill the one who had sold them out. Stopping just outside, Zelda turned to the soldiers.

"I know you are all angry," she said loudly, catching the attention of everyone within earshot. "But remember, if we give in to our anger and simply…murder the one who betrayed us all, we will be no better than the Evil King himself." She looked at the entrance to the tent, seeing nothing within because of the darkness. "Everyone deserves a fair hearing. Now, get back to work. There is much to do, such as fortifying our camp should the enemy return with a stronger force." She clapped her hands, and the idling soldiers immediately went about their business, leaving Sheik impressed, both with Zelda's handling of the situation and with the soldiers' obedience.

 _Say what you will of their fighting quality, but the soldiers of Hyrulian army is probably the most disciplined in the world,_ Sheik thought as he stepped closer to Zelda, who was making sure that each and every one of the soldiers had something to do and would not harbour any lingering urges to kill the one inside the tent. "A fair hearing?" Sheik whispered to her.

"A fair hearing," whispered Zelda in return, nodding. "Everyone deserves one, as I said."

"Zelda, with all due respect, the only punishment such a capital crime as treason deserves is a prompt, public execution," Sheik whispered. "If the traitor does not pay for his actions, what kind of message will that send to your men?" He leaned back, watching the young princess' face. In a matter of seconds, he could almost see the entire spectrum of emotions passing over her face, and he knew that she was conflicted about this. And not without reason, Sheik knew. In the entire seven years the war had been waged, she had never, ever been betrayed by one of her own.

Zelda sighed, facing Sheik with a grim expression. "I know what is expected of me, Sheik," she said quietly. "But I cannot order an execution without knowing…what happened." With that, she turned around and quickly entered the tent, Sheik on her heels.

A single torch burned within the tent, and the only occupants were a single guard who had been placed there to guard the prisoner, and the prisoner himself, tied to a rickety chair placed in the middle of the rather large room the tent formed. When Zelda saw who sat there, she shook her head sadly. She looked at the guard, a young man who was staring at the prisoner with poorly disguised hatred, and nodded in the direction of the exit. The young man left without a word, but Sheik could see a certain relief painted on his face as he passed him on the way out.

"I cannot say that I am surprised," said Zelda, staring at the man in the chair. Sheik heard the small, barely audible sobs coming from him, but felt no pity. The man was a traitor now and nothing more.

_I must say, neither am I._

_**Who is this one?**_ asked Terra.

 _It is a long story,_ explained Sheik. _I shall tell you some other time._

Zelda crouched in front of the chair, trying to make the sobbing man look at her face. "Why?" she asked. "Guilden…you have known me, taken care of me, for eighteen years. Why would you betray me? Why would you betray everything my father stood for? Why would you betray…Hyrule?" Sheik saw the sadness on the princess' face, the moistness in her eyes.

While Sheik and Guilden had always been somewhat enemies in the past, the obese attendant and chaperone had always been there to care for the young princess. Impa had, of course, been closer to Zelda than Guilden, but the attendant had always had a special place in the princess' heart. Sheik looked at the fat man. His nose was obviously broken, though he knew not from what. He lingered just outside the attendant's line of sight, not wishing to disturb Zelda's questioning.

"Why, Guilden?" Zelda repeated.

"For…Hyrule…" mumbled Guilden through his sobbing, and lifted his head to look at Zelda for the first time. "I did it…for Hyrule." His words were barely intelligible through his blubbering and broken nose, but the attendant's obvious penchant for speaking loudly quickly took over. "I did it for everyone!"

Zelda stood up, her eyes wide. "In what way could betraying my location help Hyrule and its loyal followers?" she asked. "How could helping Ganondorf eliminate the Hyrulian Remnant possibly be to our kingdom's gain?"

"Look at yourself, Your Highness," said Guilden, his eyes sadly seizing up Zelda. "You are the only heir of a noble bloodline, the _only_ noble bloodline in the world…and you are reduced to the stage of a peasant out here, in the filthy forest." He spat on the burnt ground a respectful distance away from Zelda's boots. "You belong in the castle, in a protected environment."

"Guilden, the castle is no more," said Zelda, shaking her head sadly. "Ganondorf has turned it into a dark citadel, a stronghold uglier than anything I have ever seen."

"Even so," said Guilden, sniffling. "It is _safe_ there…safer than anywhere else in the world."

"If you are on the Evil King's side, yes," said Zelda. "But I am not, Guilden…and I will never be. He is a usurper, and he betrayed and slew my father during a peace negotiation. I must avenge him!"

Sheik's heart gave a lurch, though from what reason he did know, halved lifespan or conversation piece aside. This was the first time Zelda had spoken of her father, the king, in seven years.

"You would have been safe," Guilden repeated. "Even as his prisoner…"

"Guilden, Ganondorf is not interested in me as a prisoner!" Zelda exclaimed and leaned forward, looking Guilden in the eyes. "The only reason Ganondorf continues his hunt for me is not for merely possessing me as a prisoner of war, but for what I possess. When the Evil King finds me, Guilden, he will kill me and take it from me!" She stood up, a sorrowful expression on her face. "You almost condemned me to death last night, Guilden."

Guilden's entire form seemed to give a jerk, his muscles suffering spasms. "I…I did not know," he stammered. "I…I t-…thought t-that…"

"You did _not_ think, that is the problem," said Sheik, stepping in. He nodded at Zelda, who withdrew to the background. He glared at Guilden, who had gone white with shock.

"You…but you are dead!" he half-shouted.

"Rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated," said Sheik, narrowing his eyes at the attendant, whose own eyes seemed to be drawn at the milky-white slit in the Sheikah's left pupil.

"But, I, I…I _saw_ your body!"

"It is amazing how one's mind can fool one's eyes," said Sheik quietly, almost in a whisper. "You have wanted me dead for so many years that you came to premature conclusions."

"I never wanted you dead," Guilden tried to say, although it mostly came out as a pathetic mix of snot and blood still pouring from his broken nose. "I never wanted you dead!"

"Strange…I don't believe you," said Sheik, cracking his knuckles. He looked at Zelda, who was now shedding silent tears for her once trusted attendant. "We know his reasons, but not the extent of his betrayal," he said. "We must know how much he has told Ganondorf's men." He went for a dagger, but realised that he had forgotten to include them when he had tied the bandages around his hands.

"I only told him of the locations of the camps, I swear," said Guilden, scared stiff by Sheik's sudden reappearance. "That is all!"

"Strange," said Sheik, intending to repeat his previous statement. "I don't beli—"

"But I do!" Zelda exclaimed, interrupting the Sheikah, who immediately stepped back in respect. She gave Sheik a strange look, a mix of anger and understanding, which he did not fully understand. Then she crouched in front of Guilden once again, drawing the fat man into a loose hug. She whispered into his ear, not wanting Sheik to hear her. The look of relief on the attendant's face clearly conveyed the general message. Zelda rose to her feet, placing a hand on Guilden's swollen cheek. "I forgive you, Guilden…I truly do," she said quietly. Then her face hardened, her persona as a monarch taking over. "But the soldiers and civilians who died yesterday do not…the law of Hyrule does not."

Guilden's relieved face quickly turned into the frightened, pathetic mask he had worn seconds before.

"Guilden," said Zelda loudly and clearly, her voice cracking at the end. "You are hereby sentenced to death by decapitation for treason." She looked at Sheik, who kept his face and pose neutral. "As Hyrulian law dictates, the execution is to be public…however, I will allow you to save face, and spare you the humiliation." Without a second look, Zelda strode out of the tent, new tears flowing down her cheeks, leaving Sheik and Guilden alone. The attendant looked as if the moon had dropped on him, and Sheik was slightly ashamed to admit that he felt a certain…enjoyment at he sight of him.

"I…I…" the attendant said again and again, his mind seemingly blown.

Sheik stared at the exit for a few seconds, and then looked at Guilden, leaning down. "I admit it, I never liked you very much," he whispered. "And I am certain that you did not feel especially sad when you saw my body. But here is the thing…I accepted your bigotry, as I know it is not your fault. You were probably indoctrinated to hate me and my kind by your family, as they were by theirs. I accepted it, because I knew that it was an impossible thing to change. But know this, Guilden: I do not harbour any negative thoughts about you for any of the things you have said about me or the Sheikah over the years. I hate you, however, for what you have done. I hate you for betraying Hyrule, I hate you for letting so many people die…and I hate you, for making the princess cry."

Sheik straightened up, casting one final glance at the sniffling attendant. "You reap what you sow. Never has the proverb been more true."

He heard the man openly crying as he exited the tent, and four soldiers entered it. One of them carried a large axe, similar to an executioner's. Guilden's cries increased in volume for a few seconds, and were then silenced. Forever.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 77**

* * *

Sheik found Zelda quite a distance away from the tent where Guilden had been executed, her back turned to the public eye as she cried into the wall, not wishing to appear weak in front of the still shocked and traumatised subjects. If their leader couldn't chin up and come out of the ordeal stronger, then how could they. Sheik approached her slowly, wondering if he should have said anything, perhaps protest against the sentence. But that would have been hypocritical, of course, since he had almost started to torture the recently deceased Guilden just before she had sentenced him to death. He raised a hand, intending to gently rub her shoulder, but was assaulted by an armful of princess instead.

 _There are quite a lot of hugs in the air these days,_ he thought ruefully as he did his best to comfort Zelda, whose childhood caretaker had just betrayed her and the entire Hyrulian Remnant. _I wonder…how much longer can she take this?_ he thought. _Sooner or later…it will all become too much for her mind to bear, and something terrible will happen._

He was happy to hear no answer from Terra, who seemed to be experimenting in holding his tongue at inopportune and opportune times. Luckily, the Sheikah seemed to have gotten the hang of it quickly. For a moment, Sheik had been worried that Terra would have trouble adjusting to sharing a body and mind with someone else and rebel, but he seemed to be handling it just fine. On the other hand, would _Sheik_ ever be able to adjust to the fact that his thoughts were never going to be private again. Sure, Terra _said_ that he could seal himself away and ignore everything that the person in control said, heard, saw and did, but Sheik couldn't help but feel a concern about the other Sheikah growing…nosy.

"I just don't understand," Zelda murmured against Sheik's shoulder. "He _knew_ everything that has happened in the past seven years, he _knew_ what Ganondorf is capable of, he _knew_ what would happen when Ganondorf's soldiers caught news of civilian camps…"

"A misguided sense of duty, perhaps," said Sheik, tightening his hold when he felt a twitch go through Zelda's body. "You heard him…he insisted on your safety, thinking that Ganondorf would hold you as a political prisoner. Though why he would say it would be for the good of Hyrule, I do not know. The Evil King might have seen you as a…worthy prize, but he would slaughter the rest of the population without a second thought." When Zelda didn't answer, Sheik wondered if he had put his foot in his mouth, like he so often did around the princess.

It was an unfortunate (and hilarious to Zelda) trait he had had ever since childhood. The young Sheik had been able to speak to anyone, be it kings, guards, soldiers, peasants, nobility without problems. But every time he found himself in close proximity to the young princess, he often made comments that insulted, berated or amused her. He knew why this was as well. He was nervous. Zelda made him nervous. The answer to why this was had eluded him for many years. At first, from what his aunt had told him of the subject, he had believed that he had fallen in love with Zelda, at the tender age of nine. Of course, that theory had been sent reeling away from his mind as soon as it popped up, but it had always lingered in the back of his mind. Sometime later, he had finally realised that the reason he was nervous around Zelda was indeed because of the love he held for her…but it was not _that_ kind of love. He loved her as a sibling, as a brother would. But the thought that he was to be her protector, her bodyguard later in life, when political opponents and enemies would send assassins after her, terrified him.

What if he failed in his task? What if he accidentally ignored some small sign, a hint that an assassination plot was underway? He knew that if his charge died under his protection, he would not only shame himself, but the Sheikah's reputation as a whole. Not once had a member of the royal family of Hyrule been assassinated while the Sheikah protected them. Not once. If Sheik accidentally broke this string of successful guardianship…it simply would not do.

And while such thoughts were not horrible enough to distract him from his work proper, it always left him somewhat…awkward when it came to talking to Zelda. _I am no great conversationalist,_ he thought.

Still, Zelda's eerie silence did little for the general mood at the moment, and he knew he had to say something, _anything_ , to cheer his big sister up.

"For what it's worth," he said quietly. "I believe you did the right thing. In everything." Zelda gave another jerk, but this one felt different. More positive, as random twitching of muscles go at least. "You…may have ended his life, but at least you spared him the humiliation and disgrace of being a widely acknowledged traitor. He was grief-stricken, but I could see in his eyes that he was thankful at least for that. And I have no doubt in that he still loved you with all of his heart…even if it caused him to make serious mistakes."

He felt Zelda smile against his shoulder. She sniffled one last time, broke away from the hug, turned her head to face the wall as she wiped her tears away. Then she faced him again, her face locked in an expression that was supposed to pass for a happy one. She almost succeeded. _Almost_. Her smile was a bit crooked.

"Thank you, Sheik," she said. "I…needed to hear that. But Guilden was, unfortunately, a lost cause. And it's mostly my fault."

"How?" asked Sheik. "As far as I know, you have treated him with nothing but kindness…except for…you know…" _I just did it again, didn't I?_

"No, not always, Sheik," the princess answered. "Just after you…er…"

"Died?"

"Right, died. Just after you passed away, he began to protest my use of magic to keep your body preserved," said Zelda, clearly struggling to keep what she said neutral and…normal.

"Zelda, tip-toeing around the subject only makes it hard to keep conversations flowing," said Sheik, sighing slightly. "I know it is awkward, but I was dead. Just say it like it is." He held up a hand just as she was about to continue, stopping her just as she formed the first syllable. "And in Guilden's defence, I too would have protested against your use of magical power for such a…unnecessary thing."

"Sheik, I wanted to bury you in the Shadow Temple," said Zelda. "But I wanted to bury _you_ , not your…decomposing remains."

 _I cannot argue against that. One's mortal coil rarely remains pretty and handsome once the soul leaves it,_ Sheik thought. _But still…_

Zelda took his silence as a cue to continue. "Anyway, Guilden didn't want me to preserve your body…Link was there, he took great offense to something he said about you."

"Something along the lines of 'filthy Sheikah', if I'm not mistaken," said Sheik. "It's the most common insult hurled at us. What about the Hero?"

"He punched Guilden. Hard. I think he broke his nose," said Zelda. "I'm not sure what happened afterwards, but I felt so angry with him. I…released him from his services and banished him from my presence." She clenched her fist, as if wishing she could hit herself for what she had done. Sheik tensed slightly, ready to catch any attempt at self-harm. "He looked so…stricken, Sheik. I had basically taken away his entire life, and I don't…I don't think he was able to handle it. Maybe something snapped, I don't know, but he must have…"

"Rash actions are indeed often taken when one is upset," said Sheik. "Perhaps it was a mistake on your part to banish him, but it was an even bigger mistake on his part to alert the enemy of our location."

"Do you know what worried me the most, Sheik?" asked Zelda, looking into his eyes. Sheik shook his head, and the princess flashed him a sad smile. "I was worried about what you would think of me and my actions…that you would be disappointed in me."

Sheik's eyes widened, and he took a step away from her. "You…Zelda, I am the last person whose feelings you should consider when making such decisions! I am merely your shield, not your sword!"

"I know, I know," said Zelda. "And yet I cannot help but strive for your acceptance, your…your acknowledgment that I am doing the right thing." She had trouble keeping her eyes still now, them darting back and forth between objects and people, never lingering for too long, never landing on Sheik. "I…I know our relationship is to be a purely professional one, Sheik, but…you are my _friend_ as well! More than a friend, you're my brother!"

A strange silence had slowly descended around the two, Sheik noticed. People had heard their princess' exclamations, her words to her protector, and had stopped to look. Sheik couldn't blame them. It was only natural to be curious about such conversations, but he would gladly have faced another Dead Hand or an army of ReDeads than be stuck in this situation. Conclusions would be drawn from this. Was the princess overstepping the boundaries around her protector? Had her Sheikah bodyguard defiled some sacred trust, to the point that the princess was having delusions about a familial relationship between them?

 _This…is dangerous…_ he thought, his eye firmly fixed upon Zelda, who was also noticing the tense atmosphere around them now. "Your Highness," he said as loud and clearly as he dared, "I believe this discussion is better suited for some other time."

Zelda nodded, her face set in a grim mask again. "As do I, Sheik. I believe I will retreat to my quarters." She turned, walking away through the labyrinth, leaving Sheik alone with a great number of soldiers who had just seen their beloved princess greatly upset, which must have had _something_ to do with the Sheikah now looking nervously around him.

_No…looking like this will only make things more suspicious…_

_**I agree,**_ said Terra suddenly. _**I highly suggest either getting the hell away from here, or exercising your power.**_

_Exercise my power?_

_**You are close to the princess, yes? Even if they have their suspicions, these soldiers will fully obey your orders if they believe they are sanctioned by the princess.** _

_Just how much of that conversation did you hear?_

_**Not much. Just the end of it. Nothing personal, if that is what you are worried about. I was going to lock myself away again when I realised that you will cause quite an uproar if you make the wrong decision right now.** _

_So you decided to give me some advice._

_**Advice and advice…more of a friendly hint, I suppose. As much as I would like you to fight your own battles, like you have been doing with much success for several years, I am also a part of you now. Whatever mistakes you make, I will feel the repercussions.** _

_Self-preservation, in other words. Touching._

_**Isn't it just?**_ It was easy to imagine Terra grinning widely at him in his mind as Sheik suddenly snapped back to reality. It had felt like the conversation took a minute or two, but no time seemed to have passed at all.

 _Well, nothing else to do but follow sound advice, I guess,_ he thought. He looked at the soldiers around him, narrowing his eyes. "What are you staring at? Back to work!"

Surprisingly, it worked. Granted, the soldiers were tired and weakened from the night before and probably did not want a fight, but that they backed of so easily… Sheik knew this would come back to haunt him later, but he didn't particularly care at the moment. There were other things to prioritise. Such as Zelda's well-being. With a light jump, he climbed to the top of the labyrinth wall, and hurried across the gaps, wanting to intercept the princess before she locked herself away from the outside world. He had seen and heard the warning signs, and he did not want this to escalate.

But it was too late. Just as he arrived at the staircase leading up to the meadow, he caught a glimpse of Zelda's back disappearing over the lip of the stairs.

 _How did she get all the way over there before me?_ he wondered, sure that he had moved much faster than her since he didn't have to follow the labyrinth.

 _ **Maybe she is really committed to the idea of privacy,**_ piped Terra in. _**Really, I don't blame her. I may not know everything she has been through, but seven years of warfare is bound to grate on everyone's nerves.**_

 _I suppose you're right…and I guess I should give her some distance…but_ she _was the one who came to_ me _, after all…it's just not log—_

 _ **Do**_ **not** _ **start dragging logic kicking and screaming into this, Sheik,**_ Terra warned him. _**It just doesn't apply here. You have to remember that this is a girl who saw her best friend and little brother die, only to rise from the dead to punch her**_ **other** _ **best friend, and then act…well, a little snotty when she tells him that his opinion matters.**_

_I acted snotty?_

_**Well, perhaps not snotty, but you did give off a certain…er…unwillingness to accept it. Maybe she thought you rejected your own importance to her, and she didn't quite know how to handle it.** _

_That was not my intention._

_**It rarely is. But you have to realise, Sheik, that you are an exceedingly difficult person to read. Sure, you may have the best of intentions, but when you say it with the expression and tone of a madman and murderer…** _

_Madman and murderer? I have_ never _—_

_**Yes, yes, I know, a bit extreme of an example. But it still applies, for that was what you seemed like in the tent, when you started reaching for that dagger you had forgotten to bring.** _

_I…you were listening to that? I thought you said you were locked away._

_**Well, I peeked out to see if the coast was clear, which it obviously wasn't. If that is how you act around your friends, Sheik, then I think it is a wonder that you still have them.** _

_I didn't know you were to judge me and my behaviour,_ thought Sheik sourly, realising that Terra was right. He had been rather terse and…well, perhaps denying to Zelda right then. _I didn't do it on purpose…_

 _ **And I am sure she knows that,**_ replied Terra. _**But with all that has happened in the past couple of days and the emotional trauma of having lost so many men and subjects because of one of the people she thought she could trust, she must have misinterpreted everything to the highest degree. She just needs some time to sort it out…perhaps a good rest as well.**_

 _Tell me, do you listen in on_ everything _I do now?_ asked Sheik. _Because I was sure you had locked yourself away when I talked to her up there._

 _ **Well, here's one of the funny things I have discovered about this little partnership of ours,**_ said Terra, sounding embarrassed. _**I seem to be directly connected to your memories.**_

_Pardon?_

_**Well, I seem to remember every conversation you have, even if I didn't directly listen to it. Of course, it only happens when I finally come out again, but then—BAM—it's there, the entire transcript, right in front of nose…er, brain.** _

… _this just keeps getting better and better,_ thought Sheik, sighing out loud.

_**Hey, it is not my fault. I'm not doing it on purpose. Blame the warlock, not me. Even if he saved your life…and mine, to a certain degree, I suppose.** _

_Eugh, I can feel a headache coming on,_ Sheik thought, pinching the bridge of his nose through his mask. _Do you mind…going away for a bit? I need to think for myself._

 _ **Certainly,**_ replied Terra. _**Just one thing before I go: I think the Hero would like some answers from you.**_

_Concerning?_

_**Concerning your relationship with the shadow,**_ Terra said, spitting out the last word. _**It's better that he knows it sooner rather than later…and I am sure he will understand.**_

 _Unless he decides to kill me first,_ thought Sheik jokingly as he let himself drop from the labyrinth wall, heading up the stairs.

_**I think that when it comes to that matter in particular, the Hero will go after someone else rather than you…if you explain it clearly enough.** _

_Easy for you to say_ _._

_**Perhaps. Anyway, I do believe I will take a nap. I will see…** _ _**hear…think you when I think you.** _

_Right…_

It was an odd sensation, Terra slipping away. It felt like someone had poked his mind, and that his head suddenly became quiet again. Sheik knew that he would never get used to it, but he supposed it was better than having some sort of fireworks ceremony going off in his head. He shook his head, wondering where that thought had come from. As he stepped into the meadow, he saw that Zelda had been assigned new guards—or two, at least. The bare minimum guarding the entrance to her tent, they wore only regular armour, there being an obvious shortage of royal guard-attire.

As Sheik made to enter the tent, one of the guards lifted his visor, staring at him. "The princess does not wish to be disturbed."

Sheik nodded, fighting the urge to roll his eyes at the man. "I know. I am not here to see the princess."

"Very well," said the guard and stepped slightly aside, unblocking Sheik's path. Just after setting foot inside the tent, the guard called after him: "The moment we hear any commotion, we're coming in!"

"Certainly," said Sheik, raising an eyebrow to himself. _Am I considered a threat now?_

And indeed, instead of heading toward Zelda's undoubtedly extravagant bedroom, he headed for the smaller one that belonged to Link and he. The Hero was still asleep, still covered by his blanket, to Sheik's surprise. He had been sure that Link would have kicked it off at some point. Sheik sat down on his bed, looking at Link for a few minutes.

 _I wonder how he will react when I tell him…_ he thought. Images flashed in front of his mind's eye, of an angry Link smashing the place apart, enraged over his lover's involvement with what could very well be called his evil twin, a saddened Link disappointed that Sheik did not have the backbone to stay loyal to him…and a crying Link upset about his lover unwillingly becoming a pawn in the shadow's game.

 _If I was even_ that _unwilling,_ Sheik thought bitterly, feeling the area where Speil had left his mark some months before. It was gone now, the bite mark having disappeared when their bond was cut, but he could still _feel_ it.

"You back?" Link asked suddenly, looking at Sheik with sleepy eyes. Sheik hadn't even noticed Link waking up.

"Yes," he said. "I'm back."

"Whatchu thinkin' about?" asked the half-sleeping Hero.

"…things," replied Sheik.

"Bad things," said Link. "You crease your forehead when you're worried." Sheik half-expected Link to launch on a quest of interrogation, but when the Hero simply beckoned the Sheikah to him, he did not resist. Lying next to the Hero, Sheik let Link cover them both with his blanket, let himself be drawn into Link's arms, resting his forehead against Link's strong chest.

"Sleep," Link commanded.

And even though Sheik had already gotten a good night's rest, he found his eyes inexplicably tiredly closing and a calm coming over him.

 _I am lucky,_ was the last thing he thought before he fell asleep, comforted by Link's embrace and steady heartbeat.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 78**

* * *

When Sheik woke up again, he felt completely disoriented. For a good half minute, he had no idea where he was or who he was nestled against. However, as his initial confusion slowly subsided, he remembered where he had fallen asleep—in Link's comforting embrace. The Hero still slept, a serene expression on his face, unlike the strained and clearly conflicted one he usually wore when sleeping. Sheik wanted to just close his eyes again and go back to sleep. However, his nose detected something that clearly needed to be washed. And it was coming from the Hero.

As he disentangled himself from Link's arms, Sheik noticed that Link was still wearing the very same clothes he had worn when they had arrived at the main camp—mud stains and all.

 _How long has he gone dressed—and smelled—like this?_ he thought as he finally was able to get Link to release his iron grip on his forearm, waking the Hero in the process.

"Sheik?" Link asked sleepily.

"Hero, how long has it been since you last bathed?" asked Sheik seriously.

"Huh?" asked Link, confused. "Why do you want to know that?"

"Because frankly, Link, you stink," said Sheik. "Now, answer my question."

"Not since we left the field hospital," admitted Link, blushing when he too, apparently, noticed the rather repugnant odour that surrounded him like a wall. "I guess I'm long overdue, eh?" he asked, throwing aside the blanket and standing up.

"I'd say so, yes," said Sheik, looking around the room. It seemed to be daytime still, judging by the lack of candles, lamps and torches in the hallway, but it was eerily quiet.

"Then there's no point in waiting, is there?" said Link. "Where did _you_ bathe?"

"In a small shed behind the tent," answered Sheik. "But I believe it was pulverised when that…sorceress showed up during the attack."

"Oh," said Link. "Who was that, anyway?" he asked after a minute. "She seemed to know Vorpheus…"

"Judging by her death threats and willingness to go through with them, quite closely too," said Sheik. "It was mere luck that the warlock was able to get her with that attack." Sheik looked out into the hallway, seeing the guards standing at their post. He wondered how nervous they were about their job, especially since they had almost denied him access to the tent. "Speaking of the warlock," he said, turning to face Link. "Are you certain he can be trusted?"

"He resurrected you, didn't he?" said Link. "I'd say that makes it pretty obvious he's on our side."

"Unless he has an agenda that requires infiltrating and ingratiation oneself with targets of opportunity," said Sheik, knowing that Link would have trouble deciphering the last part of his sentence. "As in, making friends with you and I in order to get to the princess."

Link thought about it, crossing his arms. "I guess that sounds…plausible," he said slowly. "But I don't think that's what he's up to. All he wanted in return for saving your life was a rematch with me and an audience with Zelda…"

"An audience?" asked Sheik, filing away the rematch question for later. "That would be a good opportunity for a sneak attack."

"He could just as easily have attacked Zelda before that Dehl girl showed up," countered Link. "We were all kinda…confused right then, remember?"

Sheik nodded, seeing Link's point. "I suppose you are right…I would still like to speak with him before he sees the princess, however. He has some questions to answer."

"That's what I was going to suggest," said Link. He looked down at his by now ruined tunic. "After the bath, of course."

"Right," said Sheik, stepping out into the hallway. "You go ask the princess about that," he said, noticing that—as always—Zelda's servants were hiding, only coming out once the princess needed something. How they were able to do so, he didn't know, and probably didn't _want_ to.

"What are you gonna do?" asked Link, shouting the question after the Sheikah.

"There is someone I would like to talk to," Sheik called back, not turning his head.

 _Not to mention that I need to prepare myself for the most difficult conversation I am ever going to have,_ he added mentally.

* * *

Link watched as the guards parted way to let the Sheikah out, and then went in the direction of Zelda's room, hoping that he wouldn't catch her at an inopportune time. A curtain-like veil hung in front of her doorway, clearly intended to block out any unwanted visitors. Link cleared his throat.

"Zelda? Can I come in?" he asked.

"Wait a minute," the princess' familiar voice responded, followed by the sounds of rustling papers and cloth. Something heavy and wooden slammed shut followed by a small gasp, as if Zelda hadn't expected it to make so much noise. "You may enter," she called.

Link brushed the cloth aside, entering the princess' private chambers. Unlike the princess' first quarters, these were Spartan and simple, pretty similar to the room he and Sheik shared. She had a desk, though, and on it were a large number of maps and written texts on tactics, if his eyes did not deceive him. Zelda was sitting in a chair in front of it, having apparently been deep in studies when he arrived. She rose as he entered, greeting him with a smile.

"Link, how are you?" she asked. "I trust you slept well." Her eyes flickered to the door, probably expecting Sheik to come in as well.

"Yeah, like a rock," said Link, punctuating with a yawn. "There's something I need, though."

"Anything, Link," replied Zelda.

"I need a bath, and Sheik told me to ask you for that," said Link. "I think it's a bit…uh, much to ask a princess for that, but…"

Zelda smiled. "Well, I'm afraid there isn't much I can do to help with that right now…the bath house was destroyed in the attack, and I'm not sure if building another one is wise at the moment. I suppose you can go to the barracks and ask the soldiers if you can borrow their facilities…I'm sure they'd be happy to assist the Hero of Time in all matters…even hygienic," she said, wrinkling her nose when she finally noticed the reason for Link's request.

"Oh, okay," said Link, turning around. "Thanks."

"No problem, Link," said Zelda. "Oh, and one more thing," she said, halting Link as he went for the exit. "Well, two more things, to be exact. Is Sheik still in the tent?"

"No, he went out," answered Link. "I'm not sure where. He had someone he wanted to talk to, he said."

"If you see him, could you tell him something for me?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Tell him I'm sorry," the princess said, looking somewhat saddened. When Link opened his mouth to ask what for, she interrupted him: "He will know what I am talking about."

"Alright, and the other thing?" asked Link.

"I am holding a meeting with the representatives of the other races of Hyrule in a couple of hours," said Zelda, clearly dreading the moment. "I would like it very much if you both could be present for it. I think it will help to have the Hero of Time there to…ease the ambassadors' apprehensions to the plans I will lay out for them."

"Sure thing," said Link. "Now, I really need to wash, because I can feel my eyes tearing up. We'll be there, Zelda."

When Zelda finally heard his footsteps disappear, she let out a breath she hadn't realised she was holding in after saying what she needed to. "Goddesses, how did he end up like _that_?" she whispered, suddenly wishing for a window she could open.

* * *

Sheik felt his mouth twist into a strange smile as he approached the little tent, glad that his face was obscured by his mask. This was an encounter that would be interesting. The person he was looking for was standing there, smoking a cigarette, it seemed. Judging by the position of the setting sun, it was somewhere around three or four in the afternoon, and she would was probably off duty for the time being.

"Dr. Kaura," he greeted as he approached the stern physician, who did not seem surprised to see him.

She dropped her cigarette on the ground and stomped it out with her boot, regarding him with calculating eyes. "I'm pretty sure the last time I saw you, you were considerably less lively than you are now. In fact, I'm almost certain you were dead." She raised an eyebrow. "Either I'm dreaming, or the warlock was not lying."

"You're not dreaming," said Sheik. "The warlock brought me back." He looked around, wondering where Malon was.

"I sent her back to the field hospital with an escort," Kaura said, interpreting his glances. "This frontline is no place for an apprentice."

"This is not a frontline," said Sheik.

"Sure seemed like it last night," said the physician. "Hell, judging by the number of wounded, it was a battlefield. At least they caught the traitor and made him pay."

"Everyone gets what is coming to them," said Sheik, remembering Guilden's cries. "Sooner or later."

"Hmph," said Kaura, looking out over the camp. "And all the while, innocents suffer. Do you know what I hate the most about this war?"

"No."

"It's not the casualties or the wounded and dying," said the physician. "It's the faces people make when I have to tell them that I was unable to help their comrade or loved one. It's impossible to erase them from my memory." She rubbed her tired eyes.

 _She must have worked herself half to death,_ thought Sheik, waiting for her to continue.

"The look on a child's face as have to tell them that their father or mother did not survive…it's enough to make me wish I had perished in the attack myself," she said.

"But you didn't," Sheik stated.

"No, I did not," said Kaura, looking at him with a half-smile on her face. "Did it hurt? Coming back, I mean."

"No," said Sheik. "It was…confusing at first, and then I was back to normal, I suppose."

"Back to normal indeed," said Kaura, her half-smile melting into a grin. "The warlock told me the first thing you did was to ask for a sword and then chopped a man's head off after maiming his family jewels."

"He had it coming," replied Sheik, remembering the pained expression on the soldier's face as he had gripped his damaged goods. "He attacked the princess."

"A capital crime," said Kaura.

"Worse. Simply unforgivable," Sheik said. "The warlock is your patient?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Yes, he is."

"Is he alright? If he's talking…"

"He is better," said Kaura. "All that was wrong with him were a few broken ribs and exhaustion. A couple of days rest should be enough for him to get back on his feet, and when the next shipment of red potion arrives, he will be as good as new…breaking natural laws and all."

"You do not like that he brought me back," said Sheik, detecting the bitterness in her voice at the end. "You'd rather I stay dead."

"Don't get me wrong, kid," Kaura said, a protesting and tired tone in her voice. "I like you, and your death…well, it affected me on a far deeper level than I had expected, but bringing someone back like he did, so long after they have passed away…it's just not right."

"Unless it could be done on a large scale, right?" Sheik said.

"I am not going to be drawn into an ethical debate with you, kid," said Kaura, shaking her head and fiddling out another cigarette. "All I'm saying is that if he is so eager to break the natural laws and the supposed 'fate' laid down by the Goddesses you Hyrulians are so keen on believing in, then there are thousands of innocents who are waiting for their turn. All the men, women and children caught in the middle of the war, who never stood a chance…they too should be offered a second chance."

"And I am sure he would have done so, had he not been so weakened by just resurrecting a single person," said Sheik, ignoring the blasphemy the physician had uttered so casually. But he couldn't help but doubt his own words, though. What was the guarantee for that the warlock was such a philanthropist? "He almost died bringing _me_ back, apparently."

"Hmph," Kaura snorted. "So much for the 'all-powerful' Vorpheus the Immortal, then."

"I'd like to speak with him," said Sheik. "I have some questions I need answered."

Holding the unlit cigarette in her lips, Kaura nodded and began walking toward the labyrinth. "I won't go in with you, though," she warned. "I can't stand the man."

"Is he rude?" asked Sheik.

"No, he tried to flirt with me!"

 _Clearly the crime of the century,_ he thought.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 79**

* * *

True to her word, Kaura showed Sheik to where Vorpheus was recuperating, but stayed behind some distance away, her displeasure with the warlock so evident and seething that Sheik had to reconsider making a comment. Nodding in thanks, the Sheikah approached the tarpaulin-like cover that had been erected over Vorpheus' bed, flanked by four guards. They were not taking any chances with this one, apparently.

"Warlock," said Sheik as he stepped underneath the cover, waving at the guards, who nodded and shuffled away, out of earshot. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired," answered Vorpheus. "And kind of lonely. Is that lovely doctor woman with you? She's spunky."

"No, she is…occupied," said Sheik.

"Aw, too bad," said the warlock, looking around. "They really could not find a more isolated spot to put me."

 _He's right,_ Sheik thought. They had sealed off an entire wing of the labyrinth for the warlock, placing him in a bend, out of sight of the rest of the public. He could see the soldiers just around the corner, apparently having a violent discussion amongst themselves. "At least you have privacy…and a private guard force."

"Bah, privacy is overrated once you have grown bored of trying to piece together just what happened before you passed out," scoffed Vorpheus. "And private guards…bah again! They are just here to make sure I'm not going on a murderous rampage."

"Well, in all fairness, you _did_ work for Ganondorf," said Sheik. "You can't blame them for being…er, slightly distrustful of you."

"All in the past, lad, all in the past," said the warlock, his hair growing slightly darker. He looked tired, and his face seemed to be locked in a perpetual bored mask. "I would have thought saving your life would have redeemed myself in their eyes…"

"I'm not that well liked among the population of this camp," said Sheik, shaking his head slightly. "Had it been the Hero, on the other hand…"

"Perhaps, but he had not gotten himself killed, so I had to settle with you." Vorpheus looked around them, sitting up in his bed. "So, how are _you_ feeling? That spirit friend of yours…is he settling well?"

"We have some issues to work out, but yes, he is settling," Sheik answered. "Though that shortened lifespan of mine…I would have really appreciated hearing it back in the temple rather than leaving it up to Terra to break the news to me."

"In my defence," said Vorpheus, raising a hand. "I was not given a lot to work with, and you were not particularly interested in hearing what I had to say after you woke up. And with all that happened after we left the temple…well…"

"…which brings me to the reason I am here," said Sheik, changing the subject smoothly. "Who was that girl? You know each other."

"What gave you that idea? The death threats, or the constant use of our names by each other?" asked Vorpheus sarcastically. "Yes, I know her, and she knows me…well, she _hates_ me, to be exact, but there we go…"

"Answer my question," said Sheik sharply. "Who is she, and why does she hate you?"

Vorpheus sighed, fixing Sheik with a piercing gaze. "Very well, I shall tell you. But I will warn you, it is a long tale, and I am not sure how entertaining it will be."

"Entertainment is irrelevant," said Sheik. "She is a threat to the princess and the Remnant, and we must know how to combat her."

"You do _not_ play around, do you?" asked Vorpheus. "I suggest you sit down, it will take a while."

* * *

Two centuries ago, I was not known as Vorpheus the Immortal. In fact, I was not even Vorpheus. My real name was Caspar Ejil…don't laugh, I can see you smiling under the mask!

I lived in the land of Raguna, which now goes by the name of Termina. I was a wealthy man, a _very_ wealthy man. I owned hundreds of properties, acres of farmland…at the peak of my wealth; I had over five hundred families living on my land. Impressive? Undoubtedly.

But more important than money was my family. I had it all, you could say. A beautiful wife, two wonderful children…and when they grew up, they had children of their own. Perhaps not so strange, but in retrospect I truly wish they had not procreated…

In my later years, I grew bored. There is only so much one can do before everything becomes monotonous and repetitive. In fact, for the longest time, I contemplated suicide, only held back by the love for my wife. However, when her life was claimed by a bout of pneumonia, nothing held me back.

One night, I wrote a letter to my family and left it on the dining room table for them to find the day after. I left everything to my eldest son, Milo, and—don't interrupt me. I know what she said that night, and I will get to it later.

The plan was perfect. There was a bridge, which I fully intended on hanging myself from. Sure, perhaps not the best, least painful or honourable way to go, but when you have grown tired of life…well, silly matters like that do not make it into the equation. As I tied the rope to the bridge and made the knot that would hopefully snap my neck, I became aware of a thundering sound approaching me. Out of nowhere it seemed, a horse came galloping out of the mist, knocking me off the bridge before I was able to place the rope around my neck. Naturally, I was annoyed that, while I would certainly die, I would not be able to choose my own terms. And I knew it was going to hurt. The river below was filled with rocks, and the water level was low, which meant that I was in for quite a lot of pain.

However, just before I hit the water, something stopped me. I had closed my eyes, and as I opened them, I noticed that no one was holding onto me. I was floating in mid-air! I was lifted back up on the bridge, and came face to face with the rider of the horse that had knocked me off to begin with. He had a look of severe regret on his face, apologising profusely for riding into me. He noticed the rope I had tied to the bridge, and asked me if I had really intended to end my own life.

At this point, I was beyond thinking about my own feeble life and the ending of it. I asked the man how he had lifted me back up. Easy, he said. I used magic.

By then, it was too late. I became so interested in magic that I asked him to teach me on the spot. The man laughed and told me it was not something you could just learn out of the blue. There were requirements, especially for one as old as I was at that point. Don't ask, I won't tell you.

What are the requirements, I asked. Aptitude and natural talent, he answered. I asked him to test me. He did. I have no idea what he saw in me, for I knew that I had the talent of a blind donkey with balance problems, but after doing something—I still do not know exactly what it was—he agreed. And so I, an old man, became the student of a sorcerer who could not have been much older than my son Milo, who was in his late twenties at the time.

I offered him a room in my mansion, which he gladly took, having just been kicked out of the lodging house for setting fire to an unruly patron.

Two years later, and I was quite a competent user of magic, able to perform a decent amount of spells and possessing a decent reservoir of energy. Naturally, my family noticed how much more revitalised I seemed after this strange young man had moved into our home, and Milo flat out asked me one day during dinner. His wife had given him the evil eye the second the question left his mouth, but his defiant stare made me relent and admit to what I had attempted to do. There was…quite an uproar.

I had half-expected my family to shun me and my unnatural ways—magic was outlawed at the time, and performing it could net you an instant execution sentence—but to my surprise, they stayed by my side. At one point, Milo approached my teacher and asked him to teach _him_ as well. And two years later, Milo's daughter, twelve years old, asked the same as well.

So there we were, three generations of Ejils, being taught to manipulate the elements and break the laws laid down by nature. It's a wonder the authorities did not catch on to what we were doing. The family was, luckily, more than willing to hide our activities. Our teacher was impressed with how quickly my son and granddaughter learned everything, and assumed that the Ejil bloodline was naturally inclined to the ways of magic.

But nothing lasts forever, idyll least of all. One day, two years after taking on his third apprentice, our teacher was visiting the city to pick up some supplies he needed—and was recognised as the man who had accidentally killed the lodging patron four years before. He was captured, sentenced and executed in the course of a few hours. We were devastated, Milo's daughter most of all. She had taken quite a shine to her teacher, and…well, I believe you can imagine how she reacted.

We mourned for weeks, wondering why he had not simply blasted his way out of the situation, he was surely strong enough judging by the insane amount of spells he had mastered. It was not until Milo's daughter found our teacher's journal that we decided to do something about the injustice that had been wrought upon him. I have the very same journal with me right now, in case you wondered. I used it when I resurrected you, Master Sheikah.

As you can guess, we decided to bring him back. We had trouble deciphering what his notes said at first, for they were written in a language that died a long time ago. However, we believed we had enough information for it. We went to the graveyard, dug him up and brought him back to the mansion, where we would do the deed. We kept the rest of the family out of this particular business. We knew that we were doing something horrible, but we all…wanted him back so much.

But something went wrong. I am not sure if too much time had passed between his death and the point of resurrection or if one of us made a mistake. All I know is that there was an explosion which wiped out the entire east wing of the mansion. Teacher's body was obliterated along with any hope of bringing him back, but the three of us were left unharmed, if a bit singed, along with the journal.

I perused the bloody thing for weeks, but found nothing that explained the happening. We blamed the damage from the explosion on a fire that started because of an accident with a candle, which luckily deflected the authorities' attention away from us. We simply resigned ourselves to the fact that we would never again see our teacher, and that we simply had to teach ourselves. And for a time, we did.

But then we noticed something strange happening. Milo's daughter did not seem to age. Two years, and the girl's appearance did not change whatsoever. We thought she used magic to keep herself like this, but she refused, saying she had not done anything. We did not believe her, but then I noticed that Milo had not changed either. At his age, physical appearance does not change quickly, but if anything, he looked even younger.

My worst fears were confirmed when, an additional three years later, we looked exactly as we did on the night of the failed resurrection. But our powers only seemed to grow. We eventually arrived to the conclusion that our botched reanimation attempt had somehow halted our aging. Milo and I…we did not mind it at all. At some point or another, everyone wishes to live forever. But my granddaughter…she was furious. She was still stuck in the body of a fourteen-year-old, and she hated it. We did our best to fix it, but we were unable to. The best we could come up with was a spell that let us change our appearance at will…which is, incidentally, the reason for why I can change my hair so quickly.

I am sure you can see where this story is going now. The growing frustration with knowing that she would never truly grow up became too much for her, and Milo's daughter…she went berserk. She woke up one day and began to systematically kill each and every family member in the mansion. Milo and I tried to stop her, but she had grown too strong for even the both of us to stop her. Why exactly she did not go after Milo and I, I do not know. The rest of the family had nothing to do with her so-called ruined life, and were slaughtered…

At some point, I blacked out while attacking my granddaughter, and I woke up with the rain on my face and the smouldering remains of the mansion to my right. Milo was staring at the ruins. He told me that his daughter had disappeared in a burst of flame, but not before telling her father that she would no longer go by her family name. Instead, she chose another name…and I think we both know what name that was. Dehl.

* * *

"In the years that followed, Milo and I tried to find her, but to no avail. When that girl does not wish to be found, you will _not_ find her," finished Vorpheus. "After a hundred years of fruitless search, Milo and I split up, deciding that it would be more effective and cover more ground. We both took up aliases so we would not raise questions as well. I have not seen him since…but them Dehl reappeared in Termina, and my son was killed. I set a trap for her, and she fell for it…but I failed in killing her, obviously." He looked down at his hands, which had interlocked during his tale, and released his grip. His nails had left deep grooves in his palms.

"So that is what this is all about?" asked Sheik, hardly able to believe his own ears. "She decided to kill her family—and now your son and you—just because she would not grow up into a woman."

"It may sound silly to you," said Vorpheus. "But to her…I don't know. Maybe I was not attentive enough, maybe I didn't pay enough attention to her plight. All I know is that she and I are the only ones left of the Ejil bloodline, and she is now obviously working with Ganondorf, with whom I severed all ties with just after the Hero defeated me at Lake Hylia. For some reason, I am not surprised…"

 _This is a lot to swallow,_ thought Sheik, staring at the very old man.

 _ **I'll say…I have never heard of the Ejil bloodline, and I am quite old myself,**_ said Terra suddenly. _**Are we sure we can trust this one?**_

 _Probably not,_ thought Sheik. _But for the moment, I am willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. We need a strong sorcerer if we are to stand a chance against Ganondorf when the final battle comes…and he does not strike me as an assassin. There is one thing I wish to know, however…_

"Why did you work for Ganondorf?" he asked, staring at the warlock with stern eyes. "I will know if you lie to me."

Vorpheus shrugged. "What can I say, I was bored. I have travelled the world for a long time, lad. At some point or another, one starts to crave structure. When I came to Hyrule, I saw a civil war. Unfortunately, I met one of the king's men first, and he convinced me that the Remnant are nothing but a group of rebels who wanted nothing more than to destroy this land. I was tired back then, and I believed it. Of course, after I met the Hero, I changed my mind. A kid like that…a champion who would not finish off his helpless opponents could not possibly be a murderous monster like Ganondorf says he is…so here I am."

"And what do you intend to do now?" asked Sheik.

"Well, I have been promised an audience with your princess, and I will offer my services."

"Seems convenient," said Sheik. "For all I know, you could be planning an assassination."

"With all due respect, if I wanted to kill anyone in this place, I would have done so the night I brought you back…I could easily have struck you all down after the enemy soldiers were defeated. Or I could simply have chosen not to warn you about Dehl's attack. No, I have no intention of assassinating anyone…I just want to help, and stop Dehl before she can do more damage."

"Fair enough," said Sheik, nodding. "I am not sure when the princess will have time for you…but know this: I will be there, watching, ready to act if you show even the slightest sign of hostility."

"Fair enough," echoed Vorpheus. "Now get out of here, I want to sleep for a bit." He waved Sheik away, who was quite happy to leave the tarpaulin.

 _ **What in the world was that all about?**_ asked Terra as Sheik walked away. _**You are just going to leave it at that?**_

 _I don't think he is an enemy…not anymore, at least,_ Sheik thought. _Did you not see the regret and sadness in his eyes when he spoke of his granddaughter?_

_**I don't** _ **see** _**, Sheik.** _

_Right, I apologise._

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 80**

* * *

"Sheik! Sheik!"

He turned around at the call of his name, recognising the voice. Link was jogging toward him, wearing his red tunic and a bright smile on his face. He had also, to Sheik's annoyance, found his matching red cap, which fluttered behind him in the wind as he approached. Sheik glared at the piece of fabric, wishing it would burst into flames. However, he realised soon after that this was the Goron tunic, fashioned for Link specifically so he could resist the massive heat inside the caldera of Death Mountain.

Link came to a stop, slightly out of breath. "I've been looking all over the camp for you," he eventually managed to say, smiling at Sheik.

"You have bathed, I presume," Sheik said, noticing that there was no longer an impenetrable wall of unbearable odour around the Hero. "And changed," he added, deliberately looking hard at Link's cap.

The Hero nodded, oblivious to the source of his lover's discomfort. "Yeah, the soldiers were really nice about letting me borrow their shower…or, holey bucket of water. And you were right, by the way."

"About what?"

"About the smell," answered Link, lowering his voice when he finally realised the possible embarrassment of discussing hygiene issues with a voice that could very well be called a shout. "I haven't seen Zelda's eyes so wide before."

 _I'm sorry, Zelda,_ Sheik thought, regretting having to expose the princess to it. "Really, Hero? You should have seen the time I came in to report while covered in blood once…" he said, wondering why he was saying telling Link this.

"Uh, I can't imagine…" said Link, clearly trying to.

"She was quite close to fainting, if I remember correctly," said Sheik. "A bit of an overreaction, in my opinion, as none of the blood was mine…"

Link didn't answer, only blinked at what Sheik had just said with the tone of someone describing their morning stroll through a flowery field. "Uh," he finally said. "I don't really get how you can talk about that stuff so carefree…"

 _What's this all about, then?_ Sheik looked Link up and down, noticing that the Hero had eschewed wearing tights this time, giving everyone in the camp a good look of his muscular shins and thighs. He felt a blush creeping onto his face. Shaking his head to clear away the suddenly _very_ dirty thoughts that had surfaced in his mind, Sheik did his best to look nonchalant. "I am not especially carefree, Link…I have just learned that one cannot dwell on grizzly deeds when similar things happen every day on a far larger scale."

"Right," said Link, raising an eyebrow in what Sheik felt was a mockery of his own habit. "But mentioning being covered from head to toe in blood like it's a joke…"

"I didn't say it like a joke, Hero."

"Link."

"Link, sorry."

"What's bothering you now?"

"Pardon?"

"You're furrowing your brow…and you're glaring at my cap."

Sheik took a step forward; annoyed that he could not stare into Link's eyes without having to look slightly upwards. "You know the rules, Link."

"Rules?" asked Link.

"If I cannot wear my turban, then you cannot wear your cap." With that, he grabbed Link's cap and tore it from the Hero's head, quickly wrapping it around his hand so Link couldn't take it back. "I will hold on to this until further notice."

Link tried to take it back, but Sheik simply turned his back to the Hero. Link sighed in defeat. "Fine, fine…no cap for me…"

"You can have it back, you know, if you let me wear my turban," said Sheik, looking at Link over his shoulder, knowing that the Hero would never agree to such a ludicrous idea.

" _No_!" Link exclaimed. "That turban is so awful compared to what's under there," he said, grimacing at the thought of Sheik wrapping his hair and hiding it again.

"Then no cap for you indeed," said Sheik, grinning under his mask.

Then they both noticed that a lot of people had stopped doing whatever chores they had been assigned to look at the two, undoubtedly wondering why the Hero of Time and Princess Zelda's bodyguard were arguing about headwear. However, when _they_ noticed that they had been caught looking at them, they could not possibly get back to work soon enough.

Link snapped his fingers, apparently remembering something. "Zelda wanted us to appear at a meeting she's holding soon, by the way."

 _Both of us? I thought we were taking a short break from each other,_ Sheik thought, remembering the less than ideal parting. "When is the meeting?" he asked.

"I'm not sure, she said in a couple of hours a couple of hours ago…"

Sheik blinked. "Please tell you were just struck by a sudden speech impediment and have not neglected to tell me of this until now…"

"Uh…sorry to disappoint you?" Link said, grinning hopefully.

Sheik groaned, turning to look at the top of the stairs, which were visible from every part of the labyrinth. "I suppose we should hurry back up there, then."

As if on cue, a man dressed in what appeared to be a second-hand guard uniform came running toward them. "Hero of Time? Sheik of the Sheikah?" he asked quickly, his eyes darting between them, like he was trying to recognise them from a verbal description. Link nodded. "The princess requests your presence at a meeting with the foreign ambassadors immediately."

"We're already on our way," Link announced, striking a pose Sheik supposed was supposed to be a heroic one, but ended up looking less than noble considering the Hero's sopping wet hair. "Come on, Sheik!" he shouted and began to run, taking a wrong turn right away.

Sheik looked at the messenger. "Thank you for the notification," he said and began to run himself, making sure to take the _right_ turn to Link's wrong one, the Hero himself following a few seconds after, leaving the messenger to blink at the antics of two of the most famous warriors in the Remnant.

* * *

Zelda, clad in her ceremonial armour once again, was waiting for them at the top of the stairs, tapping her foot on the rough, splintered stone.

"I didn't forget," said Link as they reached her level.

"Just almost," said Zelda.

"Are we late?" asked Sheik, worried that their tardiness would make Zelda look bad in front of the other races.

"No, you're early, in fact," said Zelda, her face breaking into a smile. "I thought a bit of healthy fear would make you hurry up. The meeting is supposed to start in ten minutes."

"You're not holding it inside?" asked Sheik, seeing a large table with many chairs around it being set up in the middle of the meadow. Torches were being set up to provide lighting as the darkness of the evening would slowly engulf the meadow.

"I'm afraid the new tent isn't big enough for that," said Zelda, her eyes hardening at Sheik, just daring him to make a comment on the new tent being bigger than the old one. "Besides, I don't really feel comfortable in enclosed quarters when there are to be so many present."

"How many are coming?" asked Link as Zelda led them over to the table, showing them where to sit—Link at her right, Sheik at her left, sword and shield respectively.

"At least twenty individuals will partake in the meeting," said Zelda. "This will be the final meeting before we take action."

"Action?" asked Sheik. "What do you have in mind?"

 _She doesn't seem angry at me,_ he thought.

"I'm afraid I cannot say until everyone is here," said Zelda apologetically. "The plans are secret."

 _And yet she intends to hold the meeting where said secret plans are to be revealed in full view of the public?_ Sheik thought.

"I know what you're thinking, Sheik," Zelda said. "And you will understand."

"Understand what?" asked Link, missing the point entirely.

* * *

The ambassadors arrived quickly. Within few minutes, an odd procession of the piscine Zora and rocky Gorons were moving up the stairs, little arguments breaking out between them every few minutes. A small group of Hylian generals had also shown up at the meadow, quickly arranging themselves at Link's and Sheik's sides, forming a Hylian of the table.

The Zora, after greeting the princess, quickly seated themselves on one side of the table, seemingly trying to stay as far away from the Gorons as possible. When the other two races had seated themselves at the table, Sheik noticed that there remained _one_ seat empty on the far side of the table…on which several books had been piled up high.

 _Now who could that seat be for?_ Sheik thought, gazing around the meadow, trying to spot someone whose tiny stature would require such a large amount of books on their seat.

One of the Zora cleared his throat, obviously attempting to embark upon a long-winded speech, as was their wont, but Zelda silenced him pre-emptively with a raised hand.

"We are still waiting for a representative, the meeting will not start until everyone is here" she said simply, staring at the Zora until he sat down, his head-fin twitching, a sign of embarrassment, apparently.

This did not sit well with the others, and quiet murmurs began making their way around the table, yet Zelda did not even seem to notice as she stared intently at the empty chair. Sheik noticed that there were several soldiers placed discreetly around the meadow, probably to ensure that no one would be able to sneak and listen in on the meeting.

Then tiny footsteps could be heard making their way up the stairs, and every head around the table turned to look at the new arrival. Sheik did not know who exactly he was, but the child-like stature, green clothes and fluttering fairy clearly gave him away as a Kokiri. He looked over to Link, to see if the Hero recognised him. Judging by his wide eyes, he did.

"Mido?" Sheik heard Link whisper.

Zelda rose from her chair and approached the carefully approaching Kokiri, something she had not done for the Zora or Gorons. _Just as well,_ Sheik thought, _he looks so…lost._

He truly did. The boy's eyes were wide as he took in everything in the meadow, including the array of guests seated around the table.

"Mido of the Kokiri, I am glad to see that you were able to get here safely," said Zelda, smiling down at the self-proclaimed leader of the Kokiri.

"I—I bring greetings from the Deku S-Sprout," stammered Mido, clearly not used to being in the company of such important people.

 _I thought the Kokiri were happy to be around Hylians,_ thought Sheik.

"And you will carry _my_ greetings back to him tomorrow, will you not?" asked Zelda, leading Mido to his chair at the other end of the table, a seat reserved for people of high importance.

"O-Of course, your highness," replied Mido, jumping up on the chair and settling down, doing his best not to look at the Gorons and Zora, who were looking at the little Kokiri with disbelief.

"All the representatives are here," said Zelda as she returned to her seat, "and this ad-hoc meeting can now begin. First, I would like to thank everyone for showing up on such short notice, but we are running out of time quickly, and we need to form a strategy for the coming weeks.

"As you all know, this camp was attacked by a small scout force of Ganondorf's soldiers recently, aided by a very powerful sorceress who goes by the name of Dehl. While we were able to fight off the attack and establish a line of defence, we were unable to prevent some of the enemy soldiers from escaping. They are now undoubtedly on their way to Ganondorf to reveal our positions at this very moment.

"As we have many wounded and our forces are spread quite thin, we have no choice but to break camp and relocate, although we have yet to find a suitable spot. That is one of the things we will decide this evening. And if we cannot find a safe place, we will have but one choice…"

She left the sentence hanging, making eye contact with everyone around the table. "If we cannot find a safe place to take cover, we will be forced to go on the offensive."

Another bout of murmuring between the seated representatives erupted. Mido looked hopelessly out of place at his end of the table, staring at the strange people who were suddenly very interested in arguing amongst themselves. One of the Zora, who were once again wearing blue tunics, undoubtedly in Link's honour, stood up and looked at Zelda with a neutral expression on his face.

"With all due respect, Your Highness," he said, "but was it not you and your generals who rejected our proposal for an offensive strategy just the other day?"

"Indeed we did," replied Zelda, her face set like steel. "But too many factors have changed since then, the attack serving as the catalyst. But an offensive is only pertinent if we cannot find a suitable spot to relocate our main camp." She looked at Mido. "Which is the reason for your presence here tonight, Mido," she said. "The Deku Sprout has been able to mask our presence here for quite some time, but I need to know if he can sustain the veil if we were to choose to remain here in the Lost Woods."

Mido cleared his throat, embarrassed at the sudden attention being focused on him. "The Deku Sprout…he is sorry to inform you that he will not be able to do so," he said slowly. "G-G-G…the Evil King's influence has grown too strong for him to resist. He says that he must focus his efforts on protecting what he was created to…the Kokiri Village."

Zelda sighed and looked at her hands for a few seconds, thinking. "That is what I was afraid to hear," she said quietly, only audible to Link, Sheik and the Hylian generals, Kato and Mito. "Very well, thank you, Mido."

Mido nodded, glad to be out of the spotlight.

"As you just heard, gentlemen, we cannot stay here. Ganondorf will find us, and we will not be able to survive an attack by a concentrated enemy force," Zelda said, once again making sure that every eye around the table was on her. "We could, of course, keep moving around the Lost Woods and hope that Ganondorf's armies will not find us, but I believe we all know that such a solution can only be temporary at best considering the amount of men he has at his disposal, not to mention the countless beasts and creatures he has at his command."

"Then we attack?" asked one of the Gorons, the large one who had been so aggressive at the last meeting. "The best defence is a strong offense, as your generals say."

"Yes, that has been a proverb of our military for many years," said Zelda. "However, our offensive will not be particularly strong in our present state. And attacking will be suicide."

"Then what is it that you want us to do, Your Highness?" asked a Zora. "You say that you will be forced to go on the offense, yet say you cannot attack? Perhaps there is some slight misunderstanding here, but I have always believed that going on the offense is the same as attacking."

"Not necessarily, general," said Zelda. She looked at Mito and nodded. The general cleared his throat to get the others' attention.

"As we stated in the previous meeting, our current, weakened state will simply not do if we wish to attack. What we need is somewhere we can regroup, rest and retrain our troops for a later engagement."

"Which we do not have, according to the Kokiri," said the large Goron.

"No, not anywhere around here, at least," said Mito. "However, the Gerudo Valley would be perfect for such a purpose."

"The Gerudo Valley?" Link and Sheik asked at the same time, surprising each other as well as the rest of the people around the table.

Mito blinked, slightly annoyed by the interruption. "Indeed, the Gerudo Valley. Ganondorf has shown no interest whatsoever in his homeland, and it is our belief that he has abandoned his people. Also, thanks to the reconnaissance provided by the Hero of Time, we know that the leader of the Gerudo is sympathetic to our cause."

"So what are you suggesting?" asked a Zora. "That we move to the Gerudo Valley? _Through_ enemy territory? When we are unable to field a force strong enough to even take on a small battalion?"

"That is exactly what I am saying," said Mito.

Zelda stood up. "I have already given the order to break up the camp, and we will be prepared to march by the break of dawn."

"What about the wounded, and the civilians?" someone asked.

"The Deku Sprout is p-prepared to offer shelter to those too wounded or unable to f-fight," said Mido from his end of the table. "As long as the number of refugees is s-sustainable."

Zelda nodded, clearly expecting this. "The field hospital will be moved to Sprout's area of influence along with the wounded from the attack. The rest will move with us to the Gerudo Valley."

 _Has Zelda entered an alliance with the Gerudo?_ Sheik wondered. She had given no signs or indications of such an event…but if she was desperate enough to move across Hyrule with her army in order to reach the valley…

"If you have already made the decision, then why call us?" asked a Zora, clearly dissatisfied with such a thing occurring without their input. "Why bother?"

"Because I have only made that decision for the Hylians," said Zelda. "I have no authority over the Zora and Goron peoples. You are welcome to stay where you are, but know that Ganondorf will come down hard on this place, and there is only limited room in Sprout's protective veil. The truth of the matter is…that we will need your help during the move. An army on the move is vulnerable, and the more soldiers we can field the better."

"So all you want is protection for the journey? Typical Hylians, so selfish," said the Zora.

It was like a dam had burst. Suddenly, everyone started shouting at each other, arguing about whether or not to go through with such a plan. Zelda did her best to quiet them down, but her voice went unheard once the Gorons joined in with their massive, ground-shaking voices. Sheik could do nothing but watch as the only free people in Hyrule struggled to come to an agreement, wondering how they had even been able to hold out in the past seven years. Of course, the Zora had only come into play recently, having been frozen under ice until Link had been able to thaw them out, and the Gorons…well, they had had little interest in the struggle until Volvagia had suddenly come out of her slumber and threatened to eat them all. They too had been saved by Link.

 _And only Link would be able to unite them,_ he thought, catching the eyes of the Hero, nodding.

Link seemed to understand what it meant, and nodded back. As the argument continued escalating, the Hero slowly rose from his chair, an annoyed expression on his face. "Enough!" he shouted.

That seemed to calm the arguers down somewhat, and Link glared at them. "I don't know anything about politics," he said. "But I know for a fact that we are talking about people's lives, here. I may not know all the facts, but I _do_ know that you—"he pointed at the Zora—"have not done a single thing to contribute to the war yet. And you—"he pointed at the Gorons—"haven't exactly been contributing very much either.

"I'm not a great strategist, or a deep thinker. But I know how the favour system works…I saved your lives," he said, looking pointedly at both the Zora and Gorons. "I helped your peoples escape from certain doom. And now I'm simply asking you to repay the favour. Help us save the Hylian race by travelling to the Gerudo Valley. Help us survive…please."

He sank into his chair, sweating slightly. "If you won't help us," he said, "then I'm not sure why I bothered helping _you_ …" he trailed off.

 _Link, you are not a great public speaker,_ Sheik thought, smiling under his mask. _But at least you are finally showing somewhat of a selfish streak…you cannot keep doing what people ask of you all the time. And while I am hesitant to call it so, you may just have shamed them into submission…_

The representatives were quiet now, all contemplating the Hero's words. Then, with a thundering bang, the large Goron slammed his fists down on the table, grinning widely. "Brother Link is right! The Hylians have done much for us, it's time for us to repay the favour." He looked at Zelda. "You have our support, Your Highness," he announced, with a choir of agreeing Gorons backing him.

Expectant eyes turned to regard the Zora, who were whispering amongst themselves, looking at Link every couple of seconds. Then the leader stood up, his head fin still twitching, and looked at Link. "You have indeed saved the Zora from extinction, Hero of Time…but more importantly, you have repeatedly saved the lives of our king and princess…and while Princess Ruto may have ascended to a higher purpose, we are certain she would agree to this…and the king as well. Princess Zelda, the Zora will be at your service as soon as possible."

Zelda smiled brightly at the gathered. "Thank you, thank you so much!"

* * *

Zelda, Link and Sheik were standing together at the now empty table, watching as the princess' tent was taken down and packed away, the furniture being loaded up on carts, much to Zelda's dismay. She had insisted on leaving it behind, but the princess' servants seemed to take orders they only agreed with and ignored everything else.

"So how did you get this idea?" asked Sheik. "Surely there must be a thousand other safe locations in Hyrule."

"Possibly, but we have little time to search for them," replied Zelda. "Ganondorf will launch a massive attack as soon as those escaping soldiers make it back to his fortress. Sprout cannot hide us any longer, and there really isn't anywhere else we can go quickly enough."

"But moving across the plains…that will put us directly in the path of his armies," said Sheik. "You're risking an awful lot on this."

"I know, Sheik…and I also know how easily we could be spotted on the way…but if I know something about Ganondorf, it is that he is arrogant and impulsive. When he receives news of this location, he will march all of his armies out here, taking no chances. However, with such hasty troop movements, the planning phase will surely suffer."

"And he will make mistakes," said Sheik. "Then you have a plan for the movement as well?"

"Not as much a plan as a general strategy," said Zelda. "We will simply move along the eastern flanks of the plains, as far away from his armies as possible. It is a long shot, certainly, but Ganondorf hasn't had any troops stationed there for years."

"Has Anaruteir come back yet?" asked Link, piping up. "Do you have an alliance with the Gerudo now?"

"Unfortunately, no," said Zelda, shaking her head sadly. "I have not received any reply whatsoever…which makes me worried that the Gerudo have either deceived us, or Anaruteir has been intercepted, either on her way in or out."

"For our sake, I hope it's the latter," said Sheik, crossing his arms. "If we are caught in the middle of the Gerudo and Ganondorf's armies, we will undoubtedly die."

"I thought you made peace with the Gerudo," said Link. "Surely that would count for something…and Aveil seemed really interested in the idea of peace with Hyrule."

"The keyword is that _I_ made peace with the Gerudo on the behalf of the Sheikah, Link," said Sheik. "Not Hyrule…but as you say, Aveil did seem quite keen on an alliance. Unless someone has rebelled, I am sure she would have gladly signed a treaty."

"Your Highness," said the approaching Mito, clad in full armour. "We are about halfway through the preparations for leaving. My estimate is that we will be ready to go in four to five hours."

"That's good, Mito, thank you," said Zelda. The general bowed and went on his way, apparently deciding that the servants packing Zelda's tent needed a good hounding. Zelda looked at Sheik. "I am sure that you have an inkling as to why I have decided to move the army specifically to the Gerudo Valley, so spit it out."

Sheik blinked, surprised at Zelda's sudden perceptiveness. "Well, I have a theory…"

"Let's hear it," said Link, smiling. Sheik wasn't entirely sure about how much Link really understood about all this, but his enthusiasm was not to be mistaken for stupidity.

"Moving to the Gerudo Valley will certainly give us an all-round better strategic position to work with," said Sheik. "Not to mention it is easier to defend the pass above the river. But it also puts us nicely in position for a possible siege of Ganondorf's fortress. Are you planning such a siege, Zelda?"

"That's exactly what I am planning, Sheik," said Zelda, smiling. "We are running out of steam and supplies. None of the other nations are willing to help us, and morale is dropping. If we do not attack now, we will never have a chance to win this."

"But I thought we didn't have enough men to that," said Link. "I mean, he outnumbers us pretty bad."

"That is just it, Hero," said Sheik, seeing through Zelda's veil. "It is not an attack meant for defeating the Evil King."

"It's not?"

"No, Link," said Zelda. "Even with help from the Zora and Gorons, there is no chance of us winning an open battle. But we can distract Ganondorf enough for a small group to infiltrate Castle Town and sneak into the fortress."

"And this group would undoubtedly include Link and I, am I right?" asked Sheik.

"Yes, it would," replied Zelda. "Link is, after all, the once who is destined to defeat Ganondorf. The Evil King has not left his fortress for years, preferring to coordinate everything from the highest tower. He will not expect us to show up in his courtyard."

"Wait, us?" asked Sheik. "You're going in as well?"

"There is something in the Temple of Time we must retrieve," said Zelda. "And only I can do it. It will be an invaluable tool for Link."

 _The Light Arrows,_ thought Sheik, remembering the legend.

"We did not have enough time to take them when Ganondorf attacked seven years ago," said Zelda. "And I could not take the chance of going back to Castle Town after that…even sending Sheik to get you when you reappeared in the temple was a big risk."

"But it paid off well," Sheik reminded her.

"Indeed."

"So…we're launching an attack from the Gerudo Valley to distract Ganondorf while we sneak inside his fortress?" asked Link, wanting to make sure he had gotten everything right. "While making a small stop at the Temple of Time to pick up something I need to defeat Ganondorf?"

"That would be the plan, yes," said Sheik.

"Okay," said Link. "I think there's one thing you're both forgetting though."

"And that is?"

"I _still_ don't have the Triforce of Courage!" the Hero exclaimed. "I don't know how many times I've been told this, but without it, I'm powerless to defeat Ganondorf."

"I haven't forgotten, Link," said Zelda. "When Mugen told me what you were up to after you showed up at Lake Hylia, I ordered him to search for your shadow."

"I think that's gonna take a bit more time than just a day and a half, Zelda, no offense," said Link, nearly scoffing.

"Mugen and his men are some of the best spies in the land, Link," said Zelda. "Impa and Sheik have trained them well…if anyone can find your shadow, it's them. In fact, I am awaiting a report from him any minute now." A familiar shriek pierced the sky, and Zelda looked up, smiling. "Ah, there she is now."

Kaiza appeared out of the dark, perching on Zelda's arm, staring at Sheik after settling down.

"Now there's a beak I have not seen in a while," said Sheik, fondly stroking the falcon's head with a thumb. She playfully nipped after the digit, making him chuckle. "Feisty as ever."

"Take her, will you?" Zelda asked after untying the message around Kaiza's leg, rolling out the paper and reading it by the torchlight.

Sheik felt his smile grow bigger when he felt the falcon's claws gripping around his forearm. "Miss me, girl?" he asked, noticing that Link was smiling in the corner of his eye. "What's amusing, Link?"

"Nothing," said Link. "It's just that you turn all…mushy when you're around that bird."

"She is not a bird, Hero, she is a falcon," Sheik said.

"A falcon is a bird," Link retorted.

"Kaiza is special."

"But still a bird—"

"Shut up, Link."

"Shutting up."

"Goddesses, you're worse than five-year-olds," Zelda muttered, still reading Mugen's report. She finished and looked up at them. "I think their training has paid off, Sheik."

"They've found it?" asked Link, tearing the paper out of the princess' hands and skimming through it.

"Well, they are not entirely sure," said Zelda, taking the paper from Link and handing it to Sheik, who quickly read through it.

_**P,** _

_**Reporting as per your request. The north, south and east of Hyrule is empty. I split my team up, and they have reported nothing of interest. However, we have picked up a lead to the west of the lake. There is dark magic in the area, and we are still investigating, but I will say with almost certainty that this is what you asked me to look for. Please inform the Hero of this. If he wishes to join us, he will find a path leading up from the very western edge of the lake, into the hills and mountains bordering to the Gerudo Valley. We have left a trail behind us for him to follow. Please reply immediately with further orders.** _

_**M.** _

"Dark magic…" said Sheik, wondering if they truly had picked up Speil's trail.

"So what do we do?" asked Link.

"I think you both know that," said Zelda. "If Link's shadow is up there, you must destroy it and take back the Triforce piece it stole."

"So, while you move with the army to the valley, we will climb a mountain following a lead we are not even sure is what we're looking for?" asked Sheik, feeling the prickling of doubt at the back of his head. He knew how important it was to get the Triforce back, but he didn't like the idea of Zelda moving in the open without him nearby. "Perhaps I should stay—"

"No, Sheik," Zelda interrupted him. "I think we both know that your career as my bodyguard came to an end when I first ordered you to accompany Link. Besides, I think Link is going to need all the help he can get."

"Thanks for the confidence, by the way," said Link, annoyed.

 _My career?_ thought Sheik. _Protecting you has always been more than a simple job, Zelda…_

"That's just the way it's going to be, Sheik," said Zelda. She looked at Link. "How much time do you need to prepare to move to the lake?" she asked.

"All we need is supplies," said Link. "We can both just warp over there and follow the trail, right Sheik?"

"Yes, I suppose so," replied the Sheikah, still staring at Zelda.

"I'll go get our packs," said Link, hurrying over to where his and Sheik's things had been rudely dropped into a pile by the servants.

"So, you do not want me around?" asked Sheik, watching in amusement as Link dug through the pile, looking for their packs. He continued stroking Kaiza's head. "Did I anger you so much earlier today?"

"No, you didn't anger me at all," said Zelda, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I overreacted…I told Link to deliver my apologies, but I am willing to bet he forgot about it."

"There was no mention of any apologies, no," said Sheik. "But why do you not wish for my protection, especially on such a dangerous trek?"

"Because…well, I think Link needs you more," said Zelda earnestly. "I am not sure how well he would do by himself, even with Mugen and his men. You seem to have a calming effect on him."

Sheik didn't answer, only continued to watch Link, who had apparently cut himself on the Longshot's hook. "Plus, I need to be there to rescue him from his own clumsiness," he finally said.

"Yes, that too," replied Zelda, grimacing when Link yelped after cutting himself a _second_ time. "He really has no grace, does he?"

"Not much of it, anyway."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 81**

* * *

"Got everything?" asked Link as he stuffed the last of his extensive collection of tools into his pack and slung it over his shoulder.

"I believe so," answered Sheik, knowing that everything he owned was currently either on his person or in the small pack on his back. "I still feel we should take more foodstuffs, though."

The Sheikah and the Hero had entered into a slightly heated debate concerning how much food and water they should bring on their journey. Sheik argued that they had absolutely no idea how long they would be travelling before they caught up with Mugen and his men, who had by now a substantial head start on them, not to mention the fact that they would be climbing bloody _mountains_ , where it was impossible to predict how thirsty or hungry they would be as opposed to travelling over the flat plains. Link, on the other hand, wanted to move as fast as possible, and said that heavier packs would slow them down and—if need be—they could hunt for food if supplies became scarce. Of course, if there was actual _wildlife_ to hunt up in those mountains, none of them knew, which was why Sheik was trying to plant a subconscious idea of needing more food in Link's head, and failing miserably. Instead, he resigned himself to covertly slip more bread into his own pack, knowing he'd feel like a fool if he turned out to be wrong.

"Yeah, I'm not going to argue about food with you again, Sheik," said Link dismissively, glaring at the little pile of food Sheik had brought with him up to the meadow, close to the entrance to the temple, with the intention of sharing the load. "It's not like we're going to be camping much up there, anyway. We're gonna go in, kill the shadow, and get the hell out of there in time to catch up to Zelda and the army." He flashed Sheik a confident smile. "Easy as pie."

"I wish I could share your confidence," said Sheik, shaking his head. He looked at Link, who just radiated **Hero** at the moment. His pose, his weapons on his back, his clothes (he had replaced his tights, to Sheik's disappointment)… There was something missing, though, and Sheik knew exactly what it was. With a sigh, he unrolled the red fabric from around his hand and handed it to Link, who took it after a brief moment of hesitation. "You sure?" Link asked as he put the cap on his head.

"Yes, I'm sure, Link," Sheik said, already feeling his nerves fraying as he stared at the swaying end of the cap hanging down from Link's head. How he _despised_ that hat…and yet, it was one of those things that merely completed Link's image. "I'm not a tyrant, believe it or not. You've worn those things since you were a child, after all."

Link paused, looking at him incredulously. "Wait, you saw me when I was a kid?" he asked.

Sheik nodded. "Of course I did. Did you really think you and the princess were alone when you met for the first time? I was watching from the roof."

"Then how come I didn't—"

"See me?" asked Sheik, smiling under his mask. "If I remember correctly, you had only eyes for Zelda and nothing else…"

"You could have introduced yourself, though," said Link, adjusting his cap, apparently unused to the hat now. "I mean, if we were going to work together so closely…"

"I didn't know if you were trustworthy, and if you were to attack the princess, I would catch you off guard and eliminate you faster than you could blink," said Sheik in a deadpan. "Zelda explained to me who you were, but I had my doubts about her prophecy at the time."

"Geez, were you ever like, a real kid?" asked Link. "You seem like the ultimate sourpuss, even when you were…er…"

"Nine."

"Exactly, nine!"

"And yes, Link, I was a real kid, as you say…but took my assignment seriously. There were, of course, times when Zelda was annoyed with my behaviour that she almost knocked me unconscious while trying to teach me a game," said Sheik.

"Huh," said Link simply, apparently unable to come up with an answer. "So…did you see me again after that, or did seven years pass by first."

"I was there to observe your opening of the door in the Temple of Time," said Sheik, leaning against the stone wall. "I must admit I was more than surprised when you suddenly disappeared after drawing the Master Sword from its pedestal."

"I didn't see you," said Link, also leaning against the wall, mirroring Sheik's pose exactly, which the Sheikah found himself inexplicably annoyed with.

"Again, Hero, I was out of sight," said Sheik. He went to scratch the area just beneath his left eye, careful not to poke the non-seeing organ by accident. "I had just managed to see Impa and the princess safely out of the city, and I wanted to see what you were up to."

"Wait, if you were there the moment I disappeared, then that means you were when Ganondorf snuck into the Sacred Realm!" exclaimed Link, suddenly pointing a finger at Sheik in what seemed to be an accusatory way.

"And?" asked Sheik, raising an eyebrow as he stared at the threatening digit.

"What happened?" demanded Link.

"There was…a confrontation," said Sheik, remembering how foolish he had been to attack the Gerudo king by his own with nothing but ten years of age under his belt. "I was thoroughly defeated and barely managed to escape with my life." His body had hurt for weeks after that, and his throat had been coloured an ugly purple until he had finally managed to procure some red potion to heal the worst of the damage.

"So you attacked Ganondorf when you were nine?" asked Link. Sheik could imagine the Hero's jaw dropping a good twelve feet.

"Ten. The attack happened a day after my birthday," said Sheik, wishing he hadn't brought it up. There were just too many horrible memories from the time that immediately followed. Including his first kill…

"Wow…that's like…wow," said Link. Sheik could see the cogs turning in the Hero's head as he undoubtedly imagined the scene in his mind. "I met Ganondorf back then too, but he only knocked me on my ass."

"Yes, I saw that too," said Sheik, pushing away from the wall and picking up the sack of food that they were not going to bring after all. "I will take this back to the field kitchen. They will undoubtedly want it. Meet me here in ten minutes."

As he walked down the stairs from the meadow, he heard Link yelling after him. "You _saw_ that?!"

* * *

"You sure you don't need it?" asked the cook as he took the sack from Sheik's hand. "Ain't much food out there, y'know."

"Yes, I am quite aware of that," said Sheik, cursing the Hero for his lack of desire to prepare. "Unfortunately, we can't carry too much as it will slow us down."

"Like starvin' to death isn't gonna slow ya down," said the cook, his great apron covered in blood from the meat he had been carving just as the order to move had gone through. "But it's up to you, I s'pose."

"Indeed it is," replied Sheik, nodding at the large man. "Thanks anyway."

"Yeah," said the cook waving the Sheikah off.

As Sheik was about to go back up the stairs to the waiting Link, a cart crossed his path, cutting him off. He rolled his eyes in annoyance and waited, only to come face to face with Vorpheus, lounging on the very back of the cart, clad in his dented armour.

"Hey, lad," the warlock said. He was bald now, for some reason Sheik didn't bother to figure out.

"Caspar," greeted Sheik, nodding, grinning when he saw the flash of annoyance that passed over Vorpheus' face.

"Don't use that name," he said. "I abandoned it long ago. Besides, I don't want the entire army laughing at me behind my back."

"I apologise," said Sheik. "Are you going with the army?" he asked.

"Seems like it," the warlock said. "The princess herself has ordered this cart to transport me, so I take it as a sign of my wanted presence…unless they plan to dump me over a cliff, of course."

"Seems a bit elaborate just to get rid of an annoyance when the poke of a blade will be enough," Sheik said. "And the audience?"

"I assume I will get it later."

"Hm."

"By the way, lad, do you know where we're going? I think I've asked a million people, but no one seems to know…or want to answer me," the warlock said, frowning. "For some reason, I don't think the people here like me very much."

"How could they not, with your colourful personality?" Sheik drawled.

Vorpheus nodded, holding out his arms. "Thank you! That's what I was wondering as well. I'm glad not the whole world has gone insane."

Shaking his head, Sheik leaned down so that only Vorpheus could hear what he had to say. "You're going to the Gerudo Valley."

"The Gerudo Valley?" asked Vorpheus, keeping his voice low. "Isn't that where Ganondorf is from? And his people? Aren't we at war with them?"

Leaning back, Sheik nodded. "That is correct. Have fun." He nodded to the cart driver, who egged his horse on, leaving the warlock to splutter in the back, shaking his fist at the retreating Sheikah.

"Wait, you're not going?" Vorpheus shouted.

"The Hero and I have some business to settle!" Sheik shouted back.

"Damn you Sheik—"

The rest of the annoyed warlock's sentence was cut off by a large bang as something explosive went off in the direction of the weapons storage, most likely one of the bombs they insisted on lugging around even though they were never used. A mass of black smoke rose from behind the wall, confirming Sheik's suspicion. Someone was going to have a lot of fun cleaning up the mess. He continued up the stairs, running through the small section of flat ground before the next set and was nearly clotheslined when Kaura suddenly shot her arm out at him from her tent.

Sheik slowed down, sliding slightly in the wet grass, bending backwards to avoid the thin underarm blocking his way.

"Nice dodge, kid," said Kaura, coming out of the tent with her bag slung over her shoulder. "You should attend one our festivals in Termina, you'd win every party game!"

"Maybe I will," said Sheik. He looked at the physician. She had switched out her regular clothes with durable fabrics meant for heavy travel, her supplies either in bags on her back or in her pockets. "You're preparing to leave, I see."

"Pretty much," said the physician. "These fools will undoubtedly get themselves hurt along the way, and who gets to patch them up? Oh, I believe it is me."

"What about your apprentice?" asked Sheik, wondering how Malon felt about this sudden move on Zelda's part. "Is she going with you?"

"I don't know yet," replied Kaura. "I have yet to ask her. All the camps will apparently rendezvous at the edge of the forest. I suspect I will meet her there."

"Think she will go?"

"I doubt it," said Kaura. "Her father is still recovering, and I don't know if I would feel comfortable separating the two, after all that has happened. In fact, I believe I will ask her to stay in the Kokiri Village with the wounded, as my proxy, sort of."

"Is she skilled enough at healing for that?" asked Sheik. Malon had seemed competent from what he had seen (and experienced), but was the short time she had spent under Kaura's tutelage enough to take care of an entire village of wounded?

"Well, she won't be alone, of course," said Kaura, rolling her eyes. Then she sighed, adjusting the strap of her bag. "She has a natural talent, though. If we all make it out of this…I'd very much like to bring her back to Termina with me, so she can receive proper training unlike the hasty, messy lessons I've given her here."

"I'm sure she'd like that," said Sheik, nodding at her. "Anyway, I must be off. We will meet again in the valley."

"You'd better show up without injuries this time," mock-threatened Kaura, glaring half-heartedly at him.

"You'd better not give in to the warlock's advances," countered Sheik, already walking to the stairs. "He has developed a crush on you, it seems."

"If he tries, I'll neuter him!"

 _Ouch,_ Sheik thought.

 _ **You can say that again**_ , Terra said.

* * *

"Are you two ready?" asked Zelda, looking over the two travellers, looking sceptical.

"As ready as we'll ever be," said Link, beaming at the princess alongside Sheik, who only gave the Hero an annoyed glance.

"I still think you should take some warmer clothing," said Zelda. "You're heading into the mountains, after all, in the middle of autumn."

"It will only slow us down, according to the Hero here," said Sheik, agreeing with Zelda's word a hundred percent.

"Link," said Zelda, her tone so maternally disappointed that Sheik almost felt his heart skip a beat.

"What?" asked the Hero. "It _will_ slow us down. We need to catch up with Mugen and the others as quick as possible! I can't let my shadow get away again…not after what it did to Sheik." He took Sheik's hand in his own and squeezed it. "I _won't_ let it get away…"

Sheik squeezed back, touched that Link still wanted to avenge him…even though his death had just been reversed. He looked at Zelda, rolling his eyes. "I don't think we will be able to convince him, Zelly."

Zelda mirrored Sheik's gesture. The bruise under her eye was healing nicely, especially after Kaura had applied a special ointment to it. "I guess you're right, Sheik," she said. "Well, then, I guess there is nothing to but wish you both good hunting. Remember, the army will set up camp just beyond the bridge."

"Wait a minute," said Link. "That bridge is broken. How will you get across?"

"We will build our own bridge," replied Zelda. "From what I've been told of this warlock, he's quite powerful, and getting the army across that gap will be easy with his help. Now, I sent Kaiza to tell Mugen to continue the search. As his report said, you need only to follow the trail he has set up. If you continue at a steady pace, you should catch up to them quickly." She stepped forward and pulled them both into a hug, one arm around each. "This isn't the last time we see each other, understand? Your princess demands to see her heroes again after this."

"As the princess commands," said Link with a smile.

"Understood," said Sheik.

"Good," Zelda said, drawing away. "Then good luck, you two, and don't do anything foolish." She turned around, leaving the two alone in the meadow, the embers of a rapidly dying fire crackling next to them, the only remains of the camp that had once stood there.

"No wonder the people loves her," said Link as he took out the Ocarina of Time. "There's just something about her that makes you wanna hug her, you know?"

"I know what you mean, Hero—"

"Link."

"Link, sorry." Sheik took out a deku nut, one of his last. He would have to scavenge for more soon. "So, I will teleport ahead with this, and you warp after me."

"That's the plan," said Link. He gave Sheik's hand one last squeeze. "I'll see you at the lake."

Sheik nodded and threw the deku nut to the ground, the shell cracking. As he did so, he pictured the small island with the symbol of the water temple in the middle of the lake, focusing on a spot just to the left of the raised platform. Light erupted from deku nut. And he was gone.

Link stared at the spot where Sheik had just stood. "I have to get him to teach me that sometime," he mumbled as he began to play the gentle Serenade of Water, feeling the familiar pull at his body as he too was whisked away to the distant lake.

* * *

Sheik stared at the western shore of the lake, smiling when he heard the sounds of the pillar of light that heralded the arrival of the Hero. Link's feet touched down on the marble platform, his boots making tip-tap noises as he looked for his lover.

"Find the path?" he asked, coming up to stand next to Sheik.

"No," he replied. "There doesn't seem to be anything on the other side…"

The only thing on the western shore of the lake was a small sand bank flanked by a smooth wall of stone, a natural wall denying anyone entrance to the mountains behind. How Mugen and his men had found anything was impossible to see.

"Did Mugen lie?" asked Link.

"I doubt it," said Sheik. "If Mugen says there is something here, there _is_ something here. We just have to find it." He took out another deku nut and teleported to the sand bank, itself barely wide enough for him to stand on with two feet. From here too, it appeared to be just one long, unbroken wall.

"See anything?" Link called.

"No!" Sheik called back, looking around. "As far as I can see, there is absolutely noth—hm," he cut himself off, noticing that a part of the wall was jutting just a bit more out from the rest of the stone. He quickly walked over to it, examining. "Aha!" he exclaimed.

"What?"

"There's a hidden door here!" Sheik called. There was an unmistakable draft of warm air flooding out from the wall, and he could see the outline of an entrance in the stone. He took hold of a piece of the "door" and pulled. Heavy and creaking, the massive door gave way and slid aside, revealing a gaping hole in the wall barely tall enough for an average Hylian to walk through. The warm air blasted Sheik with such strength that he was nearly blown over. "Did you bring a torch?" Sheik called to Link.

"Yeah!" Link answered, rummaging in his pack until he found the desired object. He drew his arm back and hurled it over the water with all his strength.

Sheik caught it, and then felt like smacking his forehead when he remembered he had no way of lighting it. He looked back at Link, who was observing him with much interest. "Are you coming or not?"

"I'm coming!" Link answered. Then he looked hesitant. "I'm just not sure how."

"How about swimming?" asked Sheik in a deadpan.

"The water's freezing!"

"Hero, you can create fire in the palm of your hand. Drying yourself is the least of your problems!"

"Oh yeah, you're right," said Link, diving into the chilly water of Lake Hylia. Luckily, Sheik had decided to carry the food in this eventuality, so the water wouldn't ruin it. Link quickly made his way to the shore, crawling the last few feet, his teeth clattering. "Cold! Cold!"

"Fire, Link," said Sheik, helping the Hero to his feet.

"Yeah, yeah," said Link, holding out his hand, palm up, and concentrating. It started as a small ember, but quickly grew into a fireball the size of a pineapple. "Ah, that's better," Link said, steam already coming off him.

 _Does the fire heat his entire body_ _from within?_ Sheik wondered. _I thought that tunic was designed to withstand heat, not aid it._ Without asking for permission, he dipped the end of the torch into the fireball, igniting the tip.

"Good idea," said Link, still steaming.

"I have my moments," said Sheik, taking a small step inside the hole in the wall. The torchlight revealed natural, cave-like walls and ceiling, but a completely flat and level floor complete with magnificently carved stone handrails. It looked as if someone had taken a small piece of a balcony and lodged it inside a cave. "And this is definitely not a natural tunnel," he said.

"What gave you that idea?" asked Link. "The door?"

Sheik didn't answer, only snorted and continued inwards, revealing that the tunnel was quite long, but gently sloping upward, only further compounding the mystery of how this place had been made. "I think this goes on for quite a while," Sheik stated.

" _This_ is what Mugen calls a path?" asked Link, finally extinguishing the fireball in his hand, apparently dry.

"He has never been a big supporter of descriptive terminology," said Sheik as they walked. "He's strange that way."

"I'll say…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 82**

* * *

Warm air continued billowing past, rushing out in an attempt to replace all the cold air outside by the lake, a futile effort. As it turned out, the tunnel was much longer than either of them had expected, and it sloped gently upwards the entire way, which made them noticeably fatigued as they continued walking, both of them panting slightly because of the stale, heavy air that insisted on beating around their heads. Sheik was sweating slightly, sometimes glaring at Link, who didn't seem bothered by the temperature at all.

 _Cursed Goron tunic,_ he thought, wondering all the while if he could possibly negotiate some sort of deal with the Goron tailor. Having an exoskeleton treated with the same material as Link's tunic would be highly beneficial to his missions…but then again, the Zora tunic allowed Link to breathe underwater, which he supposed was more useful in the long run… _I have a lot of negotiating to do._

 _ **If they're even willing to start discussing it with you,**_ said Terra. _**From what I have seen and heard from your memories, neither the Gorons nor the Zora are particularly interested in dealing with us Sheikah… Tell me, did we ever engage in war with them? The spirits were not especially interested in sharing tales of our warfare…except with the Gerudo, of course. I can't find any wars with the fish-people in your head…**_

 _I was wondering when you would make a comment again,_ Sheik thought. _And stop snooping around in my memories, they're private._

 _ **No can do, I'm afraid. They're my memories too, now. Believe me, I would remove them all if I could…you have seen and heard many horrible things, Sheik.**_ There was a sad tint to his voice, and Sheik knew why. _**Did he survive?**_

 _No, he did not, which you should know since you've already seen that one,_ thought Sheik with annoyance. _I would appreciate it if, even though you know them all, you wouldn't bring the memories up. I've tried to forget…_

 _ **If you insist,**_ answered Terra. _**So, do you have any theories about this place?**_

 _Not as of yet,_ Sheik thought. _It's obvious that someone built it, but I do not recognise the architecture. And it is quite old, judging by the damage and cracks. Except for the handrail, which I find disconcerting…_

While the floor itself could be made by anyone who knew something about tiles and cobblestones, the handrails were unlike anything Sheik had ever seen before, even in Twilight. It was made of some sort of black, shining stone, looking similar to onyx, but the amount needed for to make such an elaborate and obviously carefully planned construction… He had difficulty describing the masonry, even to himself. It seemed to ripple, like a liquid, yet it was firm when he touched it. There were loops and shapes, spikes and sharp edges, forming a nightmarish collection of gruesome outlines that would probably fit in one of Impa's stories, which she had used to tell Sheik when he had been particularly unruly as a toddler. And his eye seemed to slide off it every time he tried to focus on it, as if there was some sort of magic protection preventing anyone from seeing its true shape. Sheik looked at Link, who was also giving the sinister handrail a look every now and then, with seemingly the same results as his lover.

_It's…unsettling…_

_**You don't need to tell me, I can feel it. Little scares you, Sheik, but I'd say you're afraid of this handrail…and it's a bloody** _ **handrail** _**. What's there to be scared of?** _

_Don't condescend_ _to me,_ Sheik thought, rolling his eyes. _It's obviously not the handrail that frightens me…it's whatever made it, whose influence still lingers in this place._

 _ **Which is why you and Link must be extra careful. You know what you are up against when it comes to Ganondorf and his ilk, but this…is much older. I would even go as far as call it hateful.**_ Terra's voice quivered slightly. _**It's slowly penetrating your mind, Sheik…I can feel it now. I think it's trying to overwhelm you.**_

 _Well, I shan't go down without a fight,_ Sheik thought, focusing his attention on Link. "Are you alright?" he asked, carefully checking Link's face for any sign of outside influence. The Hero, however, only smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said. "But you don't look so well. What's the matter?" He put a hand on Sheik's shoulder, the silver gauntlet shining slightly in the light from the torch.

 _So, Link doesn't feel it,_ Sheik thought. Terra did not answer. He shook his head slightly, wiping his damp forehead. "It's nothing, Link. It's just…a bit warm in here."

Link felt Sheik's brow with the backs of his exposed fingers, nodding like someone who had just made a careful and profound observation. "You're right…I don't notice it as much because of the tunic, I guess." Then Sheik could practically _see_ the idea flashing in Link's mind, and he knew what was coming next.

He tried to stop it. "Link, don't even think about it—"

"Here!" Link exclaimed, almost shoving the red cap down on Sheik's head, tousling the long, blond hair that hung lazily at his back. "It's not much, but it'll keep your head cool, at least."

Sheik tried to remove the offending garment, but found Link's hand holding it down firmly, his face telling the Sheikah that he would under no circumstance accept the cap sitting anywhere but firmly on top of Sheik's head. Sheik rolled his eyes—an act he found himself performing much more often as of late—and nodded. "Fine, I'll wear the stupid cap."

"Good," said Link, removing his hand. "Can't have the brains of this outfit boiling over, can we?" He rummaged in his pack and drew out a bottle of water. He uncorked it and took a short sip before handing it to Sheik, who pulled down his mask and did the same, enjoying the sensation of the cold water slipping down his throat. He gave the bottle back to Link, who bottled it and put it back in the pack. And they continued walking.

To Link's credit, the cap—while absolutely ridiculous and in no way, fashionably or otherwise, defensible— _did_ help him cool down slightly, and he found his head slightly less cloudy and heavy. Link kept giving him secret glances as they walked, obviously looking for a reaction or similar responses to his graciousness.

"Thanks," Sheik muttered, wondering how many times Link had slapped his own face with the tail end of the cap in the heat of battle.

"No problem," answered Link, an insufferable grin on his face now.

There was an odd silence in the tunnel, not exactly _silent_ per se. Well, they couldn't exactly _hear_ anything, but there seemed to be a sort of whine in the air. As they walked, Sheik tried to increase and decrease his distance to the black rock, finding that the pitch increased and decreased with said distance.

 _ **It's resonating,**_ said Terra suddenly. _**And Link doesn't seem to notice. Interesting…**_

 _You don't think it has something to do with the Sheikah, do you?_ Sheik wondered.

 _ **Too early to tell,**_ answered Terra. _**By the way, why didn't you tell Link the truth?**_

_About?_

_**About what's bothering you? This can possibly become a factor at a later time, and you jeopardise** _ _**your assignment when not revealing all the facts.** _

_Have you been rummaging_ _around in my lessons with Impa?_

_**I was curious as to how you were trained, yes. Do not avoid the question.** _

_I don't want him to worry needlessly,_ admitted Sheik. _This strange rock and its effects could very well turn out to be an unforeseen coincidence by whoever built this tunnel, and it will be a waste of time to try and figure it out._

… _ **that is ridiculous. What if it**_ **doesn't** _ **turn out to be a coincidence? Where will you be then?**_

 _Perhaps it will remove the voice in my head,_ thought Sheik, annoyed, _which is starting to overstay its welcome, especially if it starts to question my decisions and rip up memories to which it has no right._

_**Point taken. But I still think it's worth letting the Hero know…just in case. But as you have obviously tired of my presence already, despite all I have done for you, I will just go back to sleep. Wake me if you find anything interesting.** _ _**Oh, and think lower, will you? I can barely hear my** _ **own** _**thoughts.** _

Sheik grimaced, wondering why Terra was being so difficult. He noticed Link looking at him with a questioning glance. "What?" asked Sheik.

"You look pissed," said the Hero. "Having an argument with Terra?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I did," answered Sheik. "We're done now, though."

"What about?"

"Frankly, it is none of your business."

"Fine, fine, sheesh, sorry for asking," said Link, looking slightly hurt. The words had come out much harsher than Sheik had intended. There was just something about that damn handrail…the whine had grown to an intolerable pitch, and Sheik felt a headache slowly worming its way down from the top of his head, settling just behind his eyes, thumping with agonising intensity. Sheik stopped, pinching the bridge of his nose even though he knew it was too late to stop the aching. "Link…" he muttered.

The Hero stopped, noticing first the lack of light from Sheik's torch, but then heard the pained tone in the other's voice. He whirled around ran down to Sheik, his face full of worry. "What's wrong, Sheik? It's not just the heat, is it?" He took the torch from Sheik's unresisting hand, worried that his lover was going to set fire to himself accidentally.

"No," said Sheik, feeling his legs wobble. How long had they been walking? For days, it felt like, though he was certain they were no more than hours away from the tunnel entrance. His vision swam. Had Terra been what kept all this out? "I feel…dizzy," he said, leaning against Link, away from the handrail, which glistened menacingly in the dark.

"Sheik!" Link exclaimed, feeling the younger teen's body practically slumping against his.

"There's something…about the handrail…" Sheik muttered, his words slurring. "It's…screaming in my head…" He could taste metal in his mouth. _Terra…I need your help…_ he desperately thought, trying to establish contact with the spirit again.

But he did not answer the call, and Sheik was left to fend for himself. The headache was unbearable now, each beat of Sheik's heart felt like a mallet slamming against his brain. He was drooling, he realised. He opened his mouth to let the thick saliva out, and he felt it run out, staining his mask. He heard Link gasp, but had no energy to find out why.

"You're bleeding!" Link nearly screamed, noticing the front of Sheik's mask suddenly turning dark red. "Sheik, what's happening?!"

"…don'…kno'…" Sheik tried to speak, but his words came out as something halfway between a choke and a gurgle. "Han'…rail…'oxic…"

* * *

Link barely heard what Sheik said before the younger teen slumped completely over, more blood pouring out of his mouth. What the hell was going on?

He looked around, wishing there was something he could do. The handrail was supposedly the cause, but what could he do about it? He couldn't destroy it, it went on forever. They couldn't turn back. They had been walking for over three hours, Sheik would never make it. There really was only one way to go.

He dropped the torch and picked up Sheik, careful not to slam the Sheikah's sword into his jaw as he slid one arm underneath Sheik's knees, the other behind his back. He then charged into the darkness of the tunnel, the only thing proving that he was on the right way being the gentle slope upwards.

"Hold on, Sheik!" he shouted, though whether it was for his own benefit or Sheik's, he did not know.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 83**

* * *

The sound of rain. The pitter-patter sound of thousands of droplets of water striking the ground at high speeds, an ear-shattering explosion of aural stimuli that would turn anyone insane had it not been for the fact that every living creature seems predisposed to enjoy it and feel calmer, more relaxed. Pain. A thousand mallets were slamming into a thousand anvils, each pound cementing the pulsating further and firmer in his head. His neck had turned to stone, impossible to move, excruciatingly painful to stretch. His eyes stung, despite being closed, needles poking into the fragile, delicate surfaces of the organs, almost daring him to open them. The taste of blood. The taste of _stale_ blood, filling his mouth, his nose, overwhelming his senses, permeating his very head. It tasted horrible. He felt his tongue starting to bow, the familiar sensation of an immediate evacuation slowly creeping up on him. Without thinking, as an automatic reaction, Sheik sat up, leaned to his left, tried to pull down his mask, which was not there, and retched. He wasn't entirely sure as to where his stomach's recent contents were landing, but he did not particularly care at the moment, not enough to open his eyes and check, anyway.

His throat stung, his mouth and nose filled with yet another type of taste and smell, one which causes an instant recoil and shudder whenever it is detected. It only made Sheik vomit more, and more, until he was sure he was about to start expelling his vital organs, expecting to feel the bulbous shape of a lung passing through any minute now. All the while, he let out a low moan, which he had never done before, to his knowledge, but the current situation, he believed, permitted such. He had the headache of the century, and a stomach rebelling for benefits to which _it had to rights, damnit!_

Hurried breathing behind him, barely audible over his own breathing and moaning, gurgling and retching. A hand, rubbing his back as he finished the frightful bout of regurgitation, easing him back into his lying position. He had been lying on thin piece of fabric stretched over sharp, pointy stone, it seemed, for he almost yelped when a craggy piece poked into his lower back. He lifted a shaky hand, trying to find the unseen benefactor, fingers quickly finding the soft face, which was undoubtedly bearing a soft smile even as Sheik surely must have looked, smelled and sounded like something coming out of a sewer.

"How are you feeling?" Link whispered, his voice worried.

"Dreadful," Sheik was able to choke out, his voice cracking. "Do we…have any water?" he asked, pondering a horrible vengeance on the Hero if all their water was gone.

"Here," the voice of Link said as his hands helped Sheik into a sitting position, the tip of a bottle probing gently at his lips. Link let the mercifully cold liquid slowly drain into Sheik's mouth, nursing the Sheikah like a newborn baby. "Don't drink it too fast," the Hero warned when Sheik tried to tip the bottle further up, suddenly wanting to drain the entire bottle in one gulp.

When Sheik finally had had enough, he pushed the bottle away with a trembling hand, eyes still closed. He coughed; his throat felt like someone had tried to shove an entire desert's worth of sand down it. "What happened?" he asked, his voice coming out as a mere whisper.

"You tell me," answered Link with a sigh. "We were walking along the tunnel when you suddenly started swaying and spouting off stuff about the handrail being poisonous or something. I was starting to get worried when blood suddenly started flooding out of your mouth like a waterfall. You collapsed; I picked you up and ran on, hoping to get out of the tunnel before things got worse."

Sheik tried to open his eyes, feeling the sting worsen a million times as the light of a burning fire pierced through the merciful darkness his eyelids had provided. Luckily, only his right eye was affected by said light, which he supposed was positive in some disturbed, twisted way. His view was blurry, and Link's face was only a melted mess of features and eyes. There was still that smile, though, a mixture of relief and nervousness, as if he expected Sheik's condition to worsen any second.

"You just started running, like that?" asked Sheik, still whispering, much to his annoyance. "Back out to the lake?"

"We were too far from the lake," replied Link, leaning forward, his face finally becoming clear to Sheik. "I continued on our way, hoping I'd hit the exit sooner rather than later. And I did."

A loud boom overhead as the weather decided to make its presence known once again, heralded by a great, white flash in the distance. Sheik wondered briefly why they weren't getting wet from the obviously heavy, autumnal rain, but got his answer when he looked up and saw that Link had set up camp underneath a massive, rocky outcrop which formed a curved ceiling overhead, preventing the rain from finding them through small crevices and cracks in the stone.

"That was…risky," said Sheik. "What did you do then?"

"Well, it beat going back, as we were too far away, like I said," the Hero said. "I kicked open the door, and found this place, made camp and waited for you to wake up."

Sheik briefly pondered whether or not he should ask how Link was able to kick open a door of solid stone, as it was undoubtedly of the same type that opened to the lake, but decided not to. "Then what?"

"Well, you woke up," said Link, his face innocent. When Sheik grimaced, he grinned. "I'm kidding! I checked you for wounds, but I couldn't find any, so I figured the best was just to wait. Oh, and I made a fire." He pointed proudly at the roaring bonfire.

"Yes, yes, good boy," said Sheik. "How long was I out?" he asked. It was dark, so it had obviously been a couple of hours, but at this time of year, it was difficult working out the time.

"Six, seven hours, I think," said Link. "I didn't count."

"You have been sitting here, just watching me for seven straight hours?" asked Sheik incredulously. "I don't believe you." He knew Link could be patient, but he also knew that the eleven-year-old inside him, no matter how deep Link thought he had repressed him, would never accept such a boring activity.

"Oh, fine!" admitted Link with a huff. "I may have taken a nap or two, but I figured it was safe since Mugen and the guys have been through here before us."

"It's fine, Link, really," said Sheik, patting his shoulder, refraining from drawing Link into a hug as he was sure his breath was something akin to rotting fish at the moment. He looked behind Link, into the darkness outside the overhang. "What's out there?" he asked.

"Mountains," answered Link. "A lot of rock." Sheik raised an eyebrow, and Link sighed. "Listen, I was too worried about you to make a detailed report of our surroundings, okay? It's a mountain, there's rock, and that's all there is to it. A couple of paths leading here and there, I guess, but that's it."

"So, no enemy fortresses or anything similar?" asked Sheik. "That would be most embarrassing if we came out of here tomorrow and found out that there's a city right next to us, after all." After leaving Link blinking for a couple of seconds, he made himself grin despite his chapped and splitting lips. "It was a joke, Link."

Link spluttered, obviously embarrassed that he had not caught it. Then he turned to look at Sheik with wide eyes. "You just told a joke." The sentence was said with the serious air of someone who were giving someone the news of the death a loved one. "You just told a joke," he repeated.

"Yes, Link, I told a joke," Sheik said slowly. "And I have done so before. Am I _that_ bad at it?"

"No, no, not at all!" Link exclaimed, waving his hands. "I just didn't expect it, that's all. You're not exactly a joking guy—"

"So I have no humour?" asked Sheik, unable to stop himself from grinning.

Link was about to deny the statement when he noticed Sheik's amusement, and smiled back. Quickly, he leant in and stole a kiss from Sheik. "It's good to have you back," he said.

"I'd like to say it's good to be back, but my head violently disagrees," said Sheik, putting his hands to his temples. He could feel the pulse of his heartbeats, still skipping a beat every now and then, a disconcerting sensation. "Not to mention my eyes," he added, closing his eyes as the stinging finally became too much.

"You've lost a lot of blood, so I'm not surprised," said Link, carefully helping Sheik to lie back down. "Are you hungry? I don't trust my own cooking to make a stew yet, but we have some fruit and bread—"

"No thank you," said Sheik. "I do not think I could stomach anything but water right now…speaking of which—thank you." He took the offered bottle from Link and took another deep sip.

"Sheik…what happened in there?" asked Link. He moved closer to Sheik, so that he was almost looking directly down at the face of the Sheikah, who was still sipping from the bottle.

Sheik swallowed the water and sighed. "Exactly what I said in there, Link," he whispered, annoyed at his voice. "The handrail…was like a poison to me. Or, not the handrail itself, but the material it was carved from."

"Poisonous rock?" asked Link, doubt in his voice. "That's the first time I've heard of it…"

"There are many kinds of poisonous substances in the world, Link…all metals, for example, are toxic to a degree, although the toxicity depends on the amount and form you are exposed to it in. The same goes for rock…" Sheik took another sip, trying to clear his throat in order to make it easier to talk, but his voice was still the same damn whisper when he continued talking. "But that rock was only toxic to me and not you. Spewing out litres of blood appears to be a symptom."

"What, you're saying the passage was specifically poisoned for you?" asked Link, clearly not believing this.

"Given the obvious age and disrepair of the thing, I would say it was not specifically designed to kill me, no," answered Sheik. "But perhaps it was meant as a deterrent to the Sheikah in general…Terra felt it too."

"Is he okay?" asked Link.

"I am…not sure," said Sheik, realising that he had not heard from the cohabitant of his body. "Wait a minute," he told Link, who nodded.

 _Terra? Are you there?_ Sheik thought. _Goddesses, I'm shouting inside my own head…for some reason, I find it symbolically compelling._

When the other Sheikah did not answer, Sheik became worried, increasing the apparent volume of his thoughts, all the while bothered by the sheer strangeness of having to call for someone inside his mind.

 _ **Will you stop shouting?**_ Terra suddenly appeared, groaning. _**I've got a headache the size of a planet…**_

 _As do I,_ replied Sheik. _The effects of the strange rock in the handrail was more potent than we thought. Soon after you fell asleep, my mouth was filled with blood, and—_

 _ **Yes, yes, I remember that,**_ said Terra. _**Or, I do now, at least. I do not like the new way our memory works.**_

 _Nor do I, but there is nothing we can do about it,_ said Sheik. _But how are you? I was worried about any lingering effects…_

 _ **I feel fine save for this pounding headache, Sheik. No need to worry about me. And before you ask, yes, it**_ **is** _ **quite peculiar for a voice residing in your head to have a headache…I find it best not to pursue that train of thought as it will clearly only lead to more confusion and more headaches.**_ _**If that is all, I will go back to sleep and come back when this infernal pounding will stop. Is that alright with you?**_

_Yes, that is fine. I was just worried, Terra._

_**I know. I am glad the Hero was here to get us out. Good night, for now.** _

_Good night._

Sheik looked up, spotting Link staring intently at him with fascinated eyes. "What?" he asked.

"You're just fun to watch when you talk to Terra," said Link happily. "It's like watching you when you think hard, but it seems that you're actually having fun while doing it. How was he?"

Resisting the urge to enquire about his appearance while thinking, Sheik smiled. "He's fine. He's got a headache, though, and—no, I do not know how that is possible, so do not ask." Link had started to voice a question, but Sheik interrupted him, knowing what it would be. "Anyway, he is going to sleep for a while, until the headache blows over…and I daresay that's what I want to do as well."

"No problem," said Link, yawning just afterwards. "It's late, I kinda want to go to sleep too. The fire will keep away any wild animals." With that simple explanation, Link disappeared, the sound of him rustling through one of their packs unable to compete with the rain. "You might want to move a bit, though," his voice suddenly said. "You _did_ throw up just to your left, after all…"

"…good idea," Sheik muttered, sitting up and opening his eyes, trying to survey the damage. The thin blanket he had been lying on had, luckily, been spared, but the area just to the left was a disaster area of sick. Wrinkling his nose, Sheik shifted, his entire body aching, trying to pull the blanket away from the area without moving very much himself. He failed, and, with a sigh, got up on his feet and pulled the blanket a good distance away from the throw up, close to the fire. He had just laid back down Link suddenly plopped down at his side, pulling a second blanket on top of them.

"Good thinking with bringing extra blankets," Link said quietly, smiling when he felt Sheik draw closer to him.

"Had it been up to you, we would not have brought anything, I think," said Sheik.

"Probably."

"Hm."

It didn't take long for either of them to be lulled into sleep by the falling rain, uninterrupted by any rude roll of thunder or flash of lightning.

* * *

The rain, unfortunately, did not let up. When it was still pouring down like a torrential storm when they woke up, Sheik still feeling ill, they had decided to wait for a bit, hoping for a reprieve from the heavens. Alas, it was not to be, and when three hours passed without a single break in the rain, Link finally decided that it was time to move. Sheik did not protest, knowing how anxious Link was about finding Speil and putting an end to the shadow once and for all, but his headache was screaming at him to put a dagger or two to the back of the Hero's knees so he could rest for a bit longer. The suggestion was promptly beaten down, however, and they were soon on their way, trudging along narrow paths, beaten and whipped by the violent winds that sometimes swooped down upon them.

The ground, where it was not simply stone, had practically dissolved into mud, making it difficult to find even footing, and both travellers had their fair shares of slipping and falling. They had wrapped themselves in the blankets they had slept with, none of them having had the foresight of bringing cloaks or something that would keep the water out. Or, rather, Sheik had had the foresight to bring cloaks, but Link had shot the suggestion down. The Hero was currently beating himself up for this, however, and Sheik had to admit that he got a certain satisfaction from hearing Link calling himself a meathead over and over again.

"See any other leads?" Link shouted over the roar of the wind. They had found the first part of Mugen's trail, a simply dagger buried to the hilt in a patch of loose sandstone in the small valley-like area the tunnel opened into, right in front of the first of the three paths that lead upwards into the mountains. They had barely seen the dagger, though, for it had nearly sunk into the slush that the rain had turned the sandstone into.

"No!" Sheik called back. He had taken point on the account that he was the better tracker of them, and had a better sense of details. It was much easier for Sheik to pick out irregularities and anomalies in the environment, such as footprints and other things. Of course, any footprints left behind by Mugen and his men were long since washed away.

"Are you sure we're on the right way?!" asked Link.

Sheik turned around, the tip of Link's cap flopping around his head in the strong wind. For some reason, Link had never taken the hat back, and Sheik kind of liked it, to his embarrassment. "There haven't been any other branches leading off from the path!" he shouted. "Unless Mugen did this to annoy you, I'd say we're on the right way!"

"Knowing Mugen…" Link shouted, trailing off at the end.

Sheik shook his head, and regretted it immediately when the sopping wet red fabric of Link's cap smacked into his face. As they continued along the path, they became aware of a rumbling sound ahead, just beyond a turn that seemed to open up to a ravine of some kind.

There was a river there, which was currently overflowing and roaring, taking tons of dirty, brown water with it into a steep drop just beyond the turn, into an unknown lake far below. Sheik had never seen this place before, nor had he even been aware that it existed. These mountains had always been marked as insurmountable and impossible to climb. He and Link stopped there for a while, staring at the roaring waterfall. It wasn't the fall itself that was demanding their attention, but the ancient, creaking drawbridge that seemed to have been falling apart over centuries hanging just over it. It was the only way from there, the path terminating in a drop not unlike the waterfall. Another path could be spotted on the other side of the river, nearly obscured by the mist and rain.

"You have got to be kidding me," Link muttered, wincing when the rotting bridge gave another loud creak. The ropes holding it together were frayed and just about to snap, it seemed, and the planks…the planks seemed to be hollow, eaten out by termites and other insects. Trying to step on one would surely mean instant death by falling.

"I'm afraid not," Sheik answered.

"I'm not crossing that," Link said, crossing his arms. "It's too dangerous."

"So is walking on this mountain during this season, apparently," Sheik said. He had noticed that water was slowly trickling down the sides of the walls that had encased their path, at a much higher volume than mere rainwater should have. For all he knew, there could be an entire lake _on top of the mountain_ that was threatening to spill over at any second, drowning anyone caught in the open. "I do not think going back is very wise!"

"But walking across _that_ is?" asked Link, gesturing wildly toward the bridge. "Look at it! It'll probably snap if I just breathe on it!"

"Well, then I suppose I should go over first!" said Sheik, handing his pack to Link, who took it after a brief moment's hesitation. "I'll go across; you throw the packs to me, and then come over yourself, yes?"

"I don't know," said Link, standing slightly in Sheik's way. "It just seems too risky!"

At that moment, something must have spilled over. For the path they had been walking along minutes before was suddenly engulfed in filthy water, shooting out of the crevice like a cannon. Link stared at the rushing water for a few seconds, a look that Sheik found hilarious on his face.

"Guess we can't go back that way," Link said.

"I guess not," said Sheik, turning around to look at the bridge. It was highly unstable, easily thrown about by the wind and water. But the ropes seemed to be firmly anchored in the solid rock, and, while frayed, the ropes seemed to be able to take his weight. He looked at Link. "Wish me luck."

"Good luck," said Link with a tone most serious.

 _This will not end well for anyone involved,_ Sheik thought as he set foot on the thick, frayed rope, testing his weight. This was going to take balance. And a lot of it. He made it to about three feet before he realised just how strong the rope really was, despite its age and appearance. He even dared to test out one of the rotting planks, which to his surprise took his weight. It creaked threateningly, but held. Soon, he was over halfway to the other side, taking his time at the spot on the bridge that was thrown about the most. He looked back at Link, who was biting his lips, unnerved as he watched his lover risk his life.

Before he knew it, Sheik was on the other side, solid ground under his feet. He sighed in relief, releasing the breath he hadn't realised he was holding in. He signalled that he was okay to Link, knowing that it would be impossible to shout over the din of the waterfall. He then motioned toward himself, pointing at their packs at the same time. Link nodded and prepared to throw them over.

The first one was caught easily by Sheik. He gently put it down and signalled for the other one. Link drew it back and hurled it with all his strength. For a moment, it seemed to be headed in the right direction, but a sudden gust of wind came tearing down the river. Sheik was nearly thrown aside, and he watched as the pack was torn from its path and sent sailing into the lake far below. He looked over at Link, who was stomping his feet in anger, his mouth moving rapidly, surely spouting off some creative string of curses. Sheik shook his head, knowing that it was no point in thinking about the lost pack. He whistled loudly to Link and motioned for him to come over.

It was slow going. Link was heavier than Sheik, being both more muscled and having a lot more weapons and equipment on his person. The Mirror Shield and Master Sword were the biggest culprit, Sheik knew, and he could see Link's face growing more and more nervous as he came closer to the weakest point of the bridge.

Sheik saw it before it happened. Just as Link cleared the halfway point, the plank he walked on snapped. Link had at least the mind to throw himself forward, doing his best to spread out his weight across the next couple of planks. The Sheikah quickly lunged forward, stopping just before he would step out onto the bridge, holding out a hand, beckoning Link forward. The plank breaking had started a chain reaction, and he could see the rope starting to give out behind Link on the other side. Link seemed to know this as he quickly crawled toward Sheik.

He wasn't fast enough. No more than a few meters away, the rope broke on the other side. Link got to his knees just as he started to fall, and managed to throw himself forward again, reaching for Sheik's waiting hand. The Sheikah felt another heartbeat skip as his fingers closed around Link's hand and he braced himself to support the Hero's weight. His head stung as the headache returned stronger than ever as he pulled Link up, barely able to help the Hero across the lip of the cliff.

They were both panting as they crawled away from the cliff, firmly leaning against the wall behind them. Link's eyes were the size of saucers, and Sheik was sure his weren't much smaller.

"That…was close," Link said, still holding on for dear life to Sheik's hand, who was squeezing back just as hard.

"Yes, it was," Sheik answered.

"When we go home," Link said, looking at Sheik with pleading eyes, "can we warp?"

"I was _not_ planning on walking back, no," said Sheik, feeling a slight grin growing on his lips, despite the horrible roar of the river and the pounding headache. "I just hope I won't run out of deku nuts…I left my lyre in Zelda's care."

"Well that was stupid," said Link, resting his head on Sheik's shoulder. "I thought you were the smart one."

"In this place, I do not think brains matter," said Sheik.

"So I can be the brains now?" asked Link.

"No, you're still the stupid one," answered Sheik.

* * *

"You know, I don't think this weather's natural," said Link suddenly.

They had been walking for a couple of hours now, leaving the horrible waterfall long behind. The rain had not yet let up in its intensity. In fact, it seemed that it had only _increased_. They were currently climbing a small hill-like elevation in the terrain, and Link had been slipping and grumbling the entire way.

"Is that so?" asked Sheik, keeping his gaze fixed on the top of the hill. He felt like grumbling himself, but that was Link's job. "What makes you say that?"

"It just seemed a bit convenient, didn't it? It appeared right after we came out of the tunnel and it's been going on for almost two days now." Link hurried up to Sheik's side. "It's like someone knew we were coming and decided to slow us down."

"Who? The shadow?" asked Sheik. "He's powerful, Link, but I do not think he controls the weather."

"Why not?" asked Link. " _I_ can control the weather with the Ocarina of Time…"

Sheik stopped, looking at Link with a steely gaze. "You can what?"

"Here, let me show you!" Link exclaimed, fiddling with the many pockets of his tunic until he found the flute. "I learned this song in the composer brothers' tomb!" He started to blow a gentle, three-and-three note tune, finishing in a little flourish of his fingers. Sheik stared at the Hero, who looked up to the sky in confusion. "Huh?" Link said.

"Was something supposed to happen?" asked Sheik, looking back at the top of the hill. He could see something up there. A sword hilt or something similar.

"Yeah, the sun was supposed to break through the clouds and make the rain stop," said Link, still staring up at the sky. "What the hell?"

Sheik continued walking. "Perhaps you're right, Link. Maybe someone _is_ trying to stop us…"

"I know, right?" said Link, again running to catch up with his partner. "I mean, this song has always worked before!"

"I still find it hard to believe that Speil can control the weather…" Sheik muttered. "Perhaps he is being helped by someone…"

"Maybe that Dehl girl…" Link said. "Wait, Speil?"

"His name."

"You gave it a name?"

"Listen, Link, there's something…"

Sheik trailed off. They were finally close enough to see what was at the top of the hill and, sure enough, his eye had not deceived him. It was a sword, shoved deep into the stone with great force.

"Another part of the trail?" asked Link and hurried up to it, Sheik right on his heels.

Sheik knew it wasn't. That particular sword belonged to one of Mugen's men, and if there was something Sheik knew about the people he had trained, it was that they were not willing to relinquish their weapons easily. When they reached the sword, Sheik kneeled down and examined the blade. It was covered in small drops of blood, almost washed away by the rain. The stone around the blade had melted slightly, it seemed, and no matter how much Sheik tried, he could not pull it out.

"Link, give me a hand—"

"Look."

Sheik looked, and gasped. On the other side of the hill, a downward slope gently led down to a flat field covered in dead vegetation, trees and bushes all white and crumpling, planted in an ever-widening pattern of circles.. But that was not what Link had wanted him to see. Just within the first circle, a body lay, wearing the grey uniform of Zelda's spies. Forgetting the sword, Sheik rushed down the slope, closely followed by Link, and knelt by the body. He pulled off the man's mask, revealing the face of Mugen's second-in-command, Jin.

He was covered in lesions and cuts, and his throat was cut. Sheik gently closed his eyes and laid him back down. Jin had been one of the finest swordsmen in all of Hyrule, and for him to die like this…

"Sheik…" Link said.

"What?" asked Sheik, not looking up.

"There are more…"

"What?"

Scattered from the outermost to the innermost of the circles, ten more bodies lay, all covered in the same kinds of injuries Jin had. All throats were cut. Some had broken arms and legs; others had had their faces smashed in. Sheik recognised them all.

"What happened here?" whispered Sheik, feeling his spirits sinking for every face he saw. "They have been dead for days…"

"Mugen's not here," said Link after he had looked at them all. He looked nauseous, Sheik noticed.

"No, he's not," agreed Sheik.

Had Mugen gone rogue? Had he killed his subordinates and then disappeared? Sheik felt a sting of pain in his chest. These were the men he and Impa had meticulously trained so that they could protect Zelda in the event of the Sheikah's deaths or incapacitations. He had been friends with them, fought with them, bled with them…

"What's that?" asked Link suddenly. Sheik looked up at where he was pointing and gasped again.

A structure had been carved into the very face of the mountainside in front of them, towers and gates, walls and windows…it looked like a large castle had been crammed into as small a space as possible in order to fit into the large mountain. A large set of stairs led into the structure, at the very tip of the outermost circle of bushes. Over the door, a circular symbol had been carved into the stone, three triangles arranged to look like the Triforce.

"A temple?" Sheik whispered to himself. "Here?"

"I thought there were only six of them!" Link exclaimed. "What's it doing here?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, Hero," said Sheik, unable to take his eyes off it. "It's massive…"

"Oh no," Link said.

"What?"

"We have to go in there, don't we?"

"Yes, we do," said Sheik, stepping forward. "And hopefully, we will find whoever is responsible for this…this massacre."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 84**

* * *

"You know, for some reason, I don't think this is going to be as easy as I thought."

Link's statement was punctuated by a loud pop as he finally managed to open the water bottle and took a sip. He handed it to Sheik, who also quenched his thirst. They were standing in front of the entrance to the strange temple, both feeling utter dread as they looked into the dark hall, bereft of light.

"When is it _ever_ as easy as you think?" asked Sheik, taking a final sip and handing the bottle back to Link, who finished the water off. The Hero corked it and put it in the pack.

"In my experience, _never_ ," said Link, grinning weakly. He adjusted his bandoleer and made sure all his tools and weapons were firmly placed in their pockets. He looked at Sheik; his usually confident posture replaced by one more appropriate for an eleven-year-old…an eleven-year-old about to face his shadowy nemesis, but nonetheless… "I _really_ don't like this, Sheik," he said, eyes darting nervously from Sheik's face to the yawning entrance.

"Neither do I, Link, neither do I," said Sheik, loosening the bandages on his hand to make his daggers easier to draw. "But it's necessary."

"Easy for you to say," mumbled Link.

"What's that?"

"I said it's easy for you to say that it's necessary," the Hero said, huffing like a child…which he was, technically. "He's not _your_ evil twin."

Sheik stared at Link, narrowing his eyes. "Hero, your 'evil twin' _killed me_. You think I find it easy to be facing him again?"

"Well…you seem so confident, and…well…"

Sheik shook his head, wondering if it was actually possible for Link to make his headache _worse_. "I have to appear confident, Link. If I don't, then the only thing people will see when they look at us is a duo of nincompoops who do nothing but complain." Link snickered, and this time, Sheik _felt_ his head give a twitch. "What is so funny?"

"You said nincompoop," Link said, on verge of a breakdown, his entire form shaking with held-in laughter.

"How is that even funny?" asked Sheik, certain that Link had, thanks to all the emotional and physical trauma he had been exposed to lately, finally snapped. How was a perfectly fine word like nincompoop funny? Surely even a child would—oh. "Good grief," Sheik mumbled and turned to the entrance, practically stomping inside.

"Hey, wait up!" Link called after him, running to catch up. "I'm sorry," he said as he fell into step with Sheik. The Sheikah didn't answer, deciding that talking to Link using his vocabulary was only going to lead to similar incidents. Instead, he patted Link on the arm to show him that he was okay with it. There were other things he had to concentrate on as well. The hall, for example. The floor was tiled with some sort of marble-like stone, and still shone despite the many cracks and signs of disrepair. The walls were covered in an alternating pattern of black and white tiles just as reflective as their floor counterparts. He was unable to see the ceiling because of the lack of light, but he assumed it was covered in the same bloody tiles.

As they walked deeper into the temple, they both became aware of a steady, rhythmic thumping going through the floor. They couldn't hear it, but they felt it though their feet. It felt similar to a heartbeat, and, to Sheik, it felt like it was syncing up to his own. Even missing the occasional beat as his heart did now and then, producing a strange sensation in his chest. He looked at Link, who was looking down at his feet as they walked, clearly feeling the same.

They reached a T-section in the hall, doors leading both to the left and right. The only things visible through the doorways were more corridors, which did little to raise their confidence. Link pulled out a thick branch from the pack and set fire to it using Din's Fire, smiling at Sheik, proud of his own forethought.

"Left or right?" he asked.

"Why don't you pick?" said Sheik, feeling a light sting in his neck, exactly where Speil had left his…mark. At least Mugen had been on the right trail, then…but why was it starting to hurt now? It hadn't when Speil had showed up at the Forest Temple. "I'm afraid I do not know the layout of this place."

"Well, neither do I," said Link. "But I've always felt comfortable with going left, so I guess that's where we're going." He led the way through the door with Sheik in tow.

The corridor was not very different from the initial one, though in a considerably more advanced state of ruin. Small piles of tiles fallen from the walls and ceiling lay here and there, and large cracks in the floor threatened to make them topple if they stepped wrong. The air was stale and heavy, difficult to breathe without feeling light-headed, though Sheik suspected it had more to do with his blood loss than anything else, as Link didn't seem to notice.

"This doesn't feel like a temple," Link said suddenly, looking around the place. "It's too…quiet. And broken."

"Link, as spectacularly bad luck and embarrassing mistakes would have it, saying something like that is probably the biggest request for trouble in the history of Hyrule," said Sheik, remembering a particularly bad novel he had read once.

"You're being too pessimistic," said Link.

"That is my modus operandi, according to the princess," said Sheik.

"Your what?" asked Link, stopping to look at his lover.

"The way I operate," explained Sheik. Upon Link's blank look, he sighed and tried to simplify it even more. "The way I am, the way I do things."

"Ah."

Link turned to walk on, and Sheik happened to glance down at the floor, to make sure he didn't step into a floor crack when he suddenly noticed Link's shadow…growing?

"Link!" he shouted, pushing the Hero away while making sure to stay away from the expanding, clawed shadow. Link, having not expected the push, fell to the floor with a loud "Oof!", his improvised torch clattering away across the tiles.

A thump, and Sheik was staring at what was, essentially, a large, disembodied, clawed hand as it dropped to the floor, it's claws clicking on the floor as it turned around rapidly, looking for the soft, squishy target it had aimed for. The wall master made a hiss, and Sheik shuddered.

"Watch for the shadows of monsters that hang from the ceiling," he whispered, his hand quickly finding the hilt of Kazuya. "Link! Get up!"

The Hero needn't be told, as he had heard the thump, the clicking and the hiss as well. As Sheik took his eye off the creature for a second, he saw that Link was already on his feet, his hands going for the sword and shield on his back. "Wall master!" he exclaimed.

Sheik had always found the grotesque creatures quite peculiar. Not only were they perhaps the most hideous creatures to walk the land, but no one knew how they came into existence in the first place. They infested most dark and dank places in the world, preying on unwary travellers and adventurers. But where they came from was a mystery, and no one had ever seen brooding, spawning or—Goddesses forbid—breeding.

Blind as bats, the creatures relied on their finely tuned hearing to observe the minute changes in the airwaves and pressure as its prey moved along their territories. The kind of change in the airwaves that results from…a blade leaving its sheath.

The second Sheik had begun to draw Kazuya, it turned around and launched itself at him, recognising the sound of sharpened steel. Mid-air, it clenched its fingers together, forming a fist. Sheik saw it too late, tried to get out of the way, but was hit full-on in the chest. Pain exploded through his body as Sheik was sent through the air, crashing painfully into the wall. The creature gave him little time to recover as it pounced on him, claws thrashing and scratching, doing its best to tear him apart.

Link's battle cry echoed as he charged at the creature from behind, sword raised high and preparing for a powerful downward strike which would certainly have split the wall master in half…had it not been for the second wall master that had been hiding in the shadows suddenly throwing itself at his side, carrying the cursing Hero with it to the floor.

Sheik didn't notice it; however, as he was too busy trying to avoid having his jugular sliced open by the razor-sharp claws of the first wall master. He felt them slicing through the air, dangerously close to his neck, Link's hat ripped away from his head and thrown away, and the fingers were surprisingly strong as they almost managed to break out of the firm grip he had on two of them. He finally managed to put a foot to the floor and tried to stand—only to be pushed back into the wall, held there by the immense weight of the horrible creature. The worst part of it all was that the entire time he was fighting it, the wall master did not make a sound apart from the clicks and swishes of its claws hitting the floor or flailing through the air. The only thing Sheik could hear clearly was his own laboured breathing and Link's grunting as he struggled with… _something_. Why the hell wasn't the Hero helping him? He gritted his teeth and began to push against the weight of the wall master, strained groan turning into a roar of anger as he was finally able to let go of a finger and pull a dagger from his wrist, plunging it into the centre of the creature's body, hoping he had hit something vulnerable.

Another hiss from the creature, and black-purple blood started spurting from the wound. The wall master stopped pushing against Sheik and literally stumbled backwards, providing the Sheikah with a rather humorous scene of a bloody _hand_ having trouble with its footing. He would have laughed, had it not been for the seriousness of the situation. He dropped the dagger and drew Kazuya, running forward.

The wall master tried to feebly raise a few fingers to defend itself, sensing the pounding footsteps of the approaching prey, but Kazuya easily cut through them, severing them all the way up to the knuckles. But Sheik was not done. As the wall master again tried to back away, balance still obviously ruined by Sheik's dagger, he dipped low and brought Kazuya upwards, slicing through the heel of the hand, effectively cutting it in half. Both parts of the wall master twitched and jerked as the last of the creature's life left it, and blood poured on the white tiles, barely visible from the light of Link's torch. Sheik rubbed the back of his hand against his cheek, wiping away some of the blood that had been flung at him in the creature's death throes. He looked at Link, who expertly blocked his own foe's lunge and plunged the Master Sword into its as it tried to recover from its failed attack, destroying what passed for its brain.

"I was wondering what you were doing instead of helping me," said Sheik as he retrieved his dagger, looking around for Link's cap, which was nowhere in sight.

"Yeah," said Link, wiping the disgusting-coloured blood from his sword on the wall master's body. "I was trying to help you, but this thing came from the side. Sorry."

"That's quite alright," said Sheik, mirroring Link's actions with his own weapons. He picked up the fallen torch and surveyed the battle site. "I suppose we should be more wary of shadows from now on."

"I guess," said Link. He walked over to Sheik, looking him over. "You alright?"

"Just a few scrapes, that's all," replied Sheik. He winced when he put Kazuya in its sheath. "And a bruise or two."

"What about that, then?" asked Link, narrowing his eyes as he pointed at Sheik's neck.

The Sheikah felt the area Link was glaring at it, and gasped. The area where Speil had left its mark stung painfully when he touched it, and he felt that the area was slightly bumpy, like a scar had formed. "I…"

"That's the mark, isn't it?" asked Link, suddenly standing right in front of Sheik, fingers going for his neck. "The shadow's mark!"

 _Why now?_ Sheik thought. _Is it because he is close? Or just his influence?_

"Link, it's nothi—"

"Nothing my butt!" Link exclaimed, gently probing Sheik's neck, easing off when Sheik hissed at his touch. "If he can still do this to you, then we have no time to waste." He turned to look down the hallway. They could both see faint lights in the distance, and a cold breeze wafted from there. Link was about to start running when Sheik grabbed his tunic, holding him back. "What?" Link hissed.

"Before we go…" said Sheik, licking his lips as he wondered just how the bloody hell he was going to do this. "There…there is something we need to talk about, Link."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 85**

* * *

"Talk?" Link asked, turning around, anxious to get moving. "We'll have plenty of time to talk later. Come on, let's go!" He was yet again stopped by Sheik's hand gripping his tunic like a vice, holding him firmly in place.

"Link, if I don't say this now, I won't be able to concentrate," said Sheik, looking imploringly at Link, a frown on his face. "It's important."

"If it doesn't have anything to do with my shadow, then it _can_ wait until later," Link said, finally managing to pull his tunic out of Sheik's grasp. "He's down there," he said, pointing at the faint light at the end of hall. "I _know_ it."

"As do I," said Sheik, fingers unconsciously moving to touch the sensitive mark on his neck. "And what I have to say…has _everything_ to do with the shadow."

Link sighed, turning to fully face Sheik, crossing his arms in an impatient gesture. "Fine, say it, then."

Sheik turned away from Link, knowing that his face would be red of shame when he told the Hero of what had happened. How was he going to do this? He couldn't come up with any reasonable explanation, no clever turn of phrase which he could work to his advantage. He didn't even _know_ why he had chosen such a time to say it. All he knew was that Link was not going to like it. In fact, the Hero would probably be so enraged that…well, Sheik didn't even want to think about what Link might do.

"Sheik?" asked Link, sensing his lover's distress. "What is it? You can tell me anything, you know that."

"Link, I…" Sheik clamped his mouth shut, feeling a slight sweat coming on. Why was it so hard? It was only a matter of a couple of short sentences, yet he could not figure out how to say them. He gritted his teeth, wondering what Impa would have said to this. She would probably have punched him in the face for being such a fool, and practically betraying his lover like he had done.

Footsteps. Link was standing right behind him now, his arms embracing Sheik. "You've never had trouble talking like this before," Link murmured into his ear.

"That's because I know how upset you will be," Sheik said back, trying to pull out of Link's hug, but the Hero had other ideas and locked his arms around the younger teen, preventing him from escaping.

"More upset than when you died? Hardly," said Link, lightly scoffing. "I don't think I've ever been as upset wh—"

"Not upset as in sad," said Sheik. "Upset as in…angry."

"I don't know, I was pretty pissed when you died," said Link jokingly, sniggering at his own little, unfunny joke. "I punched people, remember?"

"I do not think mere punching will be enough for this," Sheik whispered. He was finally able to break Link's hold and pulled away, putting his back to the wall, keeping the Hero in his line of sight at all times.

"What, you mean I'll kick people too?" asked Link, still trying to inject some humour into the conversation that had suddenly taken a turn for the worse, which was the last thing he wanted at the moment.

Sheik huffed, shaking his head. "Can't you take anything seriously?" he asked. "I'm trying my best not to ruin everything we have, yet you insist on making fun of it!"

He heard Link sigh again, knowing that he had just made _yet another_ mistake. "Sheik," Link said, making him look up. "If it's that important, and it's causing so much pain in you, why don't you just tell me? I promise I won't be upset."

"Even though it involves the shadow?" the Sheikah asked.

"Even if it involves that bastard," said Link, holding a hand over his heart. "On my honour."

"Fine," said Sheik, looking down at the floor, his heart beating rapidly, still missing that occasional beat. "I fell in love with him," he said, unable to look up.

He heard Link's breath hitch, and knew immediately that the Hero had just broken his promise…though he understood completely, and did not blame him for it. "What did you say?" asked Link, his voice almost a whisper.

"You heard what I said," said Sheik, his face burning with the expected shame, his throat closing up, a painful lump growing in his chest. He could even feel his eyes water, completing the misery. "I fell in love with your shadow."

"When? How?" asked Link, voice even and controlled, which made Sheik look up. He couldn't see Link's face, for the Hero was staring at the floor just as he had done seconds before. But he _could_ see Link's body trembling, his hands clenched into fists, the silver plates on his gauntlets rattling slightly from the tremors.

"It was after we were separated in the Spirit Temple," said Sheik, trying to blink away the pooling tears in his eyes. "We woke up in Twilight…he was dying, and I thought I would need him, and…and I kissed him so I could perform the spell that would save his life." Link didn't answer, only continued to stand there, trembling like he had done in the ice caverns. But it was not from cold he was shivering. "After that…our bond was severed," Sheik continued. "I lost my sight temporarily because I needed to adjust to the world of Twilight…and he cared for me, led me gently, even though I was angry and rude the entire time. He was so different from the arrogant, murderous and insane shadow that gave me this mark. He was almost…he was almost acting like you, Link."

He saw Link's body twitch at the comparison. Sheik swallowed, feeling a torrent of words suddenly trying to push past his lips and be expelled like a whirlwind of conversation. He did his best to hold it in, feeling the first of what he expected to be many tears sliding down his face.

"And then…after the battle with Ganondorf's phantom…he was so gentle with me, and he kissed me, and he told me he had fallen for me…and…and I can't say that I did not feel the same right then…" A chill went through his body, and he rubbed his arms, trying to keep warm. The torch did little to alleviate the problem. "I thought that was going to be it, especially when he disappeared after we came back to Hyrule…I thought I had just been struck by a sudden crush, a meaningless fling, as they say…" He drew in a shaky breath, feeling another tear rushing down his cheek. "But after you woke up…and we kissed for the first time for so long…all I could think about was him, that I was kissing your shadow…"

He heard Link sniffle, and looked up sharply, seeing that the Hero had turned around. And that broke Sheik's floodgates, and he was now fully crying, wanting nothing more than to throw himself at Link and tell him that it was all a lie, a cruel joke gone too far…but if he was not honest now, then he could easily slip into another pattern of lies, as he had done before.

"But when he showed up at the camp, in the Forest Temple," Sheik continued, his voice just as shaky as the rest of him now, "I knew I couldn't let it go on. I knew it was not fair to you…"

Another sniffle from Link, and Sheik felt a twinge in his chest.

"He…convinced me to follow him inside the temple and…continued showing me affection, tried to make me fall for him even more than I had already done…but I said no, I told him I could not do this, that I was _yours_ , not his… He was so angry, Link, I…I have never seen anything like it. And then he tried to…" He swallowed, thinking back to the night he had almost been violated. "He tried to rape me, Link!" he exclaimed, a fresh bout of tears rolling down. "He tried to take me as his, as a final insult to you…but then you showed up…I have never been so relieved in my life, and your threat…" He smiled, thinking back to the moment when Link had stood there, bowstring drawn tight, threatening to send an arrow right into the sneering face of Speil. "The shadow told me that if he could not have me, then no one could…and you know the rest of the story…"

He sighed, shaking all over. He was sweating heavily now, crying silently as he waited for Link to say something, anything, even just give a _sign_ that he had heard what Sheik had just told him. The silence was pressing in around him, his headache reawakening in a rain of sharp needles over his brain. His heart was beating like he had just run several miles; face burning like the sun had scorched it. He looked at Link, his vision blurry with tears, wondering why the Hero was just _standing_ there.

"Link?"

The Hero didn't answer, only walked to the opposite wall, turned around sat down, leaning his back against the tiles, and still looking down at the floor. Sheik stood there for a moment, wondering if he would just be making matters worse if he approached. Link, however, did not seem interested in making the first move.

"Link?" he asked, slowly walking toward Link, one step at a time. Careful, as if Link might snap at any moment. As he came closer, he could hear that Link was still sniffling, and muttering under his breath, difficult to hear.

"…thought…special…"

"What?" asked Sheik, crouching down and crawling on his knees over to Link, reaching over to gently touch Link's hand, which—thank the Goddesses—did not jerk away. In fact, he felt Link's fingers close over his own, eliciting a weak smile from the distraught Sheikah. "Link…"

"I thought…we were being honest with each other," Link muttered, tears flowing down his cheeks as well. Suddenly, he looked up, staring into Sheik's eyes. "Why didn't you tell me?" the Hero asked, his voice cracking slightly at the end. "Why didn't you talk to me?"

"I didn't…I didn't know what to say," Sheik answered, coming closer. "I _wanted_ to…I wanted so badly to tell you…but I…"

"If you had told me, I would have understood," Link said, his thumb brushing away Sheik's tears. "I would…I wouldn't have been happy, but I would have understood…but…you rejected him in the temple?"

Sheik nodded fiercely. "Yes! That's why he…that's why he killed me!"

"And…you have no feelings for him?"

"No…not anymore…never again."

Link sighed, his thumb pausing. Then he pulled on Sheik's hand and drew him closer, close enough for the Hero to pull the Sheikah into his lap. Sheik, not expecting such an action, let out a small gasp. Link pulled Sheik tightly to himself, a crushing hug from a desperate boy who never wanted to let go again. "And…you still love me?" asked Link.

"Yes…Goddesses, yes," said Sheik, his voice muffled by Link's chest.

"Then…I forgive you," whispered Link.

"Link, I—"

"Shh."

They remained like this for a time, just holding onto each other for dear life, both wondering if the other would disappear if they let go, if they were just putting off something inevitable. Sheik raised his head, looking into Link's eyes, leaned in close, kissing him gently, gently coaxing him to respond, which the Hero did.

"I'm sorry," Sheik said when their lips parted. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't be," Link answered softly. "I knew something was bothering you…but I didn't ask, and look what happened…"

"It was not your responsibility to ask, but mine to admit it," Sheik said.

"Which you did," said Link, smiling. "But still…you're the person I love the most in the entire world, and I didn't even bother to—"

"Stop," said Sheik. "Please…if we continue like this…only new grievances will start. It is my fault, and my fault alone, Link. I should never have saved the shadow's life, and I will atone for the mistake…somehow." Something sharp in one of Link's pockets was digging into his ribs, and as much as he didn't want to leave Link's comforting embrace, no matter how much he wanted to stay as happy as he did now, it was really painful. He pushed away.

"What is it?" asked Link, tightening his hold on Sheik.

Sheik smiled, calmly wiping the tears from his face. "As much as I enjoy lying like this, Link, I simply cannot endure the pain of your Longshot stabbing my side."

"Sorry," said Link quickly, letting go of Sheik immediately. The Sheikah stood, rubbing the sore spot where the Longshot's hook had tried to skewer him. Link stood up as well, still trembling slightly. "I just have too much stuff, I guess."

"I _do_ wonder where you keep them all," said Sheik, smiling.

Link opened his mouth, but whatever he was going to say was cut off by a bloodcurdling scream travelling down the corridor. They both recognised the voice. They looked at each other, steeling their faces.

"Mugen," Link said.

"Mugen," Sheik echoed, nodding. With that, they began to run, toward the light at the end of the corridor.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 86**

* * *

The light in the distance had seemed no more than a couple of hundred feet away. But as it turned out, the hallway just stretched on and on, the agonised screams of Mugen echoing around the entire time, spurring them on. Sheik tightened the bandages around his hands when he realised that some of his daggers were starting to slip out of their bonds, and would surely give away their presence with their clattering should they fall to the floor. On his right, Link seemed to be doing the same with his many tools, cursing under his ragged breath as he almost dropped his now-accursed Longshot. Sheik wished for just a second that he had done so, as the Sheikah had come to truly dislike the horrible instrument of transportation in the past few weeks, mostly because of its tendency to ruin happy moments. He almost grinned happily at the image of Link hurling the damn hook into a bottomless pit, but realised that this was probably not the best of times.

The faint pulse that went through the entire structure was slowly but surely increasing in both intensity and frequency as they neared the light at the end. They could see candles now, hundreds of them, lighting the last part of the corridor, hidden in alcoves and niches. Another of Mugen's screams was silenced abruptly, like he had closed his mouth suddenly. Link and Sheik gave each other a look as they passed through the doorway, into the chamber beyond.

 _ **Sheik, the shadow is here…**_ Terra whispered in his mind. _**I can feel him, and I am afraid he can feel me. I will try and hide. Do**_ **not** _ **draw attention to me, understand?**_

 _I understand,_ thought Sheik. He and Link had come to an abrupt stop just after clearing the doorframe, both of them surveying it.

It was gigantic. They were standing on a walkway that went along the wall of the entire room. Above them, on the other side of the room, they could see such walkways stretching on and on upwards, so far up into the mountain that the highest of them were shrouded in darkness. Below them, at least five more stories of walkways until they reached the floor. There, hundreds of pews were lined up, all facing a raised dais, on which a black altar, made of some sort of shiny stone, similar to the one that had poisoned Sheik, stood. Behind the altar, on the small patch of wall between walkway and floor, a big Triforce had been carved into the jet-black stone, just like the mark outside the temple-like fortress. Under the mark, a small, circular pedestal stood, though nothing seemed to be on it. The floor was covered in what appeared to be white sand, footprints tracking all over the floor among the pews.

But that was not what their attention was fixed upon. Mugen was lying on the altar, bloodied and beaten, convulsing and gurgling as a person dressed in all black was performing some sort of spell. It was not hard to see who this person was. Her rainbow-coloured hair which extended long past her back was a dead giveaway.

"Dehl," Link whispered. Sheik nodded, stopping Link with a shake of his head when the Hero made to move away from their hiding spot behind on the walkway. Link gave him a questioning glance.

"The shadow is here as well," whispered Sheik as quietly as he could. Speil was there, but they could not see him, which was dangerous. Link's shadow had already shown a penchant for ambushes and sneak attacks, often with deadly results. Link nodded, settling down.

It was hard, seeing Mugen down there, suffering. But he would not be the only one to experience such pain that day if they attacked without knowing all the details, the crucial one being the location of Speil. For all they knew, he cold be hiding in one of the hundreds of doorways scattered around the walkways. Even the pews could provide viable hiding spots. Sheik gritted his teeth as he heard Mugen give another gurgle and suppress a scream.

Dehl sighed, her voice easily carrying up to the walkway. The entire chamber seemed to conduct sound well, which, coupled with the presence of the many pews, made Sheik think that this was some sort of meeting spot for whoever had built this place. There had only been two doors in the hall just beyond the entrance. Where the other doorways led to, he did not know.

"I have tried to be lenient," the sorceress said, her voice carrying an exhausted edge to it. "I have tried to be nice…I have even tried to be…polite. Yet, you insist on being uncooperative. I will ask one more time: where is Vorpheus the Immortal?"

Link and Sheik watched as Mugen slowly lifted his head, eyes rolling around, and grinned at Dehl. "Like…I…would…know…" he slowly said, blood spilling from his mouth with every word.

The crack of Dehl's palm slapping his face echoed in the chamber. "That is not the answer I am looking for," she said slowly. "Again: where is the wizard?"

"Heh," said Mugen, spitting a gob of blood at the sorceress, staining her black robe. "Burn in hell, bitch."

A sharp intake of breath from Dehl was all the warning he was given before he was writhing in excruciating pain as she electrocuted him, arcs travelling all over the altar. His screams were even louder in here, reaching such a high pitch that both Link and Sheik had to cover their ears.

As the electric torture ended, Dehl leaned in close, undoubtedly whispering the same question. The answer was another gob as well as a whispered-back insult, even worse than the previous one, it seemed, as the sorceress gasped and slapped him. Again and again, the horrible cracking sounds echoed. So engrossed were Link and Sheik in observing the torture that they did not notice the approaching figure in the sand below them.

"Are you going to kill him before he gives you your answer?" asked Speil, slowly ambling toward the altar.

Sheik felt a lurch in his stomach upon seeing him, the memories of the fateful night in the Forest Temple flashing across his mind's eye, making him shiver slightly. Speil's mark gave a sharp sting as well, almost making Sheik gasp, but he held it in. Link noticed Sheik trembling, and shuffled closer, putting a steadying hand on his shoulder, as if to say it was okay.

"He won't fucking answer!" Dehl shouted, pushing away from the altar, swaying and stumbling the entire way as she walked down to face Speil.

"Manners, my dear," Speil chuckled as she came close, having to lean on a pew to stand straight. "Inner ear still giving you trouble?" he asked.

"It won't stop!" the sorceress snarled. "Even at his weakest, that bastard manages to hurt me more than he should be able to." With an angry huff, she all but collapsed on a pew. "Did you go back?" she asked.

"To the temple?" asked Speil. "Yes. They're all gone. The only thing they have left behind is their dead. There was no sign of the wizard…or anyone else." The last part was said with a hesitant tone, clearly adding the last part accidentally.

Dehl, however, did not seem to notice. "Then he lied. Again!" She glared at the heavily breathing Mugen on the altar. "Where is he?" she asked, not even bothering to go up to him this time.

"…bitch…" was all Mugen said, and Sheik couldn't help but grin at the man's stubbornness. Just like Impa had taught him.

Dehl made a jerky movement in her pew, apparently trying to lunge at Mugen, but Speil held her down with a gentle hand.

"I believe he is speaking the truth. After two rounds of torture, one from me and from you, I do not think anyone would be able to lie. He told us about the Forest Temple, and you went there. You were beaten, you sent me there, but I was too late. They have relocated, and he could not have possibly have been there to hear where to. How long have we been keeping him here now?"

"Three days, at the least," replied Dehl, realising the truth in what the shadow was saying. She still scowled in Mugen's direction. "Then he is of no use to me." She wobblingly stood up. "Dispose of him. I will start the search for the wizard on my own…again."

"Hold it," said Speil, grabbing Dehl's arm in a strong grip. "You have yet to uphold your part of the bargain." His voice was dangerously low, just like it had been in the Forest Temple, just before he had tried to…

"Let go, shadow, or you will find yourself dispersed," said Dehl.

"Maybe I should just kill you now for wasting my time," said Speil. "The deal was simple: I find someone who knew where the wizard was, and you tell me how to use that." He pointed at the seemingly empty pedestal, prompting both Link and Sheik to look closer at it. Silently, Sheik slid his telescope out of the pack—all the while thanking the Goddesses that they had dropped the less important pack in the waterfall—and extended it.

"And I have told you all I know," growled Dehl. "It can only be wielded by someone who is destined to. The poor bastards who built this place and stole it from the Sacred Realm tried to use it…and look what happened to them." She shuffled her feet in the sand. "You think it's sand you're walking in, shadow? It's the remains of those who were not worthy to wield it."

Speil snorted. "You have already told me of this, and I am no closer to using it."

"You think you're worthy enough?"

" _No one_ is more worthy than I!"

"So you say, yet _you_ are the copy of the Hero of Time. And _he_ is the only person I imagine is meant for using it."

"If My Light is the Hero, then why am _I_ the one with this?" asked Speil and pulled his gauntlet off, most likely showing her the triangle on the back of his left palm, the one that Link was supposed to have. "I would say the possessor of this is the one who should be deemed the Hero of Time."

"What's he on about? What's going on?" whispered Link to Sheik, who had gone very still when he had examined the supposed object on the pedestal. Wordlessly, he handed the telescope to Link and pointed at the pedestal. The Hero looked into the eyepiece, and was unable to keep in a gasp. Luckily, Sheik was able to smack a hand over Link's mouth before he could reveal their presence to all involved.

Their reaction was not unfounded. Upon the pedestal, a small, transparent, crystal-like triangle floated silently in the air. It floated upside down, and Sheik looked and forth between the carving of the Triforce on the wall and this mysterious piece of crystal on the pedestal.

_Impossible…the legends make no mention of this._

"Another Triforce piece?" Link whispered.

"Surely a fake," Sheik whispered back, keeping his suspicion to himself for now. "An artificial object created by the same people who built this fortress."

Dehl huffed, shaking her head. "Do I _really_ have to explain everything to you again?" she asked Speil, who shrugged.

"It couldn't hurt," he answered.

"Well, tough luck, I am not going to. You already know the details, it's up to you to find out how to use it." Dehl pushed Speil away. The shadow didn't resist, but the scowl on his face told the entire world what he was imagining doing to the girl. Dehl fumbled something out from her robe and stopped to face Speil again. "I have done my part, and you have done yours. This partnership, I'm afraid, has ended. Please, dispose of that one," she said and pointed at the altar. "That is, after all, what you're good at, killing and maiming. Goodbye, shadow." The deku nut bathed the room in a white flash, and she was gone, leaving an angry Speil pacing around in what was supposedly people's remains.

"Miserable bitch," the shadow muttered as he slowly walked over to the altar, drawing his sword. "I am sorry, friend, but it seems this is the end for you," he said as he stood over Mugen. "There is no need to worry about your usefulness, however. Thanks to your correspondence with the princess of Hyrule, with a bit of interference from me, I will have drawn the Hero of Time here. In fact, I expect him any day now. And what will he find? Your body sprawled on this altar, and me, waiting in the shadows." He put the sword's edge to Mugen's neck, raising it to chop down sharply, but was interrupted by Mugen saying something unintelligible.

"What's that?" asked Speil, leaning close to hear what the spy had to say. "Perhaps, but I am sure you will burn there long before I join you." He made to finish Mugen off, but Sheik's dagger tore the sword from his hand and sent it flying away.

Link was already halfway over the railing, figuring that the drop down wasn't going to kill him, especially with the sand—and it _was_ sand, thankyouverymuch—below softening his impact. He hit the floor rolling, and was on his feet within seconds, sword and shield at the ready as he charged at the surprised shadow.

Sheik pulled out another dagger, cursing his luck under his breath for missing what should have been an easy target. Sure, he had saved Mugen's life, but he would have done that anyway is he had nailed Speil in the back of the head, right in the neck. Before he was able to throw it, however, something exploded behind him, showering him in broken stone and mortar. He picked himself up and looked behind him. The wall had been blown to pieces. He looked over the railing. Link had yet to reach the shadow, whose sword had reappeared in his hand and was waiting for Link with a look of utmost fury, his shield hand empty and outstretched to Sheik's position, a second ball of flame already forming.

"Two against one?" Speil asked mockingly. "Hardly fair, is it?" He hurled the fireball at Sheik, who was barely able to dodge it. "I don't know which poor bastard you've taken with you, Hero, but he won't last long after I'm done with you!" His shield appeared in his hand just in time to receive Link's first blow, a rough, barely aimed downward chop. He shoved the Master Sword and made a sharp thrust with his own sword. Link was barely able to twist out of the way of sword's point, being pulled by his momentum. He rolled to his left and stood to face Speil, who did a lazy flurry in the air with his sword, blocking another dagger from Sheik at the same time.

 _It's no use,_ thought Sheik. _He knows where I am, and he is too fast for my daggers._ He gripped the handle of Kazuya and drew his blade, sighing. _I guess I cannot avoid an upfront confrontation._ He jumped over the railing, rolling like Link had done when he hit the floor. The sand—at least he hoped it was sand and that Dehl had been joking—was much softer than it looked, and it felt like walking on velvet. Velvet that yielded and gave way beneath his feet, but velvet nonetheless. He started to run over to the altar, where Link and Speil were circling each other.

Speil noticed Sheik approaching, and smirked.

Sheik stopped abruptly, feeling his muscles seizing up and refusing to move, forced to stand still like a statue. It immediately brought back unpleasant memories. Speil had done the exact same thing in the Forest Temple, and what had followed then…

"What the—" Link exclaimed, suddenly frozen as well. Speil relaxed in his stance, chuckling. Ignoring Link, he walked over to Sheik, eyes travelling up and down.

"Now this is a surprise," the shadow muttered. "I was quite certain I had left you for dead back in the temple. I suppose I should have known something had happened when I went back and found a strange table and an abundance of magical energy still echoing there." He put a hand on Sheik's cheek and leaned to kiss him. The Sheikah was unable to resist, feeling the shadow's tongue entering his mouth and violating him for a second time. "You still taste as delicious as ever," the shadow said after pulling away.

"Huuuuurgh!" Link exclaimed, unable to even speak coherently through his clenched teeth.

Speil sighed and turned to face the Hero. "I have been waiting for this moment for a long time…and now that it is here, I cannot help but feel…disappointed. My Light falling so easily for my trap…I thought his repeated humiliation would be a motivator to grow stronger, but it seems that he did not just have the enthusiasm…" He looked at Sheik again, eyes half-lidded. "But at least he brought you with him…perhaps we can finally consummate our relationship, what do you say?"

Sheik tried to speak, but now his mouth had been paralysed as well, locked in a disgusted grimace.

"No?" asked the shadow. "Then I shall simply kill him now and finish what I started back in the Water Temple." He started to move over to Link, a sick grin on his face. "Finally," he whispered.

Sheik could only watch as Speil came closer and closer to Link, sword preparing to run him through.

 _ **Sheik…I think I can stop this,**_ Terra suddenly said, startling him.

 _What? How?_ Sheik wondered quickly, thanking the Goddesses that Speil apparently wanted Link to feel terror as he slowly waved his sword in Link's face.

 _ **There's not time to explain,**_ Terra answered, his voice tinged with…sadness? Regret? _**But I…do not think we will come out of this alive. But at least the Hero will survive.**_

 _The Hero is all that matters,_ Sheik thought.

_**Good. Prepare to throw a dagger at my command. Ready?** _

_Ready!_

_**Now!** _

For the briefest of seconds, Sheik regained the movement in the right half of his body. He quickly managed to slide a dagger from his bandage and into his hand, hurling it with all his strength at the shadow. Before it left his hand, he felt a sort of tingling in his hand, and saw that the dagger shimmered slightly. Just as soon as he had thrown it, he froze up, Speil's influence once again getting the better of him.

The shadow must have noticed something had happened, for he was in the process of turning around, eyes wide with surprise. Time slowed down, and Sheik followed the dagger's trajectory with his eyes as it quickly closed in on Speil. The shadow was too slow, and the dagger made a loud **thunk** as it sank into Speil's shoulder. Then it exploded, showering the room with a second white flash, Speil's anguished howl resounding.

When the flash cleared, nothing seemed to have happened save for Speil's shoulder bleeding profusely, the wound quickly healing, to Sheik's horror.

_It didn't work!_

_**Damn…** _

But they had distracted the shadow from Link, however, as Speil charged up to them, grabbing the front of Sheik's tabard with a furious look on his face.

"How did you do that?" the shadow demanded. "I know you are not skilled enough with magic to perform such a spell!" He paused, looking into Sheik's eyes. "Unless…there's someone in there with you who does!" He let go of his weapons, which disappeared in clouds of black smoke, and put both hands to Sheik's temples, touching his forehead to the Sheikah's.

Sheik wanted to scream as he felt a white-hot lance of pain suddenly spear through his head, wriggling and poking at every corner and nook, probing for something.

 _ **Sheik!**_ Terra suddenly screamed, his voice modulating and fading as Sheik felt something being torn from his mind. He went blind and deaf for what seemed like hours. When he came to, he was lying in the sand, still unable to move.

"Hah! I knew it!" Speil's voice exclaimed, and Sheik painfully moved his head in the direction it had come from. "And _you_ of all people…you're supposed to be dead as well!"

" _ **We are a hardy race,"**_ Terra said. He was floating just over Sheik, his form translucent and wavering, dressed exactly as Sheik remembered him. _**"We do not die easily."**_ He was glaring at Speil, who was only grinning in return.

"That it seems," replied the shadow. "When one dies, he simply leaves a piece of his spirit behind in a sword so it can be implanted in another dead one…it is so simple!" he shouted sarcastically.

" _ **I should have killed you when I had the chance,"**_ Terra said, ignoring the last sentence. _**"You are an abomination…"**_

"And yet I fooled you," said Speil, his sword reappearing. "And I believe it is time for the Sheikah to die out once and for all. Any last words?"

" _ **Not to you,"**_ Terra said sneeringly. He turned his head to Link. _**"The medallions, Hero! The medallions!"**_

"Waste of a good breath," said Speil, slicing his sword diagonally through Terra's form.

The Sheikah's scream faded along with his form, dissipating like he had never existed. Pain erupted once again in Sheik's head, followed by a massive pounding in his heart like he had never experienced before. He began to cough violently, breath coming in ragged gasps between bouts of hacks. He started shaking, fingers convulsing.

In the corners of his vision, he saw Speil's head appear, a nonplussed expression on his face. "As I thought…directly bound to your body, was he? And now that he is gone, you're dying as well…again. Is this what you call irony?"

Sheik heard little of what Speil was saying, his thoughts preoccupied by the rampant pain lancing through his body and mind, only able to think about one thing.

_Terra! Terra!_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 87**

* * *

Link wanted nothing more than to hurl himself at the shadow and tear him limb from limb, a silent howl of rage trapped in his throat as he watched Sheik writhe in pain on the floor, dust thrown in the air by the thrashing limbs. The shadow himself looked at Sheik with mild amusement, chuckling whenever a half-choked cry made its way past the Sheikah's lips. Link tried so hard, so desperately, to move his arms, his legs, his neck, his fingers, his toes— _anything_. But he might as well have tried to pluck the sun out of the sky. His shadow's bind was too strong, and nothing seemed to be able to break it. He felt a drop of spit drip from his mouth, which was locked in a snarl.

"Heh, looks like this will take a while," the shadow said, rising from his crouched position and walking over to Link, smiling. His red eyes flickered each time he blinked, and pearly-white teeth peeked out at him every time Speil opened his mouth. "Might as well utilise the time we have efficiently." He leaned in close to Link's face, locking his eyes with the Hero's. "You know, I _do_ wonder what the Sheikah meant with his last words. Medallions? Could they be any other than the ones you have gathered from the various temples in the kingdom?" Link wanted so badly to spit Speil in the face, but not even his tongue would obey his commands. Speil must have known, for the grin that spread on his face as Link made growling sounds was one of utmost smugness.

"They _are_ , aren't they?" asked Speil, eyes roaming over the many pockets of Link's tunic. "Hm, _my_ tunic doesn't have as many pockets as yours…but then again, I don't need to carry all my tools around." To prove his point, his dark version of the Longshot materialised in his hand from a cloud of smoke, the sharp hook glinting in the dim lighting. "I do wonder how much fun we could have with this…I've always wanted to know if you were a better kisser than him," he said, pointing at the still convulsing Sheik. He chuckled, the dark Longshot disappearing as his hand went for one of Link's pockets. "Now, these medallions…they grant you power, do they not? Each sage has infused them with their powers…coupled with the Triforce of Courage, the owner must be imbued with great strength." Link narrowed his eyes, the only part of his body he was still in control of. "Such rage," muttered Speil as he searched through Link's pockets. "Good grief, how many weapons does one man—boy—need?"

As many as it takes to kill you, thought Link. He winced mentally when he felt Speil's fingers find the only pocket on his tunic that had a button. The one he carried his two most precious items in: The Ocarina of Time, and the temple medallions. He felt the shadow open the pocket and pull out the flute, regarding with a mild sort of amusement. Then he scoffed and threw it away, the instrument clattering over the raised dais, on which Mugen still lay, though if he was awake or not remained unknown to Link. Speil raised an eyebrow.

"Am I angering you even more? I didn't think such a thing possible," he said. He leaned over to look into the pocket, teeth glinting as his grin grew wild. "Ah, here we are." His hand went into the pocket, ready to pull out the six glinting medallions—

"Ah!" the shadow exclaimed, jerking back, away from Link. There had been some sort of shock, even Link had felt it. But where the shadow had received only pain, Link found to his amazement that he could move again—and wasted no time. With a roar, he swung his shield, catching Speil in the face, throwing him backwards, off the dais and onto the dust-covered floor. He gave the shadow no time to act as he immediately followed through with a thrust from his sword, intending to spear the shadow through his chest.

Speil growled and rolled out of the way, kicking Link's feet out from under him, sending the Hero clattering to the floor as well. His weapons appeared in his hands, and he fell into the stance that was oh-so-familiar to everyone who had ever seen Link fight. The Hero himself also rolled to his feet and assumed the stance, both of them coming to a standstill.

"What happened?" asked Speil, snarling. "How did you do that?"

"Don't ask me," Link answered, trying to find a hole in Speil's defences. This was the third time they were facing each other in combat. Link had won their first fight, and Speil the second, both almost killing each other the second time. This was the final battle, Link knew. It _had_ to be. Sheik had suffered so much because of this creature, and Navi had died trying to save Link from it. No, the shadow could not be allowed to live any longer. "I guess you're just not meant to use them…along with the Triforce!" He bellowed the last part and attacked, launching a flurry of attacks that would probably have sliced through any defence—had he been fighting someone else. Speil countered the strikes perfectly, mirroring Link's movements, just like he had done in the Water Temple during their first encounter in the foggy room with the island.

Suddenly, Speil stepped backwards and to the side, allowing Link's thrust to follow through, making the Hero stumble forward. The shadow brought his sword down, intending to sever Link's head from his shoulders, but the Hero hurled himself forward, rolling to his knees while swinging the Master Sword in a wide arch around him, almost catching Speil's knees. The shadow barely had time to recover from his jump before Link was attacking him again, doing his best not to fall into a predictable attack pattern.

"Do you really think you can fool me?" asked Speil as he perfectly parried Link's strike, not countering with one of his own. "I _am_ you; I know every attack in your repertoire!"

"Really?" asked Link. "Then how about _this_?" He stepped forward and kneed Speil hard in the crotch, drawing a sharp gasp from his shadow, which went tumbling along the floor, rolling into a pew close to where Sheik lay. Link went to his lover, watching the groaning shadow in the corner of his eye, leaning over him. "Sheik? What's happening? Talk to me!"

"He can't hear you," Speil all but whimpered, slowly climbing to his feet, rubbing his struck area. "Haven't you learned never to turn your back on the enemy?!" he shrieked, charging at Link, who scrambled away from Sheik in an effort not to hurt him even more. Speil followed him, jumping over the pews to get to the Hero, who barely had time to steel himself before the shadow went on the offence, sword and shield flashing in and out of Link's vision almost faster than he could dodge or block them.

He twisted his body to dodge and beat Speil's sword away from him, but found his vision suddenly obscured by the shadow's shield. Pain exploded in his face as the shield smashed into it, and Link felt went temporarily blind, stumbling backwards, tripping over a knocked-over pew behind him. The old wood gave way, splintering into a thousand pieces as the Hero's back crashed through it. He felt something sharp jabbing into his side. He tried to roll out of the pile of wood, but was quickly set upon by Speil, who had discarded his weapons, opting to use his fists instead. Again and again, he punched and kicked Link in every exposed part of his body. Link felt a rib snap, followed by an agonised stinging whenever he drew a short, ragged breath. Another fist thudded into his face, and he was sure his nose broke under the blow, the pain growing more and more intense. He tried to raise his hands to ward off the attacks, but the shadow was relentless, pounding and striking like there was no tomorrow.

In desperation, Link tried to find the pocket that contained the medallions, hoping he was right about their properties. He felt his other hand pushed to the floor, trampled by heavy boots. Something, a finger possibly, snapped, and pain shot up his arm. He plunged his other hand into the pocket, fingers gripping around something round and metallic. With a roar, he pulled it out and hurled it with all the strength he could muster from his position at the shadow.

Speil had no time to dodge. The purple medallion—given to Link by Impa—smacked him right between his eyes. He yelped, a loud bang ensuing as well as a blinding flash. Link heard his shadow stumble away, and slowly began to climb to his feet. Blood dripped from innumerable gashes on his face, nose practically gushing. His ring and pinky fingers on his right hand were sticking out in strange angles, and it was impossible to move them without feeling a shock go through his arm. He did his best to ignore them, fumbling after his weapons, knowing that Speil would not be long in recovering from his encounter with the medallion. His fingers found the grip of the Master Sword, and rose shaking to his feet.

Taking a medallion to the face seemed to have had a more adverse effect on Speil than simply touching one with the tips of his fingers, as he was writhing on the floor, hands gripping at the stricken area, snarling unintelligible words. Link knew this was his chance and began to run, almost stumbling over his legs, which had taken several hits in the beating. He was no more than a few feet away from the prone form of his shadow when his treacherous foot hit the floor at a wrong angle, folding over. The pain was immense, the Hero groaning as he fell over.

Why can't I keep my damn balance, Link wondered as he scrambled back to his feet, cursing loudly when he realised he had missed his chance as Speil was doing the exact same thing. There was no amusement in the shadow's eyes any longer, only rage and hatred. His weapons materialised, and Link knew that his shadow was not going to play around this time. He did not have a shield, and his hold on the Master Sword was pitifully weak compared to Speil's. There was really only one thing to do: distract him.

"Why?" Link asked just as Speil took his first step toward him.

"What?" Speil stopped, raising an eyebrow, frozen in his tracks, the question so unexpected.

"Why are you doing all this?" asked Link. "Why?"

"Because I can," snarled Speil. Link noticed that the shadow medallion had left an impressive imprint in his face. It was quite comical, and Link would have laughed had it been any other time. Three dots surrounding a sharp pyramid, all splayed across Speil's face like a failed tattoo. He frowned at the answer, and Speil only grinned. "Ask a stupid question, receive a stupid answer," he sneered. "Do you have any idea what is to know that your life, your entire existence, was only created so someone else's mettle could be tested? Do you know what it's like to be born, and then immediately expected to fight your supposedly better half to the death?" The last part was said with a scream. "I did as the temple told me, and all I got was pain and humiliation. I severed the ties to the temple, all thanks to the power you gave when you stabbed me through my shoulder, Hero…and I vowed to never rest until you, the source of all my suffering and humiliation, was dead. I must destroy you!"

"Then why drag Sheik into this?" Link asked, still struggling with his grip on the Master Sword's hilt. It was slipping from his blood-slicked hand. "What did he ever do to deserve this?" he asked, pointing at the Sheikah, who was growing more and more still by the minute.

"He was yours. Even before your pathetic admittance of feelings to each other, he belonged to you," Speil answered slowly, glaring at Link. "I wanted to destroy you, everyone and everything you loved…and I nearly succeeded, that night in the Forest Temple. I would have done so much more than just kill him, had you not interrupted us…"

"Bastard!" Link shouted and charged at the shadow, swinging his sword wildly, rage overpowering every reasonable fibre of his being, dulling the pain, lessening his fatigue. The Master Sword whistled through the air, again and again, each swing coming a little closer to the shadow's form. Speil grunted with effort as he blocked and dodged Link's strikes, unable to find a window of opportunity, unable to hurl any attacks back at him. Link was chasing him backwards, towards the dais. He almost stumbled as his heels hit the edge of the platform, gritting his teeth. Suddenly, he swing his shield out toward Link, who deftly stepped backwards to avoid the blow. But that was all he needed. He dissipated the shield, holding out his hand, palm facing Link.

"I have played with you for long enough," he muttered. Link froze. He didn't have the time (or strength) to counter a magical attack. Unconsciously, he closed his eyes, preparing for a world of hurt. Then the shadow cursed, and he opened his eyes to be greeted by the sight of Speil staring angrily at his hand. "What is this?" he asked loudly. He tried to unleash another attack at Link, but nothing happened this time either. "The medallion?" Speil growled, his attention back on the staring Link. "What did you do?" he shrieked, stabbing forward with his sword. Link parried it and swung his sword in a wide arc, catching the shadow's black tunic and ripping it open from chest to shoulder.

"I'm taking back everything you stole from me!" Link roared, stabbing forward…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 88**

* * *

Link lunged. Their swords met with a loud clang that seemed to reverberate forever throughout the chamber. Again and again, the shadow and his light swung their weapons, neither gaining nor losing any advantages. Link's fingers protested as he tried to throw a right punch at Speil. He gasped and took his eyes off Speil for a second to stare at his hand. There was something resembling a fist there, but the broken fingers would not even move now. He grimaced, eyes darting back just in time to avoid getting his head chopped off by a wide swing from Speil. The shadow jumped, bringing his sword back to chop down heavily. Link knew the move, had used it hundreds of times himself. He sidestepped the strike, slamming the hilt of his sword into Speil's stomach. The shadow grunted in pain and responded with an elbow in Link's face. It hit the Hero's already bruised nose, and Link groaned, stumbling backwards. Speil came charging after, barrelling into Link and pushing him to the floor.

Again, the shadow began to beat him brutally, punching wherever he could see exposed flesh. Link managed to defend himself somewhat by raising his hands, even got a punch or two in himself, but the shadow did not seem to notice, not even blinking when Link caught him in his right eye. Link saw a chance and dug his thumb into the shadow's eye. Speil screamed, abandoning his pummelling of Link to rip the Hero's good hand from his face. He snarled and grabbed Link's thumb and bent it backwards. It snapped. Link screamed. Speil laughed, tears streaming down his face from his abused eye.

"Eye for an eye, Hero!" Speil yelled, bending down to give Link a taste of his own medicine. But the Hero, who felt light-headed from the beating and the sudden addition to his gallery of broken bones, only grinned back through the froth around his mouth.

"And tooth for a tooth!" he shouted, leaning up and slamming his forehead into the bridge of Speil's nose. The shadow screamed in pain and leaned backwards, freeing Link's body. Link then struck Speil in the mouth with his left hand, feeling something give way for his fist. Speil fell onto his back, screams muffled by his hands.

The Hero wasted no time in crawling over to him, sinking his knee into his stomach with a triumphant shout. Again and again, Link kicked and kicked, wanting nothing more than for the shadow to feel every bit of pain both he and Sheik had felt because of him. "This is for Navi!" Kick. "This is for Sheik!" Kick. "This is for Zelda!" Kick. "And this…" he stood up, drawing his leg backwards. "Is for me!" He gave the shadow a vicious boot to the ribs. At least two of them broke with a sickening snap.

Speil kicked out, his legs and feet flailing about, seemingly useless until it finally found a target. Link could have sworn he saw his knee bend backwards before the pain caught up with him and sent him reeling into a pew, holding his leg and bouncing around on the other. Then Speil was on him again, breathing heavily and bleeding from his nose just like Link. Something hit Link in the stomach, the Hero responded with a punch to the shadow's damaged ribs. Suddenly, Speil grabbed Link's nose with two fingers and twisted. The pain was indescribable, and the sound nauseating, crunching and slurping as the bones and cartilage were broken into thousands of little pieces.

A shout, and he was flying through the air, crashing into the altar, the back of his head slamming painfully into the stone, making him even more woozy. His face was just one big painful area, and Link knew he must have looked like something that had crawled out of a ditch somewhere. He slowly looked up, seeing the shadow slowly approaching, sword in hand. Link tried to crawl away, almost making it to the other side of altar before he was yanked back by his hair.

Speil grinned, drawing back his sword for the final blow. This was it. Finally, the Hero would die. Then something unexpected happened. Something latched around his wrist, holding back his strike. He growled and turned to look at who was interrupting him. Mugen was giving him a bloody grin as he quickly sank a small dagger into Speil's side.

"Never give...away your…weapons," the spy gasped.

Link swung an elbow into Speil's stomach. The shadow grunted, releasing his hair. He tried to roll away, though it was more of a crooked, drunken slide. There was something in the dust ahead of him, close to the pedestal with the strange, transparent triangle. He slowly crawled toward it.

Mugen continued to grin, even when Speil sunk his sword deep into the spy's chest. His last ragged breaths passed his lips, his last energy spent on spitting the shadow in the face. Speil sneered and wiped his face with the sleeve of his black tunic as he pulled the sword out of the dead man's heart. He turned around, saw the Hero's pathetic crawl away from him, grinned and went to finish him off. He grabbed the back of Link's tunic, intending to turn him around to stare into the face of doom before dying. He grinned when Link's eyes came round to stare at him. But the Hero had a grin of his own. Speil, confused, made to strike. But Link was faster. Sheik's lost dagger plunged easily into the shadow's stomach, and Link pulled it upwards, not stopping until he hit the shadow's rib cage.

Speil coughed, the grip on his sword slacking. He pushed Link away, stumbled backwards. He had to get away. Nothing had gone according to his plan. He rounded the altar with the dead spy, felt the Hero's boot suddenly kicking into his back, was sent stumbling forwards, falling flat on his face. He groaned, rolling over, coughing blood. He was lying next to Sheik, who was breathing heavily, but had ceased shaking and convulsing. The Sheikah's red eyes were staring into his, oddly devoid of emotion. Speil opened his mouth, intending to say something, anything. He sat up. Nothing except the Hero's own weapons could kill him, he knew, feeling the many wounds upon his body already healing.

But then the Master Sword pierced his chest, pushing him back to the floor, impaling him. No shout, no scream, no discomforted exclamation. Only a soft sigh and a cough.

Link grimaced down at the shadow. He twisted the sword violently around. This time, the shadow screamed. It went through the very marrow of his bones, so agonised it was. Link gritted his teeth, finishing the vicious twist before yanking it out, the blade stained a deep red. Speil didn't move, staring up at Link with shocked eyes.

"How…?" he asked.

"I…don't know," Link answered. His legs were shaking, close to falling over himself. "Just…die already…"

"To…hell…with you…" Speil said, coughing up blood.

"Not…for a long…time." The Hero drew his sword back, preparing to end it. But a soft sigh from Sheik distracted him. He let go of his sword, immediately falling to his knees beside the Sheikah, lifting him gently and cradling him in his arms. "Sheik? Come on, answer me! Please!" The younger teen was still breathing, but he was weak, and his eyes were blank, only staring at nothing with an empty expression, his jaw slack. "Sheik?" Link asked, his lower lip trembling.

Speil stared at them, feeling his body slowly seizing up and shutting down. Already, he felt himself being unravelled. He looked to his left, seeing the altar with the dead Mugen on top, knowing what lay behind it. He had been so close. All he had left to do was to figure out how to make it recognise him as its rightful wielder. The pulses that issued from it was almost unnoticeable to him now, his senses starting to fail. He looked back at Link and Sheik, sighing and gurgling. His eyes—one of them still weeping from the Hero's thumb attack—widened when he noticed that Sheik was staring at the altar as well. Or rather, at the pedestal behind it, eyes unblinking.

* * *

The pulse was deafening now, while at the same time silent. He felt it vibrate through his entire body while he lay there. Something was trying to catch his attention, but the altar was in the way. His chest felt like it was going to explode, his heart beating wildly, Terra's absence clearly playing havoc with it.

_What…is it?_

He remembered that there was something behind the altar, but he couldn't for the life of him remember what it was. He felt himself being lifted from the floor, held in someone's strong arms. Something red. Link, then. Had he won? Was Speil dead? He felt the mark on his neck give a twinge. No, then. The shadow was still alive.

Another pulse. Another twitch. It was calling him. He looked at the altar, trying to figure out what it was. His vision was blurry, making it impossible to make out anything around him.

_What is it?_

* * *

Link looked at Sheik, trying to catch his attention. "Sheik?" No reaction. Why wasn't he responding? He wasn't dead! He was still breathing, his heart beating like crazy. Why wouldn't he just respond and stop worrying him so?

"He can't…hear you…" Speil said, coughing up a thick glob of blood, spitting it out. "He's…going…"

"Shut up!" Link roared, glaring at the dying shadow. "This is all your fault!"

Speil didn't answer, only continued to stare at the limp Sheik in Link's arms. Then he looked at the altar again, and came to a decision. "The triangle…" he coughed.

"What?" asked Link.

"The triangle," repeated Speil. "It…can save him…" Coughs wracked his entire body, and small wisps of smoke were starting to come off the shadow. "It may…be his only…chance…"

"I don't believe you!" Link snarled. "You're just trying to kill us, like what happened with the people who built this fortress!" He indicated to the dust around them.

"That's because they were weak!" Speil growled. "Look at me, Hero! You have…given me wounds I could never…recover from. What…do you think I could gain…from killing you now? My entire…plan was to…take your…place…"

"What?"

"You…heard me…I wanted what you had…everything you had. Your life, your friends, your fame…your lover…" Speil felt his mouth fill up with blood again, and spat out another thick gob. "It started when I took…your Triforce…but it is useless to me now…"

"Give me one reason why I should believe you," Link said, an unmistakable tinge of hopefulness on his voice. Speil wanted to laugh at his light's idiot naivety.

"Because I still love him," the shadow finally managed to croak out. "With all my being…"

"Then how could you kill him? Twice, even?" Link asked, but Speil knew that he was already won over, the stupid boy.

"Because…I wanted him for myself…and he will never come back to me…now," Speil tried to reach over to pet Sheik on the shoulder, but could not summon the strength. "I'd rather he be dead…than be someone else's…" He looked up, into the seemingly infinite stretch of darkness that shrouded the ceiling. "Have him…touch the triangle…the people who tried to use it before…were weak. He is strong…he can handle it…"

There was no point in arguing any further. Link was already on his feet, carrying Sheik gently in his arms, jogging over to the altar, doing his best to overlook the body of Mugen. He would be given a decent burial, he swore by it. He had saved his life, after all, paid for it with his own.

"Hero!" Speil shouted from his position in the dust. "Tell him…I love him…and I am sorry!"

Link stared at his shadow for a second, and then nodded. "I will." Speil nodded back at him, gave another violent bout of coughing as more and more smoke began to roll off him. Link walked over to the pedestal, finally seeing the strange triangle up close. It floated absolutely still in the air, giving off one of the familiar pulses every now and then. The pulses seemed to be synced with Sheik's breathing; he noticed suddenly, his lover's eyes fixed firmly upon the translucent triangle. He carefully lowered Sheik to the floor, his broken fingers screaming in protest as he held on. He took Sheik's hand in his own and lifted it, placing the Sheikah's fingers carefully onto the crystalline-looking triangle.

Nothing happened at first. Just as Link was about to sigh in defeat, Sheik gasped, his eyes widening to an impossible degree. The pulses from the triangle came faster and faster until they came just as fast as Sheik's heart was beating. The air around the pedestal began to shimmer and waver. A pinpoint of light appeared at the triangle's very centre, quickly growing to a blinding intensity. Then something exploded, and Link was thrown backwards, loosing his hold on Sheik. He felt his lower back collide painfully with the altar before he spun around in the air. He landed painfully on a pew, it smashing apart underneath his body. His vision went dark…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 86**

* * *

If there was ever a pain Link never wanted to feel again, it was the one he felt when he woke up. His entire body felt like it was on fire, every muscle stiff as a board. His face felt like someone had poured molten metal on it, his nose an unrecognisable mess of broken bone and cartilage. His left thumb was broken, having taken on an ugly blue-black colour. The ring and little fingers on his right were the same, but with the added bonus of pointing in angles they were clearly not supposed to. He tried to move them, but only the ring finger moved, the little remaining in its place.

It was hard to breathe. The nose was absolutely useless, and his jaw felt like it was swollen to thrice its size. His mouth was filled with blood, and quickly filled up again no matter how many times he spat it out. His knee, which the shadow had kicked, was hard to bend, and Link wouldn't be surprised if something in there had broken as well. He'd be lucky if he had just pulled a tendon, he supposed. He sat up…or tried to, anyway. It took him a couple of tries before he was finally able to do it.

The room had darkened considerably, many of the torches extinguished by the blast that had resulted from Sheik touching the strange triangle. He had no idea where his weapons were, most likely scattered around the room along with his tools and medallions, which had fallen out of his pocket during the fight with Speil. Speaking of the shadow… He looked over to where he had seen the dying shadow last, was greeted with the sight of absolutely nothing but an imprint of a body in the dust and some spatters of blood. He sighed in relief, glad that it was finally over.

"Looking for me?" asked a voice suddenly, and Link twisted his head to the altar, where the voice had come from. Speil was leaning against the altar, breathing heavily. No blood, even though there was an obvious wound in his chest that—if Link had done it right—went right through to the other side. The shadow laughed at his surprise. "Don't worry, Hero…I'm still dying…in fact, I'm not far from expiring now."

As if to prove his point, another puff of black smoke came from his chest, dissolving quickly. His legs seemed to give out, and Speil sunk to the floor, sitting with his back leaning against the altar. Mugen's body still lay there, untouched by the blast. Link shook his head; sad over the man's death…all he had wanted to do was to be of service to Zelda. "I bet you're looking forward to seeing our boy again," the shadow said mockingly.

"Sheik…" Link whispered, trying to get to his feet, failing miserably. There was no strength left in his legs, which felt like jelly each time he tried to stand. "Is he okay?" he asked, knowing that Speil was in a much better position to check.

Speil shrugged. "Not sure…he seemed to be breathing when I came up here…but as you can see—"He was interrupted by a bout of coughing accompanied by blood. It spilled down the front of his black tunic. The shadow growled and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "As you can see, I did not get very far…" More and more smoke was beginning to come off the shadow, and Link could see his clothing lose their…lustre? "Hero…how does it feel?"

"What?" asked Link, finally able to stand—somewhat. He had to lean against an unbroken pew in order to not topple over. His back was stinging something fierce, and he knew he would most likely have an uncountable number of splinters in his back from all the pews he had broken with his body.

"How does it feel…to have someone love you like he does?" Speil asked. "He is…fully devoted to you, to the point that I am sure he would even die for you."

Link blinked, not expecting such a question. How _did_ he feel about that? There was no question that it was something positive, and he absolutely loved Sheik back, and he probably would have no qualms about laying his life on the line for the Sheikah. But he couldn't describe it. It was simply something one felt. Not analysable, not examinable. It was simply there. He looked at the shadow, pitying it slightly for not knowing that feeling. But it was hard to see past all Speil had done. "It's…great," Link said finally. "I can't describe it properly, but it's probably the best feeling in the world. It's even better than being told you can have the last piece of cake."

Now it was Speil's turn to blink, probably in disbelief to the Hero's ridiculous analogy. Hell, even _Link_ knew it was ridiculous, but that was what he had chosen to go with, and that's that. "Last piece…of cake?" the shadow asked slowly, probably wondering if the Hero had taken something before the fight in order to dull the pain. " _That_ is what you would equate true love with?" He coughed again, more blood and smoke flooded from him. "I _knew_ you were ridiculously childish but this…"

"You wanted my opinion, you got it," Link said annoyed. He tried to breathe through his nose, but the only thing that got through was a loud wheeze and a whole lot of pain that almost sent him reeling back into the dust. Actually, lying down didn't seem too bad an option right now. No, can't do that, he thought and shook his head, clearing it up somewhat. His knee clicked as he tried to put weight on it, took his first step.

One by one, he came closer to the altar, and Speil observed him with dulling eyes, the red orbs losing their brilliance more and more by the second. Halfway to the altar, Link had to stop and kneel, breathing heavily. The pain was too much. He tore through an opening in his tights to survey the damage done to his leg, and almost gasped. The knee had taken on the same colour as his broken fingers, and he didn't entirely like the way he could bend it slightly forwards. Surely it was not supposed to do that?

Speil chuckled, an ugly sound that was punctuated by more coughing as he held his side, the one where Link had broken several ribs. "Such a child…" he wheezed. "I wonder how I became what I am when the source from which I came is like this…" Cough. Blood. Smoke. "I suppose now is as good a time to tell you as ever…the Evil King knows of the relationship between you and Sheik…" Cough. "He will use it against you…" Cough. "If he gets the chance." Cough. Cough. Smoke. Blood.

"How did he find out?" asked Link, hissing in pain as he tried to move the knee to the right position without doing too much damage. "Did you tell him?"

"No, I would never _dream_ of allying myself with such a…pathetic creature," Speil answered. His eyes were black now, shining under the sweaty locks of hair obscuring his forehead. "The sorceress told him…"

"Damn her!" Link spat. "How did _she_ find out?"

"Socialisation," said the shadow. "One hopes to improve one's comradeship with another by sharing personal information…no such luck from her." More coughing, more blood. He twitched, his breath suddenly stopping before continuing at a hurried pace. "This is it…" Smoke seemed to just explode around him. "Goodbye, Hero…I hope you die painfully…"

Link watched as Speil was completely enveloped in the black smoke, his coughing growing weaker and weaker until it died out completely. The smoke began to dissipate; disappearing into nothing as the altar once again came into view. He was gone. The only thing that even hinted at something having sat there was the blood he had coughed up. For a moment, Link stared at the spot, unable to believe it was finally over. Then a small smile spread on his lips, and he sighed in relief.

He began to make another effort in moving to the altar, but had not taken more than a few steps before his left began to burn intensely. It came so suddenly and viciously that he was unable to contain the scream that erupted from his lungs. He clawed at his gauntlet, trying to fumble it off, but his fingers were absolutely useless. The burning spread up his arm, down his torso, down his legs, his head, his other arm. He howled, falling to the floor, his entire body burning. It felt like he had fallen into a lava pit without his Goron tunic, despite the fact that he was wearing it right now. He heard sizzling, knew it came from his hand, smoke rising from the finger holes in the gauntlets.

Then it was over. Just as quick as it had begun, it ended. Not on a high note, not on low note. It simply…disappeared. Breathing heavily, Link crawled to the altar, needing solid floor under him. He rolled to his side, managed to pull the silver-plated gauntlet off. He gasped when the sensitive skin of his left hand came into contact with the cold air in the chamber. The image of a triangle had been burned into his skin, the skin still pink and tender from the ordeal. The Triforce. Link couldn't help but smile. It was finally his, like it should have been from the start.

Suddenly, the pain wracking his body did not feel as severe, the ruined nose in his face easier to breathe through. He felt more energised, more aware. Speil's death seemed to have lifted a weight off his shoulder, and _what_ a weight it was. It felt like he had been walking hunchbacked his entire life and could now finally stretch out fully. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He grabbed the side of the altar and pulled himself up, able to stand with virtually no pain whatsoever. He looked at Mugen's grinning face. That was him, alright; defiant to the end even if a sword was being dug into his heart. He closed the spy's eyes gently, whispering: "Thank you for everything."

Then he looked up, and saw Sheik lying there, in front of the pedestal like nothing had happened. Except that the triangle was gone. Link's heart skipped a beat. Did this mean that it had saved Sheik? The Sheikah seemed to be breathing. He stumbled over to the other blond, dropping to his knees, pulling the prone Sheikah to lie on his back. Sheik's chest was rising steadily, and his pulse was strong. Link smiled brightly, kissing the unconscious Sheikah on the lips, so exuberantly happy to see his lover still okay. When Terra had died… Link bent his head for a minute in respect for the fallen Sheikah.

He moved to sit against the wall, pulling Sheik against himself in a strange sort of hug, waiting for him to wake up.

* * *

He must have fallen asleep for a second, he realised. He opened his eyes and found himself face to face with Sheik, who was staring up at him with confusion. "Hey there," the Hero said, wishing he hadn't the moment after when his face flared up in pain from the movement of his jaw. So he was still massively injured, Triforce or not, he figured.

"Er…hey," Sheik answered, still blinking in confusion. "What happened?"

"It's a long story," answered Link, wondering if he even remembered what had happened to Terra. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

Sheik thought about it for a second, then slid away from Link and stood up, stretching. "I feel fine," he said at last. "Well, I still cannot see with my left eye, and my hand itches, but apart from that—"

"Your hand whats?" asked Link, trying to sit up, but failing miserably. Sheik rolled his eyes at Link's horrible grammar, took pity upon the Hero and moved to crouch next to him, his back still turned to the altar. When he turned around…

"I said my hand itches, Link," Sheik said, rubbing the top of his right hand. "It feels like a bug bite or something similar." He began to unravel the bandages covering his hand. Link watched as the white pieces of cloth slowly fell to the floor, saw Sheik's eyes widening.

"What? What?" asked Link, stretching his neck as he tried to see.

"What…is this?" asked Sheik slowly, looking at his hand in disbelief.

"If you'd let me see, maybe we can figure it out together," Link finally said, huffing. His eyes mirrored Sheik's when the Sheikah turned his hand around. "What _is_ that?"

On the back of Sheik's hand, another triangle had been burned into the skin, but this one was…different. The skin caught inside the triangle's walls seemed to have darkened somewhat compared to the rest of the hand. Link undid his gauntlet and held his left hand up to Sheik's, comparing them. Sheik's triangle pointed downwards rather than upwards, like Link's, and there was just something…off about it.

"A Triforce piece?" Link asked.

"But how?" asked Sheik.

"I thought it was just going to save your life," Link muttered, trying to stand up. Sheik helped him up, wincing when the Hero grunted.

"What do you mean?" asked Sheik, raising an eyebrow. "You look like you've been through hell and back, you know that?"

"Yeah, yeah," said Link. "The shadow told me that—"

"Speil?" asked Sheik, quickly turning around. He spotted Mugen's body and rushed over to it. "What happened, Link? Where's Speil?"

"I'd say it's pretty obvious where Speil is," said Link, waggling the fingers—except the thumb—on his left hand as he showed the Sheikah the Triforce piece on his hand again.

"Dead, then," Sheik said, touching his neck where Speil's mark had once been. The skin was no longer swollen or tender. He sighed. "But Mugen?"

"Killed by Speil…he saved my life, actually," said Link. "Sheik…what exactly _do_ you remember?"

"I remember attacking Speil after Dehl disappeared…but nothing after that," the Sheikah said hesitantly, his hands on his hips. "Maybe Terra remembers…oh…"

"What?"

"Now I remember…Speil killed him…"

"I'm sorry, Sheik."

Sheik didn't respond, only stared at the floor. Link knew he was trying to fathom that the Sheikah was gone, and this time he was not coming back. Trying, and failing, judging by the wetness in his eyes. Link painfully hobbled over to him and wordlessly pulled him into a hug. "He's…gone…" Sheik said slowly.

"Yeah…but he saved us all," Link said, knowing that all three of them would have died had the Sheikah spirit not alerted both Link and Speil to the temple medallions. Two of them had sapped Speil of his magical power, it had seemed. Had Speil retained his power…

"But how am I still alive?" asked Sheik, looking up at Link. "He was the one who kept my soul in my body…" He looked thoughtful for a second. "My heart is even beating steadily now, not skipping a single beat."

"Your heart was skipping beats?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"That does not matter," said Sheik, shaking his head. "The question still remains, why am I still alive?"

"The triangle, obviously," said Link, poking the mark of the triangle on Sheik's hand. "It must be something really magical…"

"But _what_ is it?"

Link didn't answer, and Sheik didn't ask again, both knowing that doing so would only start a meaningless back-and-forth exchange of confusion that would lead to absolutely nothing. Instead, Sheik drew out of Link's arms and looked around, studying the chamber. "Why would Speil tell you about the triangle…and why are all your weapons and tools spread out all over the room?"

"He…began to talk after I gave him the death blow," said Link. "He told me how to save you by making you touch the triangle. And there was an explosion of sorts when you touched it. Which is why my back is full of splinters, by the way."

Sheik stared at him. "You still didn't tell me _why_ he told you how to save me. After almost killing me twice, I'd say he would not be terribly interested in seeing me out and about anymore."

Link sighed. "Because he still loved you, I guess." He pinched the bridge of his nose with his right hand, careful not to upset his broken fingers. "No offense, Sheik, but I'm not really in mood to talk about all this…I feel kinda dizzy."

Sheik was at his side in an instant, checking him over, apologising profusely. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I let myself get carried away, I'm sorry…"

"It's fine, it's fine," Link said. "I just…I need a break. And my nose probably needs to be reset."

"Then we should head back immediately," said Sheik, making Link jealous of his seemingly pristine condition—except that white slit in his left eye.

Link was about to agree before he remembered something and sighed again. "Good idea, except I have to find all my weapons and tools…"

Sheik looked around. "I guess you're right. Good grief, Hero, can't you have one decisive battle against your darker half without littering your things all over the fortress?"

"Oh, ha-ha, hilarious, Sheik."

"Thank you."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 90**

* * *

Sheik placed the final deceased spy's body next to the others. He had placed them in a line just inside the entrance to the strange temple, doing his best to keep them out of forces of nature. The rain had already begun to bloat them, but it would have to do until he returned and could bury them properly. Mugen still lay inside the inner chamber, upon the altar. It had seemed…right, somehow. He had folded his hands over his chest and closed his eyes. It made him look somewhat dignified, even though the silly grin on his face spoiled it somewhat.

Sheik looked up from his work after closing the final spy's eyes, listening for the laboured steps of the approaching Hero. There were none. Link had decided to gather up his tools alone, saying that he wanted to give Sheik time to say goodbye to the spies he had trained, but the Sheikah knew that Link also wanted some time alone, most likely to process what had happened in that chamber. He absentmindedly scratched at the back of his right hand. The triangle mark on his hand still itched like crazy, and he had a good mind to cut it away with a dagger.

 _What the hell is this thing?_ he wondered. He caught himself waiting for Terra to answer, and frowned. _Right. He's gone,_ he thought. It was hard…adjusting to not having that voice in his head any longer. He had just gotten used to having someone listening in on his thoughts, and now it was gone again. He gritted his teeth. And he hadn't even been able to help. Speil had mercilessly…killed him, destroyed his very soul. Just like that. At least that's what Link had said, and he had no reason to doubt the Hero's words. He supposed that was when he finally began to hate Speil.

At first, he had simply tried to ignore the shadow's very existence, but with all he had done. Navi, Mugen and his men, himself, Terra…all murdered by Link's shadow. But, as it was, the shadow was finally dead now, and he was not coming back. The fact that Link had finally regained his rightful piece of the Triforce was proof of that. He looked at the upside-down triangle on his own hand. _Dehl knew what it was, as did Speil…but I have never heard of this, and I have studied the histories extensively, possibly even more so than Zelda has._ _Who else knows of this?_ It didn't take him long to come to an answer to _that_ question. _Vorpheus, of course…_

Now he heard laboured breathing, wheezing and panting, coming towards him. Boots clicked against the cracking floor, shield and sword banging against each other rhythmically. He turned around and looked down the corner, seeing the approaching, bobbing light of a torch. At least the Hero had decided to actually be able to see where he was going rather than running into walls and doors…although the chances of breaking his nose any more than it already was were remote. It was hard to look at Link without feeling a pang of guilt in his chest. Had it not been for his own weakness against Speil's spell, he could have helped Link and perhaps spared his nose and fingers from the trauma of being broken beyond recognition. The Sheikah, with his limited knowledge of the healing arts, had tried to reset Link's nose himself, but there was practically nothing left in there to actually adjust. The fingers he did not dare to touch. One mistake and Link could lose them. Sheik would rather have an educated physician look at them…preferably the fiery and irritable purple-haired one from Termina.

"Did you find all your tools?" Sheik asked as he stood up, slinging the pack over his shoulder. None of the items within were broken, luckily. Link didn't answer, only continued to walk, breathing heavily.

"Yeah," he finally answered when he came within a few feet of Sheik's position. His voice was hoarse, and it sounded like he had a cold due to his shattered nose. "Took me a bit to find the last medallion, though." He was holding said medallion in his hand, studying it with interest. It was the one he had flung in Speil's face. According to the Hero, his shadow had been unable to use any magic after coming into contact with it, and Sheik could only guess that the piece of metal had sucked the energy out of him.

"How are you feeling?" asked Sheik, remembering the massive amount of splinters that had buried themselves in Link's back. He had removed the worst of the damage, of course, but for every one he pulled out five more seemed to take its place.

"I'm fine," said Link proudly, the effect somewhat diminished by his appearance. His face, while no longer covered in dried blood and spit and who knows what, was bruised and swollen. His nose was noticeably bent to the side, breath coming out in squeaks and whines. His tunic, on the other hand, was covered in spatters of blood, and full of tears, exposing the equally torn shirt beneath. "How 'bout you?" Link asked.

"I do not think I have felt better since before I died," he said earnestly. The skip of his heartbeat was gone, though if this meant that his lifespan had been lengthened again, he did not know. That was something else he had to ask Vorpheus about when they met up with the Remnant again. "Even though I feel…lonely. My head is less crowded."

Link frowned, knowing what he meant. "I'm sorry about Terra," he said. Sheik shook his head to show that it was okay, but the Hero pressed on, ignoring the agitated stance of the Sheikah. "He saved our lives, you know. If he hadn't yelled to me about the medallions, then Speil wouldn't have tried to take them, and…well, you know the rest." Sheik had taken a step back, pretending to look for something in his pack. "Sheik, it helps to talk about stuff like this—"

"Well, I don't want to talk about it, Link," Sheik said, pulling out a bottle of water and taking a swig. "Not now, at least," he added after swallowing. He offered Link the bottle, but the Hero shook his head.

"Alright, I'm not gonna push you," said Link, offering a smile as a peace offering. Sheik returned it, and like that they were fine. "So," Link said, looking at the row of bodies. "Are you ready?"

"Yes, I am," said Sheik as he began to walk toward the exit, paying no more attention to the dead spies. He couldn't afford to be bogged down by guilt. Not now. Too much was happening. There would be more than enough time for grief and repentance later. "And you are sure that you have all your tools?"

"Yup," said Link happily and put the medallion in his pocket with the others. "I thought I had lost my Longshot, but it had been buried in the sand by the blast."

Sheik grimaced to himself. _What a shame it would have been if the Longshot was gone indeed…_ He looked for a deku nut on his person, but found that he had no more. Slightly worried, he began to search in the pack, relieved when he found a single one nestled between his spyglass and a bottle. But that was all there was. Only one left. He held it between his thumb and index fingers, feeling the rough texture of it. He looked back at Link, who seemed intent on double-checking that he had everything with him.

For once, the sun was shining outside. The battle and subsequent bout of unconsciousness seemed to have taken the entire night, and judging by the position of the sun, most of the morning. The sunny weather wouldn't last long, it seemed. Dark clouds were once again massing in the east, and approaching rapidly. Sheik could have sworn he saw flashes of lightning every now and then. He breathed in deep, relishing in the fresh air. It felt like he could draw bigger breaths now, like his lungs expanded much more. Was this just his imagination, or had the triangle truly done something to him? If Terra's soul was the only thing that bound Sheik's own soul to his body, what did the triangle do?

He fingered the deku nut, stared at the clouds. He jumped slightly when Link poked at his shoulder with a questioning look. "Are we going to stand here and look at the clouds all day, or are we leaving?"

"We're leaving," said Sheik and turned to Link. "But you first. I only have one deku nut left, and I want to make sure you are not stranded up here."

"Alright," said Link and pulled out the purple ocarina. He was about to put it to his lips when he apparently thought of something. "Where should I warp?" he asked.

Sheik had to think about it. It hadn't occurred to him exactly where to go now. "Hm…good question," he said and rubbed his chin. "We cannot go back to the Forest Temple as it will put us too close to Ganondorf's forces…"

"You think they're already there?" asked Link. "I'd think moving several armies across Hyrule will take a little longer than three days."

"Entire armies, perhaps," agreed Sheik. "But don't you think the Evil King has had the foresight to send scouting parties ahead? On the other hand, he might not have, thinking he has cornered the princess and her forces. Either way, I do not wish to take that chance."

"Then where? Lake Hylia?" asked Link.

"No, Lake Hylia presents the same problem of being too close to the Lost Woods…in fact, we should consider the entire southern half of Hyrule as too dangerous."

"Then where?" asked Link again. "The Spirit Temple is too far away…I don't think I'd be able to cross the desert right now, Sheik."

"Probably not," agreed Sheik. "Death Mountain? No, climbing down the mountain will probably have the same effect on you as crossing the Gerudo Desert."

"Temple of Ti—"

"No." Sheik wouldn't even let Link finish the suggestion. "For reasons I should not have to explain to you, we cannot get close to Ganondorf's fortress…for now, anyway."

"Well, then there's only more place available," said Link. "Kakariko."

"Exactly," said Sheik. "With horses, we might be able to sneak across the plains and into the Gerudo Valley."

"Right, Shadow Temple it is, then," said Link and placed to the mouthpiece to his lips and was just about to begin playing when he opened his eyes again and stared at Sheik.

"What is it now?" asked Sheik.

"I can't bend my fingers to play," said Link embarrassed. "Help me?"

Sheik sighed and rolled his eyes. Standing in front of Link, he spent a few seconds remembering the Nocturne of Shadow as well as approximating where the holes for the different notes were on the Ocarina. He had played it once before, but he was staring at it upside down now, and adjustment was needed. "Alright, I think I know what holes to cover. Ready?"

Link nodded and began to blow a steady wave of air through the instrument, producing a rather flat note. In quick succession, Sheik moved his fingers across the holes, producing a somewhat passable version of the all-too familiar melody. Link was looking at him, a smile on his lips just as he was enveloped in a pillar of light which Sheik quickly stepped out of. A flash, and Link was gone. Sheik stared at the spot where he had been standing for a few seconds before he conjured up an image of the Kakariko graveyard in his head. Then he hurled the nut into the ground, disappearing in a blinding flash of his own, leaving the strange temple behind. For now.

* * *

There was something in the way of his landing. No sooner had his feet reached solid ground did Sheik fall over, landing painfully on a pile of…something. It took him a couple of minutes to figure out exactly what it was, but then realised it was the remains of the wooden fence around the entrance to the Shadow Temple. He rolled on to his side and came to his feet, looking around for Link. He found the Hero staring into the entrance to the temple, and came up behind him, trying to ignore the burned and destroyed village behind them.

"Link?" Sheik asked. "What is it?"

"I think I heard something in there," Link said, not even turning around to acknowledge him. Sheik knew something was up.

"There are many things that make sounds in there, Link. You remember the last time we were here, do you not?" asked Sheik, remembering the nightmarish sights inside. And yet, those nightmarish sights were part of his culture and heritage. It was only natural for outsiders to think of them as…strange.

"Yeah, I do, I just…I don't think it was any of those," said Link. He was bending his left knee, Sheik noticed. It made a soft clicking noise every time he straightened it out, the Hero wincing. "It sounded like…a kid, or something. I don't know."

"A child?" asked Sheik, looking inside the Temple as well. The circle of torches around the central platform still burned as brightly as ever. "Surely not. I thought all the civilians in the village managed to evacuate before Ganondorf's forces arrived. No one should be here…unless it's a trap."

"A trap?" asked Link, looking at Sheik with an unconvinced expression. "Here? Why?"

"To lure you inside to capture you, I don't know," said Sheik, knowing how ridiculous he sounded. But he wanted to get Link to a doctor as soon as possible, and holding up here in Kakariko…

"Come on, Sheik. That's ridiculous," said Link.

"I know, Hero, I know…I'm just worried about your injuries, and—"

"They're not killing me as of yet," said Link and took a step inside the temple. "And I'm not gonna leave a kid behind in this—no offence—horrible place." He took another pair of steps inside, froze when a scream—high-pitched, childlike—issued from the entrance down the slope. Sheik's eyes widened along with Link. The Hero looked at Sheik with an expression that was halfway between a smug one and a frightened one. "You coming?"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 91**

* * *

The temple had changed. It was apparent as early as the circle of torches that marked the entrance to the Sheikah catacombs. Bedrolls, goblets, plates with half-eaten meals on them, remains of cooking fires. Weapons were piled up in one corner. Five spears, five bedrolls, five plates. Five men, though on whose side they were was unknown. Knowing their luck, Sheik assumed they were hostile and loosened the bandages on his hands for easier access to his daggers. He also made sure that Kazuya was firmly sheathed and did not knock around, making noise. Link was checking the room for…something, Sheik wasn't sure exactly what. The Hero went from bedroll to bedroll, rummaging through the sheets and discarded backpacks, probably for something useful, though his broken fingers did not aid him very much. Sheik sighed and went over to him and helped him open the buckle on a pack.

"Looking for something?" asked Sheik, giving Link a stare that firmly told the Hero to stop exerting his damaged fingers.

"Just for something that'll tell us who they are," the Hero answered, watching intently as Sheik carefully lifted items out of the backpack. Food, more food, some mysterious trinkets he did not know what did, a small dagger, even more food, and a coin. And not just any coin. Ganondorf's smug grin adorned the golden metal. They frowned at each other. "That can't be good," Link said.

"Probably not," agreed Sheik and carefully replaced the items in the pack, standing up. "Well then, shall we leave?" he said and began to head for the exit.

"Wait, what?" asked Link and stopped Sheik with a grab of his shoulder. "Leave? What are you talking about?"

"There are five armed men, most likely affiliated with the Evil King, somewhere in the temple. You are heavily injured, you can barely grip your sword, your knee clicks whenever you take a step…and you still insist on throwing yourself into danger like this?" said Sheik, raising an eyebrow oh-so-delicately, trying to get his point across.

"If there's a kid in here that needs help, then yeah," said Link, looking into the first tunnel of the temple. "Are you really so cold that you will leave an innocent to the hands of Ganondorf's men, Sheik?" He looked at the Sheikah with a strange expression Sheik couldn't quite read—which was a first for the blond Sheikah.

"I will repeat myself," said Sheik as Link began to look around the room a second time for reasons unknown to him. "You are injured, you cannot even hope to fight in your condition, Link, and—"

"Then you can fight," said Link. "I'll get the kid out."

"You do not even know if there even _is_ a kid in here, Link," said Sheik, suddenly feeling a spike of anger throttling his hopefully calm demeanour. The Hero wasn't listening to him. Link crouched down and looked at something close to one of the bedrolls. Sheik rolled his eyes and went to move around Link so he could catch the Hero's eyes with his own, but froze when he saw what Link was looking at. A metal ring had been hammered into the wall, to which a heavy iron chain was connected. It was a perhaps a meter or two long, and terminated in an iron collar. But what really caught his attention about the collar was its size. Far too small for an adult's neck. It didn't fit around Link's neck when the Hero tried it on. Without warning, Link lifted it up and tried to fit it around Sheik's neck as well. Close, but no cigar. Sheik couldn't take his eyes off the collar as Link dropped it to the floor with a grunt of disgust.

"No kid, huh?" asked Link.

As if to prove his point, another scream came from within the temple. They took a single look at each other, and began to run.

* * *

The room with the horrible sculpture remained unchanged, though someone had built a makeshift bridge across the abyss, the same pit that Sheik had almost plunged into during their last foray into the temple. Sheik studied the makeshift bridge. It seemed to be made of the remains of the wooden fence close to the temple entrance, bound together with rope and hammered into the stone with thick steel bolts. It creaked threateningly when they looked at it. Link looked at the door on their side of the abyss, clearly not interested in crossing another ramshackle bridge so soon after the almost disastrous incident up in the mountains.

"Maybe we should check—"

"It didn't come from in there, Link," said Sheik, still sizing the bridge up. Something was wrong. He couldn't hear any of the whispers of the fallen who had been buried in the temple, like he had last time. The atmosphere seemed less oppressive, as if all the sorrow, anger and anguish had been removed from the place. "It came from across the gap."

He tested the bridge with a foot, found that it was surprisingly sturdy despite its appearance and stepped onto it. It barely moved under his weight, which, admittedly, did not really say much of its quality. He waved Link over, rolling his eyes yet again when the Hero hesitated. "It's safe, Link, don't worry." He smiled at the Hero, which seemed to give him the necessary motivation to set a foot upon the planks. A little swaying, but no disastrous plunge into the darkness below. Sheik took it as a good sign and went across the bridge, glad that he wouldn't have to do a repeat of his failed leap.

The circular room with the beamos had not changed. Sheik went for the only door in sight, but was stopped by Link's cough. "What is it?" asked Sheik.

"I lost the Lens of Truth, remember?" Link said. "You're gonna have to be my eyes…and possibly ears."

Sheik took Link's hand and pulled him after him, through the apparent illusion. He heard Link give an "Oh".

 _Surely his memory is not_ that _bad,_ he thought.

The spinning grim reaper statue had been stopped, somehow. Sheik left Link at the entrance, worried about the Hero's current agility and his ability to get out of the spinning scythes' way in case it started up again. However, upon seeing what had been done to the gears and cogs beneath the statue's base, Sheik gave the all-clear sign. Link came over and looked down, whistling slightly.

"Someone sure did a number on it," he said.

"Indeed," said Sheik.

A thick piece of metal had been shoved into the gears, preventing them from turning, and several of the cogs in the complicated clockwork had been smashed apart with a hollow metal tube, which lay seemingly innocently by the statue's side. Sheik cocked his ears and listened. By now, they should have been able to hear the falling guillotines in the large, cavernous chamber beyond this room.

He couldn't hear them, and neither could Link. What they _did_ hear, however, were angry voices. Men's voices. They were still too muffled to be made sense of, but wherever angry men are, trouble is sure to follow. They slowly snuck through the corridor, listening as the voices became clearer and clearer.

"…get him!"

"…don't make…harder on yersel…-ing kid!"

Link stopped, making Sheik look at him with a questioning glance. "What is it?" he whispered.

"How did we hear the screams all the way up to the entrance?" Link whispered back. "We're pretty deep underground…"

 _Oh,_ now _he decides to employ critical thinking,_ thought Sheik. "I am not sure, Link. Perhaps the temple is built to conduct sound…"

Link was about to answer, but another man's voice, gruffer, louder than the others, began to shout.

"What are you bastards doin'? Haven't you found the fucking kid yet?"

Sheik moved on, picking up his pace. He had his doubts about this being a trap now, although the collar at the entrance had all but confirmed the presence of a child down here. He rounded a corner, and stood in the doorway to the large chamber. The guillotines had been stopped as well, just like the scythe statue. How they had done this, he did not know, as there were no visible mechanisms or machinery here. He felt another spike of anger, this one fuelled by the sheer disrespect these men were showing the tomb of his people. They were tearing it apart, it seemed, and most likely sent the disturbed spirits into hiding, in their own home. That would account for their absence, though he wondered why he couldn't hear them. What was going on? He clenched his fists, feeling the skin on his right hand itch. They were going to pay for this.

"Sheik, look," Link whispered into his ear. The Sheikah almost jumped. He hadn't heard Link sneaking up on him. He looked at where the Hero was pointing, at the platform at the other end of the chamber, and saw three men. They were standing in a loose group, waving their arms at each other and shouting.

"It's your goddesses-damned fault!" one of them shouted, pushing one of the others in the chest. "You didn't check him for tools!"

The one who had been pushed gave an indignant growl and pushed back. "How many damn times was I supposed to check, huh? The bloody kid seemed to pull 'em outta nowhere!"

The third one only looked between the two, shaking his head in apparent annoyance. "Enough!" he finally shouted after the fight began to escalate. "The fact is that the kid got loose, and that's it! Mar and Phil are looking for him now, and I suggest you do the same. I'll stay here and make sure he doesn't try to sneak out while you're occupied."

This one seemed to be the leader, as he spoke with a far more refined and articulated dialect than the others. The other two also nodded in begrudging respect and went on their way, exiting through separate doors, leaving the leader alone, who sighed and muttered something they couldn't hear. He then pulled something out of his pocket, put it in his mouth and held it up against a burning torch, small puffs of smoke coming off it. A cigarette, a habit which seemed to be taking down roots in Hyrule these days. Impa had smoked them at times as well, Sheik remembered. The leader sat down on the platform, his legs dangling over the edge of the platform, facing one of the side doors. Sheik smiled grimly, seeing the perfect opportunity.

Link seemed to see it as well, and he squeezed Sheik's shoulder nervously. "You sure about that?" he whispered.

"Very sure," Sheik whispered back. He stepped forward, lightly leaping onto the first suspended platform. The guillotine hung lazily in the air. He hadn't seen it the last time, but the chain it hung from was rusty, and the rings seemed close to breaking. It was slightly in the way, but Sheik easily jumped over it, surprised by the spring in his own legs. He landed lightly on the next platform, bending his legs to absorb the shock. He stopped, crouched down and looked at the farthest platform. The leader was still sitting with his back half-turned to him, the fool. Another jump, another platform. Sheik was one jump away from the leader now, and still the stupid man did not turn around. Jump. Sheik stood directly behind him now, staring down at his exposed neck.

He did not wear armour, surprisingly, only a studded, brown tunic and matching trousers suggesting that he was not a regular foot soldier. Perhaps a scout, then. The bow and quiver that lay by his side suggested it, certainly. A long dagger hung at his hip, its wooden grip faded with use and time. The man's hair was long and lanky, gathered in a loose ponytail he had tucked into his tunic. The smell of smoke and wine hung about him like a shroud, making Sheik wrinkle his nose as he came closer. He was muttering under his breath, the Sheikah noticed.

"…idiots…surrounded by them…can't even keep the entertainment in bonds…"

Sheik quickly drew a dagger from his wrist, bent down and seized the man's neck, pulling him backwards while clearly positioning his dagger's blade right above it. He pushed it slightly into the skin, not enough to draw blood, but enough to make it felt. To his credit, the man fell limp, knowing when a struggle would be useless. Sheik stared down at him. He was not as old as his voice had given the appearance of. Actually, he could not have been much older than Malon, who was one year older than Link…

"Good day," Sheik said, making his voice deeper, trying to intimidate the man.

"Good day," the man answered, grinning up at his captor, an entire bridge of gold teeth shining inside his mouth, which was otherwise filled with pristine, white choppers. "I must say you are a quiet one, able to sneak up on me like that."

"I make it my priority to be quiet," answered Sheik, tightening his hold on the man's neck. Someone who took being snuck up on this easily must surely have a few tricks up his sleeve. "And I try not to tread on anyone's toes, which you and your friends have been doing in the entire temple," he added with a hiss.

"Tread on toes?" asked the man. "Are you referring to those of the deceased warriors resting here? They hardly care, do they? They're dead, after all."

"But their spirits do," said Sheik. "And they do not appreciate you desecrating their home, disarming the traps designed to protect it." He could hear the familiar whispers now, gradually getting louder, as if his capture of this man had given them the courage to come out again.

"A pure, practical necessity, I'm afraid," the man answered with irritating calmness. "I could not have my men getting killed left and right while exploring now, could I? And before you draw to conclusions, we are not here to rob your people's tomb, Sheikah," he added.

"Then what _are_ you here for?" asked Sheik, this time nicking the man's neck a little, his patience with this calm, collected individual running thin. "For what purpose have you made camp in the entrance, for what reasons are you disabling the security measures?"

"For safety, of course," said the man. "My men and I…we are tired of war, and we thought about settling down somewhere the fighting would not reach us. Of course, since the village has been burned, we decided to live here instead. We—or rather, I—wanted to explore the tomb, because I have a profound interest in ancient and dead cultures…and the Sheikah fascinate me. How lucky aren't I to be held at the mercy of one?"

"Tired of the war?" asked Sheik, not believing him one bit. "Then why do you still wear the uniform of Ganondorf?"

"Well, I certainly cannot run around naked, can I?" asked the man.

Sheik gave him that one. He heard someone breathe hard, recognised the sound of their steps. Link was making his way across the platforms. "Whose side are you on?" he asked.

"No one's," answered the man, seemingly earnest. "We owe our allegiance to no man or woman. We are free men, no longer indentured to a tyrant."

"You still carry his gold, however," said Sheik.

"We do. Ganondorf's coins are the only things of value we own, and we will surely need them once the war is over. I believe your princess will only be able to hold out a few more months before she will be forced to capitulate." The man grinned. "Interesting times wait ahead, I am sure."

Sheik heard Link groan, his knee surely voicing its discontent with being bounced around. "What is the purpose of the collar, and who wears it?" he asked, urgently.

"The collar? Ah, you saw that, did you?" asked the man. "Just a bit of entertainment, really. Long months of travels can get lonely, and a bit of company in one's bedroll is just—"

Sheik's dagger bit deeper into his neck, causing him to stop talking. Sheik leaned in closer, feeling his anger rising. "And…who is this…'entertainment', then?"

The man stared up at Sheik, his eyes searching the Sheikah's for something. He didn't appear to find it. The man grunted. "Just a local boy from one of the villages…orphan, of course, we made sure of that before we took him with us."

"Tired of the war, is that it?" asked Sheik suddenly. "Yet you make bed slaves of innocent children?" His hand was itching, driving him insane. Just a small flick of his wrist would be enough to alleviate it, he was sure.

The man knew what was coming; Sheik could see it in the way his face slackened, as if he had accepted his fate long before Sheik's dagger found his neck. "I have done more than enough horrible things during this war to last me a lifetime…I thought I could get away, but old habits die hard. A child did not seem as such a big dea—hurgh!"

Sheik's dagger easily cut through his throat, ending his sentence with a gurgle. Blood spurted out from the wound. The man did not even hold it with his hands, knowing that it was pointless. Instead, he went limp, a faint smile on his face. Sheik grimaced at him. He did not believe he had done something wrong by taking the child. "Monster," Sheik whispered through gritted teeth and gave the rapidly dying man a vicious kick, sending the still body over the side of the platform, plunging into the darkness below. He stood there, staring down at the body until it disappeared from view. He wasn't sure how far down the pit reached, but no one would ever find his body. Satisfied, he turned around, only to come face to face with Link, who had a frown on his face.

"What happened?" the Hero asked, looking pointedly at the small puddle of blood that had had time to escape the man's gurgling throat. "Who was he?"

"A monster masquerading as a man," Sheik said simply. He pinned Link with a look of utmost seriousness. "We must find that child."

Link nodded. "Let's go, then."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 92**

* * *

"What the…?" Link said the minute he stepped into the corridor, stopping to gawp at something further down. Sheik couldn't see, Link's shoulders and head preventing him from seeing anything beyond the doorway.

"What is it?" asked Sheik. He still hadn't let go of his dagger, which was still coated in the blood of the bastard of a man he had thrown into the abyss. He tried to look over Link's shoulder by standing on his toes, but no luck. "Link?"

"Someone's blown up the wall here," the Hero answered and took a few steps forward, finally letting Sheik see. In the distance, they could hear the powerful fans that had caused them so much trouble last time, blowing strong as ever. At least the invaders hadn't stopped them. Sheik looked at where Link was pointing, and had to hold in a gasp. Several metres of wall had been blown apart, by bombs most likely judging by the black scorch marks on the floor. But it wasn't the vandalising that had him perplexed, but what lay beyond the ancient brickwork. Doors. Two of them, next to each other. They were rusted and showed years upon years of disuse, but still seemed quite solid. Link carefully twisted one of the ancient handles, wincing when it screeched loudly.

"Careful," said Sheik, knowing that there were at least four more armed men in the temple, ready so spring out at them at any moment. "Don't give us away."

"Yeah, yeah," said Link and carefully, inch by inch by bloody inch, twisted the handle until suddenly… **clonk**. Link looked at Sheik, a nervous grin on his face. "Locked." The grin twisted slightly when Sheik sighed and tried the other door, sighing when the handle went all the way round and opened the door. Another bloody corridor lay behind it, this one noticeably worse for the wear than the rest of the temple "What's this?" asked Link as they took a couple of steps in. Someone had lit the torches that hung on the wall, and, by accident, set fire to what seemed to be gigantic skulltula webs.

"I'm not sure," answered Sheik. "It seems much older than the rest of the temple…and it was walled in." He touched a section of wall, and a large piece of rock flaked off, hitting the floor with a loud bang. They both froze, waiting, listening for a sign that someone had heard it and knew they were there. Nothing. They both let out the breaths they had been holding. "I think it's best that we do not touch anything from now on," Sheik said, waving for Link to follow him as he continued on.

"You were the one who had to touch the wall," Link mumbled, falling into step beside the Sheikah.

The corridor continued on, meandering left and right, rising and falling. Torches had been lit the entire way, burning brightly and showing the way. Small, circular alcoves littered the walls, some containing pedestals on which nothing stood, others were empty and covered in skulltula webbing, though there was no sign of the nightmarish insects anywhere. _Probably all killed by the invaders,_ Sheik thought bitterly. How the hell had these men known about this hidden part of the temple, when not even Sheik did? Impa had never mentioned anything about it. Soon, the smooth stone was replaced by hastily and crookedly cut bricks, which someone had attempted to cover with some kind of plaster, but failed horribly. On the small patches of plaster that had actually stayed on top of the bricks, someone had drawn the Sheikah Eye over and over again, sometimes overlapping. Finally, they reached what appeared to be a dead end. Link and Sheik both stared at the wall that had risen up in front of them, arrogantly cutting off their way.

"What now?" asked Link, groaning in annoyance, his knee clicking uncomfortably as he stretched his legs for a bit.

"I don't know," said Sheik, looking around. There were no drawings here, nor any alcoves. _Why would anyone build such a long corridor if it was going to terminate in nothing?_ he wondered. _It doesn't make any sense,_ he decided and began to feel the rough bricks on the surrounding walls. Just as he was getting close to the end, his entire hand disappeared into a hole in the wall, cleverly masked by a dark veil which was all but invisible until you touched it. He gave Link a pointed stare, to which the Hero responded with an awkward squeezing up against the wall. He felt around inside the hole, his fingers closing around what seemed to be a rope of some kind. He pulled. Nothing happened. Disappointed, he let go of the rope and began to pull his hand, surprised when he felt a second rope. He pulled at this one as well. A loud slam, and the large wall blocking their way—which turned out to be a door—slowly began to open, disappearing up into the ceiling as slowly as a Goron walked up stairs. It groaned and creaked, causing both of them to look around nervously. Surely someone could hear this?

"Come on," Link half-shouted over the din of the door. He bent down and crawled underneath the door, Sheik hot on his heels. He helped Link to his feet and looked around…and stopped.

"Wh…" was all he managed to say.

The room was about the same size as the one with the falling guillotines, though without the bottomless abyss. Instead of rising and falling platforms, there were dozens of scaffoldings stood up against the walls, which were filled with shelves. On the shelves, hundreds of skeletons, still clad in clothes and armours, leered up into the shelf above, staring at nothing but eternity. At the bottom of the scaffolds, between their bases, grooves had been cut into the stone floor, which were filled with more skeletons and earthly remains. Sheik and Link took a few steps into the room, both unable to tear their gazes of the morbid display. Along the walls not occupied by mortal coils and rickety scaffolding, hundreds of crates and barrels were piled up at least two or three across. Sheik had an idea of what they were filled with. _More bodies and remains,_ he thought.

The door finally stopped moving with another loud boom which shook the entire room. Dust rained down upon them from the high ceiling. Sheik took a step forward, stopped when he felt something at his feet. He looked down, seeing a piece of wood covered in dust. He brushed it away, seeing the writing burned into it. Sheikah writing! His eye raked over it, trying to read it.

"What's it say?" Link whispered, aware of the pressing silence around them left behind by the noise from the door.

"I…am not sure," Sheik said. "It's in a dialect I do not recognise…I can read a couple of words, but not knowing the context, I cannot make much sense of it…"

"Well, what're the words?" asked the Hero.

"Here, nemesis and peace," replied Sheik, squinting at the lettering, as if that would make it become clearer.

"Huh, not of much use," said Link,

Sheik put the sign down on the floor, deciding not to pay it anymore attention for now. Interpreting ancient writing was not what they were here for. "Alright, I suppose we should continue looking for—"

"Did you hear that? The door!" someone shouted from the very innermost part of the room. Rapidly approaching footsteps and the clattering of swords in their sheaths. Link and Sheik shared a look before they quickly moved over to the crates and barrels, hiding behind a couple of them. Two men came running out of the shadows, quickly moving to the door, staring into the corridor.

"He escaped?" one of them asked.

"Nah, he can't run fast enough…would've seen him now," said the other, reaching for a similar hole in the wall on the inside of the chamber. "He probably opened it to confuse us…he's still in here somewhere." He pulled at the rope inside the hole, and the door began to close. They stood there until it finally slammed shut, sealing Sheik and Link inside with them. Then the men turned around, stared into the chamber once again.

"Kid, you can't run away…don't make it harder on yourself than it already is!" one of them shouted. The other one bent down, looking at something on the floor. "What?" asked the first one.

"Get a torch," said the other one.

The first took a torch from the wall and came back, crouching down next to his partner. "Footprints," he said slowly.

"Too big for the boy," said the other, following them with his gaze, landing right on top of Sheik and Link's hiding spot. "Boss, is that you?" he called.

"There are two of 'em," said the first.

"Phil and the boss?" asked the second.

"Phil? That you, you shitstain?"

Link looked at Sheik, his hand going for the handle of the Master Sword, wincing when he realised that his thumb would simply not move and grip correctly. Sheik lowered Link's hand, shaking his head gently, grabbing his own sword in the process. _I'll deal with them,_ he silently told Link with his eyes, to which the Hero nodded, though with a highly sceptical look on his face.

Sheik climbed upwards, surprised at the stability these crates exhibited. They seemed to be at least a couple of centuries old, yet showed no signs of breaking. He supposed it had something to do with the air in here, which was dry and cool. The men were moving closer to their hiding place now, weapons drawn, suspicious of the lack of answers to their calls. Sheik crouched down on top of a crate, about four metres up in the air, looking down at them, slowly approaching Link's position. He prepared to throw the bloody dagger, aiming for the closest of them. He drew his hand back. The man did not even see it as it struck him in the right temple of his head, his body convulsing slightly as it fell to the floor. Sheik leaped down, landing slightly behind the other man, who was staring at his dead partner in shock, sword trembling in his hand. Quietly drawing Kazuya, Sheik contemplated killing the man there and then, but figured he could gain a little information from this one. He cleared his throat.

The man whirled around, blade flashing as he swung his sword around, much like an amateur who had never been in battle before, despite this one being a supposed veteran according to the leader. He saw Sheik and roared in anger, charging at him like a madman, sword raised for a vicious downwards chop. Sheik easily sidestepped it and tripped the man. He went head over heels, rolling across the floor, growling. He quickly came at Sheik again, this time trying to stab him. Kazuya went up, parrying the blow. Then Sheik chopped down, hitting the man's hand just underneath the crosspiece of his sword, drawing blood. The man yelped and dropped the sword, stumbling away from Sheik with blood dripping from his hand. Sheik grabbed the neck of his tunic and kicked him in the back of his knee. The man kneeled, growing still when he felt the blade of Sheik's sword at his throat, much like his leader had done.

"Please…don't kill me," the man said, his voice strained, whole body shaking with fear…or was it anger? "Please, Mr. Sheikah Ghost…"

"I am no ghost," said Sheik. "And your death depends on whether or not I like the answers you give me on two questions." He felt the man try to summon the strength to break free, but put his knee to his back, stretching him backwards. It was a painful hold, he knew.

"What?" asked man.

"Yeah, what?" asked Link suddenly. He had come out of hiding, sidling up to Sheik after checking the dead man.

"Where is the boy?" asked Sheik, ignoring Link for the moment. Just holding the man like this was enough for Sheik to feel an urge to slice him apart. The triangle on his hand was itching again, just begging to be scratched.

"Somewhere in this room," said the man. "If ya didn't see him on the way in, then he's here somewhere…"

"Very well," said Sheik, nodding at Link. He then leaned in and whispered into the man's ear. "Did you touch him?"

The man didn't answer, only continued to tremble. Sheik repeated the question with a hiss and a twitch of his wrist. Link came a little closer, wondering what Sheik was whispering about.

"Sheik, what are you doing?" he asked.

"Link, go look for the child," said Sheik without looking up. "Are you going to answer the question or not," he whispered to the man.

"I…I didn't touch 'im, I swear," the man managed to croak out, seemingly ready to bawl his eyes out. "Only the boss and Phil got to touch him! I didn't even wanna take the damn kid!"

"Yet you stood by and watched them, didn't you?" asked Sheik, aware that Link still hadn't moved, staring at the Sheikah as he grilled the man.

"I…I…" the man said, unable to answer.

"People like you are almost worse than the rapists themselves," Sheik said as he slid Kazuya across his throat, opening it up. The man began to shake, trying to break out of Sheik's hold as he slowly but surely bled to death, as Sheik did not stop his blade until it reached the beginnings of his spinal chord. Then he viciously ripped Kazuya out, spraying blood to the front and sides of the man. The man gurgled and coughed, his wound spurting life fluid all over the floor, his shaking slowly stopping, his iron grip on Sheik's hand slackening. With a final wet cough, he stilled. Sheik dropped the dead man and wiped Kazuya on his clothes before sheathing it. He noticed Link staring at him with wide eyes, to which he raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You…killed him…just like that," Link said slowly, staring at the still dead man, a pool of blood slowly spreading underneath him.

"I did," said Sheik. He pushed past Link and walked over to the first man and pulled the dagger out of his skull. He looked at the blood and other fluids on the blade with distaste and tried to wipe it away on the dead man's clothes.

"But he didn't touch the kid, you heard him!" exclaimed Link.

 _Am I really hearing this?_ Sheik wondered, sighing as he stood up, tucking the dagger away in his bandages. "He might not have…done anything to him, Link, but he didn't stop the others from doing so. He was just as guilty…"

Link opened and shut his mouth like a fish for a few seconds. "But…but…"

Sheik scratched his hand, walking over to Link. He put a calming hand on the Hero's shoulder and gently led him away from the two bodies, further into the chamber, which was dedicated to Here, Nemesis and Peace, for all he knew. "We need to find the child and get out of here as soon as possible," he said to Link. "Check all corners, look behind every crate and barrel…check the shelves as well."

"But I…fine," said Link and began looking around, walking further and further away from Sheik, which the Sheikah found slightly strange.

 _What did I do this time?_ He wondered.

* * *

Link looked into a groove, seeing nothing but skeletons and pieces of armour, weapons and clothing. He wrinkled his nose in distaste, mentally marking this area as searched, and moved on to the next. He heard Sheik walking somewhere behind him on the other side of the room, probably checking the opposite grooves. What was happening to him? He seemed so much more…aggressive. Sheik had killed three men in a very short span of time, two of them being quite painful deaths too, without batting an eye. Of course, he knew that Sheik had killed before…ever since he was quite young, apparently, but still… Was it the things these men had done to the kid?

He checked the final groove, grimacing when he saw it was empty save for more skeletons. There was only one thing to do, then. He looked up at the rickety scaffolding, his fingers and thumb hurting in sync with his pulse. His nose had almost stopped hurting now, though he did not know if that was a good or a bad sign. He tried to breathe through it, regretting it when a sharp sting went through his entire being. How was he supposed to climb that thing? He couldn't even hold a sword properly! He was about to voice this complaint to Sheik when he noticed a hidden, almost invisible doorway at the end of a row of shelves. He looked at Sheik, who had already begun to climb the scaffolding, and quietly walked over to it, looking inside. There were no torches, the room beyond dark as midnight. He stepped inside, looking around.

It was a very small room, he noticed. Something was piled high along the walls, probably more crates and barrels. He could have sworn he heard something, though. Like…breathing. He stopped moving, listening intently. Definitely breathing…quick breathing. Coming from somewhere to his…left. He slowly turned to face that direction. Little light from the large chamber entered this room, and he might as well have tried to see with his cap dragged over his eyes…except, he wasn't wearing a cap. Sheik had dropped his red one in the strange temple, and he had forgotten to pick it up again. That's the second hat Sheik had cost him. His boot-clad feet hit something in front of him. He reached out with his hands, careful not to use his broken fingers, and felt the wooden crate in front of him. He moved a little to the right. Another crate. But the breathing was coming from right in front of him now, he was sure of it. He held his hands out wide, moving them closer to each other. There! There was a large gap between the crates. He stood in front of it.

"Hello?" he said quietly. "Is there someone there?"

A sharp intake of breath, and then something barrelled into him, coming out of the gap. He gasped as he took a hard hit to his stomach, something small pushing him backwards. Instinctively, he reached out and wrapped his arms around whatever it was, holding it in place. It struggled, arms and legs flailing everywhere, desperately trying to get out of his grip. Link bent down, further cementing his hold on the boy.

"Shhhh, shhhh, calm down," he whispered over the hurried breathing. "I'm not here to hurt you, shhhhh…I'm here to save you….shhhhh…"

It took several minutes, but the boy eventually calmed down. Leaning against Link, his head buried in the crook of his neck, tears leaking in the darkness. His heart was beating like mad. Judging by his height, the boy could not have been more than ten or eleven years old. He did not say a thing, only breathed. Link felt his hands grip at his tunic, upsetting his wounds somewhat, but he ignored the stinging, knowing that if he did something to scare the boy away now, he would never trust him.

After another few minutes, Link looked down, seeing nothing. "Hey," he said gently, "you wanna get out of here? 'cause I'm sick of the darkness…"

The boy shook his head, trembling.

"We can't stay here forever, you know," Link said. "Don't you want to get out in the sunlight, get away from this horrible place?"

The boy nodded now, but did not slacken his grip on Link's tunic.

"Do you want me to carry you?"

Furious nodding. Link found himself smiling sadly as he gently picked up the boy. What could the men possibly have done to him to make him so quiet and desperate for contact with another human being? For a minute, he was confused as to where the exit was, but after a few steps in pitch black, he saw the gentle glow from the chamber, and followed it. Sheik was standing outside, tapping his foot impatiently. He opened his mouth to say something, but Link inclined his head, pointing toward the bundle in his arms. That shut the Sheikah up. It even made him gasp, and his jaw drop. Link looked down, and did the same.

The boy was covered in bruises of all shapes and sizes, the most vicious being the ring of purple-black around his neck, most likely from the horrible collar he had been forced to wear. His hair—about the same length as Link's, it seemed—was greasy and filthy, covered by a familiar green hat. He wore little, only a pair of shorts seemingly made out of rags haphazardly sewn together by the worst tailor in the world. He was so thin, his bones visible and poking out. As Link stared, the boy looked up, displaying the dull, green eyes—eyes whose owner had been through too much—studying the one who had found him. Link found himself wanting to cry at the sight of the boy, but could not. The boy continued crying after seeing what Link looked like, and then buried his face back in his neck.

Sheik too was visibly stricken by the boy's appearance, and the fact that he had yet to say anything unsettled them both. Link and Sheik looked at each other, shared an identical thought.

_What the hell did they do to him?_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 93**

* * *

They had lost track of time. For a long while, Link and Sheik did nothing but stare at the child in the Hero's arms, both at loss for words. The child shivered, his tattered shorts doing little to protect him from the cold air inside the temple. Sheik's hands were already moving as he got the idea. He pulled his tabard off, held it out so Link would understand. The Hero nodded and whispered something to the boy, who—unsurprisingly obedient—let go of Link's tunic just long enough to hold his arms up so Sheik could slip it over his head, helping him with getting his trembling arms into the sleeves. The boy gave him a look that could best have been described as something between gratitude and fear, which Sheik could only raise an eyebrow at and attempt a crooked smile. Then the boy buried his face in Link's chest, and was, for all intents and purposes, gone from the world. Link gave Sheik the biggest smile he had ever seen.

"Aren't you a gentleman?" the Hero asked as they began to walk slowly to the entrance to the grave chamber.

Sheik rolled his eyes. "Being a gentleman and showing common courtesy are two very different things, Link." He scratched his hand, noticed it was trembling as well. In fact, his entire body was shaking with slight tremors, accompanied by a clenching sensation in his chest. He looked at Link, and then at the boy, felt his chest give another squeeze. Every poking bone, every bruise, every cut…every tear. It filled him with rage to see a child treated like this! He had let the three men off too easy, should have drawn out their suffering… The triangle itched as ever, and he glared at it.

"Well, I know _someone_ appreciated it, right?" said Link to the boy, though Sheik did not see if he responded or not. All he wanted to do was to get out of here, and find someone who could take care of the orphan.

_Maybe Kaura would be—_

The door opened with another roar. Both warriors stood absolutely still, unsure how to react now. Link's arms were full of boy, the Hero giving Sheik a wide-eyed stare. He started to turn around, looking for somewhere to hide, but was stopped by Sheik.

"They know we're here, Link…we might as well stop and fight," he said, eyes trained on the stone slowly moving upwards. Dark forms were crawling underneath, the remaining men not interested in waiting, apparently. They wore similar clothes to the other three, though one of them had some decorations, it seemed, wearing a pauldron over his left shoulder. They were both heavily armed, one with a mace and the decorated one with a long, thin blade, similar to a rapier.

"You sure?" asked Link as the two men stood up and immediately saw their dead comrades, hurrying over to the bodies. None of them seemed to notice the two—three—boys standing not even a dozen yards away. They didn't even hear Link's voice. Sheik rolled his eyes, wondering how long it would take for them see them, so he could kill them.

"Yes, I am sure," Sheik answered, purposefully raising his voice, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.

A man's head shot up, looking directly at the gathered trio. He punched the decorated one in the shoulder, who also looked up. Then they slowly got to their feet, not saying a word to each other. They came closer slowly fanning out, an obvious fighting pair, though Sheik had never seen a pair of such mismatched weapons. A sword and a mace did not really complement each other, unless you were fighting a heavily armoured opponent, on which a mace would soften him up before the sword finished him off.

"So," said the man with the pauldron. "You're the ones who did this." He waved his hand in the bodies' direction, his other slowly drawing his sword. "And the boss?" he asked. The other one with the mace only glared at them, his filth-covered face leering.

"I sent him to hell," said Sheik, his hand settling on Kazuya's handle, but did not draw the sword. "Where you will be accompanying him quite soon."

The pauldron-wearer grinned at his partner. "Ya hear that, Ime? We'll be going to hell!"

"Yeah, hell, Phil," said the mace-wielder, his rotten teeth gleaming in the torchlight.

Sheik's eye settled on the one called Phil. "So…you are the one besides your leader who was allowed to touch the boy…" He felt his chest give another squeeze when he saw the man's pearly white teeth displayed in a sickening grin.

"Yeah, that'd be me," he said. His bald head was shining from sweat, the stubble on his cheeks dark and red. His eyes landed on the boy cradled in Link's arms. "And I see you found him for us…thanks,"

"We didn't find him for you!" Link exclaimed, glaring at the men. He then whispered something to the boy, probably reassuring him that they would not give him back to the horrible men who had captured him and made him a slave.

"Heh, I suppose not," said Phil. "Maybe you are just interested in joining him as our…fun?" he asked slowly, apparently relishing in the outraged look on Link's face. Sheik's face only slackened, his expression falling neutral despite the thunderous rage that was threatening to take control at any moment. _They must die…they all deserve to die…_

"Boss, we kill them?" asked the one called Ime, a name Sheik had never heard before. He was probably a foreign mercenary, judging by his lack of control of the Hylian tongue. All the better, according to Kazuya.

"Perhaps the oldest one…" said Phil. "He's too ugly…but the younger one," he said, eyes roaming over Sheik's exoskeleton. "Heh, he looks like a lot of fun." He looked at Ime. "And I like that you call me boss now, Ime. Way to think forward."

"Heh," said Ime.

"So whaddya say?" Phil asked Sheik. "Wanna come with us and see the world, and all you'd need to do is suck my—"

"Shut up!" Link shouted, face red with the same anger that was currently beckoning Sheik to simply draw his blade and slice the two men into ribbons, spraying their blood over his ancestors' tomb. It'd be fitting, considering their invasion of the resting place. "The only thing that's gonna happen here is that you two will get your asses kicked!" He looked at Sheik. "Right?"

"Oh, I plan to do much more than simply kicking them," Sheik said slowly, his voice almost a whisper. He looked at Link, saw that the boy was staring at him with the same large eyes he had done when receiving the warming tabard. The look tore at him. He gritted his teeth, looked away and glared at the two mercenaries—or whatever the hell they were! "Get out of here, Link," he said. "I can handle them by myself."

"Oooh, aren't we a mighty warrior, then?" asked Phil, taking a few steps closer. Sheik bent his knees, getting ready to spring at them at the slightest notice. Ime also came closer, a few steps away from Phil. He stopped.

"Sheikah, boss," he said to Phil, a tint of worry on his voice.

"Huh?" asked Phil. He squinted at Sheik, attempting to get a look at his eyes. "You're right!"

Link looked from Sheik to the men and back again, and slowly began to move toward the door. He was worried, Sheik knew, but at least he did as he was told, for once. The Hero was currently of no use during fighting, but he seemed to have connected with the child somewhat, and would be best suited for taking him away from the temple. _Besides,_ he thought, _I will need some time for this…and Link might not like what I have in store for them…_ Itch, itch, itch _bloody_ itch!

Phil noticed the Hero's movement, made to intercept, but Sheik quickly moved in between them, making sure to have both Phil and Ime in his line of sight at all times as he covered Link's escape. When the Hero reached the open door and made it through, the two men made their move, both charging at the same time, their actions completely in sync, hinting at a long-term partnership. Sheik felt the wall behind him, pulled at the rope inside the hole. He and Link locked eyes one final time before the door slammed shut, showering the area just in front of it in dust.

It was hard to see, but Sheik could hear the panting and quick footsteps of the charging men. There. Ime came hurtling out of the dust, mace held high. Sheik ducked under the blow, rolling away as Ime's mace smashed into the stone wall, shards and rock raining. Something flashed to his right. Phil's rapier! Sheik moved his head to the side, felt the blade whistle by, saw Phil's feet stumbling past. Smirking, he finally released Kazuya from its sheathe and slashed it through the air, cutting into the back of Phil's calf. The man growled, trying to hit Sheik in return, swiping through nothing but air as the Sheikah had already moved out of the way.

The dust finally settled, revealing the combatants. Sheik was standing right between Phil and Ime, probably the worst position in the entire room at the moment. The blind zone his useless left eye offered only complicated matters, and Sheik felt stupid for getting himself into such an awkward situation.

 _I'm better than this,_ he thought.

Phil was grinning, touching the area where Kazuya had cut into his skin. His hand came away red, though the man only chuckled and licked the blood away. "I was growing tired of the kid anyway," he said suddenly. "Even the boss thought it was about time to get rid of him…he was only trouble anyway. I've no idea how many times he got out of his bonds…"

"No idea," echoed Ime somewhere behind Sheik, who continually looked back and forth between them.

"And it looks like we've got a much better toy now, anyway," said Phil, licking the last drops of blood from his hand, leering at Sheik. "And a Sheikah to boot…how lucky we are…"

"Lucky."

"How could you do something like that?" Sheik asked suddenly, his fury calming somewhat now that Link and the boy was out of danger, for the moment at least. "An innocent boy—"

"Heh, quite easily, actually," said Phil. "The difficult part was getting rid of his parents…how they screamed…" He grinned. "But I do wonder, Mr. Sheikah…why are you so interested in him? Why so angry? This is a war, after all…the boss didn't like the fighting very much, but he enjoyed the spoils greatly…"

"Because evil must be punished," said Sheik, readjusting his grip on Kazuya. The weight and feel of the blade was still perfect, and the blade as sharp as ever. How easy it would split open the man's throat and skull given the chance… "And I will not stand by and watch as you defile my country and its inhabitants!"

"How noble," said Phil, scoffing. He slashed his rapier through the air a couple of times. "And foolish."

"Noble, foolish," said Ime.

"And I don't believe you," added Phil. "In fact…I think the reason you and the ugly one even bothered to come here was because…" He looked into Sheik's eye. "Because you wanted the child for yourselves—"

Sheik heard himself scream in rage as he finally hurled himself at the horrible excuse for a man, Kazuya swiping through the air. Phil grinned and parried Sheik's blows, surprisingly quick and agile. He stepped back and thrust forward. Sheik dodged it, spun around and delivered a crushing kick to his side. Phil's laughter was cut off by a ragged cough as he stumbled to the floor. Sheik moved to strike him, but was suddenly thrown aside as something slammed into his hip. It took a few seconds before the pain caught up with him, but when it hit, he quickly realised through the haze of hurt that Ime had struck him from behind with his mace. Sheik had made the mistake of getting distracted by his emotions. He rolled away from Ime's second strike, feeling the floor shake as more ancient stone was pulverised under the weapon's weight. A dagger found its way to his hand, was quickly hurled at the foreign mercenary, who grunted as the blade dug into his shoulder, but continued attacking as if it was a mere nuisance.

"Careful, Ime!" Phil's voice shouted. "I still want to be able to use him!"

"Uh," Ime said.

Sheik was finally able to get to his feet, dangerously close to one of the ancient scaffolds, hip aching, but still workable. He saw Ime coming at him, Phil hanging slightly back, a smile on his face. Sheik ducked, felt and heard the scaffold behind him being smashed to pieces, moved away. Ime came at him, swinging wildly, his face bored. The scaffold creaked, breaking apart at the middle and collapsing, almost on top of Ime, who just blinked and continued attacking.

Sheik continued backing away, finding no openings. This was a man who knew how to handle his weapon. He was vaguely aware that one he was getting closer and closer to one of the deep grooves in the floor, remembered all the sharp weapons and pieces of armour that jutted up from the bodily remains. _Heh,_ he thought, grin already forming. Ime was clearly a man who concentrated on what he did, though he did not seem to notice what happened around him. Step back, dodge, step back, dodge. Closer and closer to the groove. Sheik stopped when he felt the edge at his heels, swiped at Ime with Kazuya. The blade cut through the air right in front of the man's face, hit nothing, but clearly had the desired effect. Ime grunted, stopped, drew his body weight backward, and then forward, hurling his considerable frame at the Sheikah, intending a blow that would surely have flattened Sheik…

…had he not dodged aside, revealing the groove right behind him. Ime's momentum was too great for him to stop, and he grunted. As a last resort, he tried to jump over the groove, and he almost made it. Almost. His knees cracked into the edge, eliciting no more than another grunt, and then the rest of him followed into the groove. Sheik didn't even have to turn around to know that his plan had worked, hearing the wet thumps of old, yet still hard and sharp weapons impaling him. Then Ime screamed a high-pitched, coarse sound that reverberated throughout the entire chamber.

Sheik looked at Phil, who slowly began to approach, grinning all the while. "I must congratulate you," he said. "You're the first one who has ever made Ime scream…you alright, Ime!" he shouted at the groove behind Sheik.

"Fucking piece of—"Ime shouted, voice shaking.

" _And_ he's swearing…wow…" said Phil as he came closer to the groove. Sheik stepped away, putting more distance between himself and the man.

 _There's something strange about this one,_ he thought.

Phil looked down at Ime, bouncing the flat side of his rapier against his thigh. He bent down. "Need some help there?" he asked.

"What you think?" whined Ime, his hand appearing over the lip of the groove. Sheik began fiddling another dagger out of his bandages, preparing to slide into his usual style of fighting with two blades, dagger held in a reverse grip in his left hand.

"I think you're useless," said Phil and stabbed down with his rapier. Sheik heard Ime gurgle, his outstretched hand disappearing down in the groove again. Phil withdrew his sword, turned around and regarded Sheik with a smile. "Ah, now we're alone."

 _He speaks differently now…_ Sheik thought, narrowing his eyes. _What is he?_

"Are you sure I can't convince you to join me in my bedroll?" asked Phil suddenly. "For some reason, I've gotten the idea that you Sheikah would be absolutely amazing bed partners, and—"

"I know what you're trying to do," said Sheik. The itch in his hand was still present, but he fought down the urge to scratch.

"Really? And what's that, then?"

"You're trying to provoke me, have me make mistakes. You've seen what I am capable of, seen what I have done to your friends and leader… I do not know why you just killed your friend, but you can expect no mercy from me," said Sheik. He readied himself, beckoning Phil towards him. "Come."

"So serious," said Phil as he wiped Ime's blood off on his pants. "I don't understand you…"

"The only thing you need to understand is that I will make you suffer," hissed Sheik.

"If you say so," said Phil. "But I will make you regret those words forever when I have you writhing beneath me!"

He ran forward, rapier poised to strike. Sheik dodged, stabbed downward with the dagger. Phil twisted out of the way, laughing. He lunged forward, fist flying through the air, barely missing Sheik as he ducked and struck low with Kazuya, aiming for the man's knees. Phil quickly stepped backwards, sword coming down. Sheik parried, flipped the dagger in his hand and stabbed forward. It caught Phil's shirt, but the man moved too fast for it to sink any deeper. The mercenary swung his rapier down, aiming to slam the pummel into Sheik's sword hand, but the Sheikah's foot hooked around Phil's heel, pulling him off balance.

Sheik gave him no time to recover as he immediately attacked, sword and dagger flying through the air in front of him, forcing Phil to take several steps backwards, still swaying and stumbling because of no balance. The man tried to parry a strike, but the rapier was struck out of his hand by Kazuya, to which Sheik grinned.

However, Phil was not without his tricks. Finally regaining his balance, he took a step forward, almost directly into the storm of blades that Sheik was producing. Phil's arms suddenly shot out, grabbing both of Sheik's wrists, stopping his attack immediately. Sheik blinked; surprised by the sheer speed the man had shown by doing that. Then Phil's forehead slammed into bridge of his nose, and he went temporarily blind, stumbling backwards, groaning in pain. He felt his weapons being wrenched out of his hands. When he finally could see again, Phil was standing in front of him, dagger and Kazuya in his hands. He tested the weight of Sheik's sword.

"Amazing workmanship," he said, grinning. "Let's see how you like it!" He attacked, forcing Sheik dodge like he had never done before. His hip stung, Ime's mace having done quite a bit of damage, apparently. But, unlike Ime's attack pattern, Phil's was full of holes, and Sheik could see several opportunities rear their heads. _He's an amateur fighter,_ he thought. _Hides behind his speed and unsettling comments…_

He leaned backwards as Phil stabbed Kazuya forwards, kicking out. His foot connected with Phil's knee, bent it backwards with a loud, sickening snap and sent the man crashing to the floor, screaming in agony. Both Kazuya and the dagger were dropped without ceremony, Sheik quickly scooping them up. Before Phil was able to gather his wits, Sheik sunk Kazuya deep into his shoulder, into the stone beneath, pinning the mercenary to the floor. The other shoulder was given the same treatment, though was not pinned. Phil tried to move, but found his arms unresponsive.

Sheik crouched down next to Phil, his hip aching, and smiled. "It is no use trying to move your arms…I have cut your tendons and vital nerve paths…they are useless now…"

"Bastard!" cried Phil, entire body shaking, his ruined leg flopping back and forth. Sheik saw the other one begin to move, and quickly stepped on it, pinning Phil entirely to the floor. "Eugh!"

"I have been called that, yes," said Sheik. "However, my mother and father were married when they had me, which makes the statement—and insult—quite ineffectual and inane." Seeing the man like this, helpless and unable to move, completely at his mercy, set his anger off again, and the itch returned, worse than ever. He bent down and looked Phil in the eyes. "You do know what will happen now, do you not?" he whispered.

"You're gonna fuck me?" asked Phil, grinning sickly.

Sheik blinked, taken aback by the sheer vulgarity of this man. Then he shook his head and pulled out a dagger. "I will make you suffer, like you made the boy."

"Do your worst," said Phil, spitting in Sheik's face.

Calmly wiping away the spit, Sheik nodded. "I will."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 94**

* * *

Link sighed, wondering why Sheik was taking so long. He and the boy had made it all the way to the falling guillotine room before the Hero had realised that he couldn't possibly make all the long jumps while carrying the boy, who seemed to fallen asleep. Link's knee clicked painfully as he made himself more comfortably on the stone floor. The boy still held on to his tunic for dear life, even while sleeping. Link looked at him, smiling when he saw how Sheik's tabard dwarfed him. Then he frowned, his train of thought going right back to his lover. He looked at the door that led to the demolished hallway, hoping to see it open and the Sheikah step out, smiling.

No such luck, and Link sighed again. Surely Sheik had not run into trouble? The red-eyed youth was probably one of the best warriors in the world, and two grave-robbing, child molesters could not pose much of a threat to him, right? But then again, the one called Phil had seemed oddly light on his feet, and his demeanour did not match that of his partners. And then there was Link's concern about Sheik's sudden, aggressive way of dealing with things. The Sheikah had had a most distressing look of…anticipation? Joy? Blood thirst? The last two worried Link. Sheik had never seemed to gain anything from fighting, had certainly not looked forward to it. In fact, the only thing Link had ever seen in Sheik's eyes prior to any battle was a sad look of resignation, weariness and disappointment. But now, now he seemed to derive a sort…pleasure from it. What had happened? Had the pressure gotten to the Sheikah?

The boy stirred, making a sound similar to mewling as he snuggled closer to the Hero. Link smiled, and gently laid a hand on his head, careful not to upset either the child or his broken fingers. He winced as he tried to move his little finger, the digit not shifting an inch. That worried him too. Sheik had mentioned something about a possibly cut or snapped tendon. While Link wasn't entirely sure what a tendon actually was, he knew by the grim look Sheik had given him while examining his fingers that it was bad news. He slowly rubbed the boy's head, hoping to distract himself from all the worrying. He felt something hard beneath the green cap. Carefully, he lifted the cap and extracted the object from among the black, greasy strands of hair, studying it in his hand, realising there were several of the things. Nails. Straight, bent and broken nails, the kind used to build houses and fences. The boy must have picked them up, hid and later used them to pick the lock on his collar.

"Poor kid," he mumbled, letting the nails fall clattering to the floor. "Had to figure out how to pick locks…"

The boy mewled again, causing Link's smile to return, his nose prickling slightly with pain as the sensitive nerves were assaulted by the movement of his muscles. At least they had managed to save the child. That had to count for something, right? Link didn't dare think about what would have happened to him had Link and Sheik not settled on going to the Shadow Temple. The Hero looked around, knowing his thoughts were negative again, which he did not feel like he could afford right now. Then he saw the bloodstain on the floor, no more than a few feet away from where he was sitting. Sheik had made that before he kicked the owner of said blood into the darkness below.

"Damn," Link whispered, feeling the resurgence of his worry for the Sheikah. He looked at the door again, frowning. "What are you doing, Sheik?" he whispered.

To his (delighted) surprise, the door slammed open the second he had finished his question. Unfortunately, this also woke up the boy, who immediately began to try to get out of Link's hold, to which the Hero responded by tightening his arms, whispering and trying to calm the boy down.

"Don't be afraid, it's okay, you're safe now," he whispered into the boy's ear. "Those bad men will never touch you again, shh…" All throughout his struggling, the boy did not make a sound, only panting as he tired of struggling against Link's hold. As the struggling ebbed, Link slowly began to let go. "I'm gonna let you go, okay? Please don't run, we only want to help," he said, letting the boy get off his lap, the child quickly scrambling away, putting some distance between them, looking at the Hero with the same empty, dull eyes as before, clearly conflicted about trusting the slightly crippled, blood-covered teenager. Then his eyes went to the door, Link's following their gaze. Sheik was standing in the opening, staring at them. The boy slowly came back to Link, apparently figuring as the lesser of two evils, and not without reason. Link stifled a gasp when he saw that the Sheikah was covered in blood. His exoskeleton might as well have been red, his face drenched in red spatters, and his hands…his hands!

The bandages had been removed, the daggers gone, and the skin beneath stained a deep crimson. The Sheikah scratched at the back of his right hand, something Link had noticed him doing with increasing frequency after receiving the upside-down triangle mark. Link moved his gaze upwards, noticing the boy hiding slightly behind him. Sheik's eyes were wide, staring at seemingly nothing. Then, suddenly, he seemed to wake up from some trance or another, and began to approach them. The boy drew slightly back, but Link gave him a calming smile.

"It's alright, he's a good guy." The boy seemed to accept this, but still kept his distance. Link stood up, groaning as his tired body protested. Sheik was walking with a limp, he noticed.

The Sheikah stopped a few paces away, eyes still wide, but focused now. "I thought I told you to get out of the temple," he said, voice hoarse and strained.

Link nodded, failing to summon a carefree grin at the sight of his lover drenched in blood. "You did, but I can't make those jumps while carrying him, not with my knee and all," he said, pointing at the boy and said knee.

"Huh," said Sheik, looking at the boy, who was now hiding behind Link fully, only his capped head peeking out to look back at the Sheikah.

"What happened, Sheik?" asked Link, unable to take his eyes off the crimson stains on Sheik's clothes, face, hair and hands. "You look like…hell!"

Sheik looked at himself, apparently noticing the blood for the first time. He wiped his hands on his exoskeleton, but to no avail. He looked at Link. "I may have been somewhat…overzealous in my endeavour to exact vengeance upon the individual known as Phil," he said slowly, carefully.

Link blinked. "Are they dead?" he asked.

"Ime is 'dead', yes," said Sheik, unable to look away from the boy. "But Phil is…for the lack of a better term, annihilated." A quiet, almost inaudible beginning of a giggle escaped from Sheik's lips. "I figured out what the room was, too."

"Yeah?" asked Link, deeply unsettled by Sheik's behaviour. "What is it, then?"

"Where traitors and enemies are laid to rest," said Sheik. "I found another sign, written in a dialect I could actually understand. 'Here lies our traitorous dead along with our nemesis, laid to rest in the peace they do not deserve'" Sheik recited. "I did not know of the existence of such a chamber."

Link shrugged. "You live and learn, I guess."

Sheik shook his head. "Perhaps, but why would my ancestors wall up such a room? And even more important: how did these…these beasts know about it when _I_ did not?"

Link felt the boy creep further behind his leg as Sheik finished talking. The Sheikah had adopted a rather cross tone in his voice, and Link almost like hiding himself. Of course, the blood did not help either. He tried to smile at Sheik, but was certain that it was more crooked than the old man who had lived by Lake Hylia.

"Sheik, I think it's time we got out of here," he said. "This place is creeping me out. Plus, we have to get him to a doctor," he added, pointing at the boy.

Sheik nodded as he watched the boy's frightened eyes disappear, then reappear from behind Link's legs, only to disappear again when he saw that the Sheikah was looking at him. "Certainly," he said, his sudden bout of seriousness and…instability dissipating like it had never been there. "How are you feeling?" he asked, frowning when the boy only stared at him. "Will you not answer?" he asked.

"I don't think he can," said Link. "He hasn't spoken a word since we found him."

"Yet we heard him scream," said Sheik. He appeared to mull this over for a few seconds. "Perhaps he is not saying anything because he is afraid we will hurt him like those men did." He looked at the boy, whose bare feet were scuffling against his makeshift tools.

"That's not true!" Link exclaimed and knelt down to the child's level. "We're not gonna hurt you! You don't think that, do you? That's not why you're not talking, right?"

The boy looked he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar for a second, but then quickly shook his head, the tail-end of Link's cap swishing back and forth, dangerously close to smacking the Hero in the face.

"Then why aren't you talking?"

A shrug was all the boy offered as an answer. Or, it _would_ have been a shrug had it not been for the loud crack and the look of pain that flashed over the boy's pale face when he tried to. It was a silent scream, but a scream nonetheless that distorted his face, a rush of air escaping from his mouth. Link immediately began fussing, though Sheik stood still, watching the boy carefully. He looked and looked, and then his eyes widened, even though such a thing did not seem possible at the moment.

"What? What's wrong?" Link asked desperately as more tears began leaking from the boy's eyes.

"Do you not see, Hero?" Sheik asked gently.

"See what?"

"The way he is standing," Sheik said. Link blinked, and looked closer.

Now that he really paid attention, Link saw that the boy stood slightly slanted, his left shoulder drooping much lower than the right. Link gasped.

"His shoulder is dislocated, Link," Sheik said. "He must be in tremendous pain…"

"No kidding!" Link said, trying to comfort the presumed mute child.

"Here, let me…" said Sheik and crouched, staring into the green, wet eyes. Gently, carefully, he took hold of the little shoulder, still holding the boy's eyes with his own. "You will probably hate me for this," he murmured before he quickly—and brutally—pulled the boy's arm, not stopping until he heard another loud snap and felt the errant bone slip into its socket. Not a sound from the boy yet, only a glazed look of pain, the kind of look one assumes when experiencing the most excruciating, the most agonising pain one can imagine. Link saw Sheik wince at the sound.

What happened next, though, surprised the Hero. The boy's eyes focused on the Sheikah in front of him. He worked his shoulder around, a surprised look on his face. Suddenly, his entire stance relaxed, as if he had been holding something in for a long time. Link wasn't surprised about his relief, knowing all too well the pain of something being dislocated. The boy's face lit up, and he smiled. Sheik barely had time to smile back before the boy launched himself at him, hugging Sheik like it was his last day, clearly ignoring the litres of blood coating him. Sheik, taken aback by the sudden and physical show of gratitude, hesitantly hugged the boy back. The look he then gave Link was one the Hero would always remember: puzzlement, bafflement, surprise and any other form of surprise, all mixed into a wonderful concoction of confusion and relief. Link could only smile.

"I think it's time we leave," he said.

* * *

"Alright, down you go," said Sheik, waiting for the weight on his back to disappear, raising an eyebrow when it did not. He craned his neck around, noticing that the child had yet again fallen asleep. "Link, would you mind…?" he asked the Hero.

Link shook his head, grinning at the sight of Sheik flustered by a kid. "Nah, I don't want to wake him now that he's finally fallen asleep again. You should've seen the look on his face when you cleared that gorge in one jump."

"It was either that or plunge to our deaths when the bridge collapsed," Sheik said, annoyed by Link's amusement. Faintly, he felt the all-too-familiar itch starting to return, but he squashed it down. "Do you think he would rather be alive or dead?"

Link frowned suddenly. "After what he's been through…I'm not too sure."

Sheik adjusted his hold on the boy's legs, feeling his arms lock around his neck, a seemingly automatic reaction now. "I suppose you're right…" He then knocked his shoulder into Link's, almost making the Hero fall over with surprise. "Don't get weighed down by negative thoughts now. We saved him, did we not?"

Link nodded. "Yeah, we did…but still…had we come here earlier…"

"Link, there was no way we could have known about this," said Sheik. He nudged open a door with his foot, revealing the small pathway up to the entrance to the temple, where the torches burned brightly. The sun was still out, though the storm clouds were quickly approaching.

Link didn't answer, knowing fully well that Sheik was right, but it did not help on his mood. But then again, that wasn't all that bothered him at the moment. Sheik's behaviour was genuinely scaring him now. One moment he was all doom and gloom, ready to hack off anyone's faces or similar, and then he was a bloody saint, resetting children's shoulders and harvesting hugs like…like an apple farmer. He blinked, wondering where _that_ had come from. Either way, Sheik was definitely not okay, no matter how many reassuring smiles and looks the Sheikah was giving him. And it _had_ to have something to do with that triangle, he knew it. What was it? Who made it? How did it come to be at the strange temple? Hell, where did the strange _temple_ come from?

They trudged up the path, ignoring the bedrolls and weapons left behind by the monsters, finally emerging from the temple. And just in time too, apparently. Streaks extended down from the dark clouds rushing at them, heavy rain just waiting to wash over them like a flood. They walked through the remains of the village, both lost in their thoughts, Sheik's on the memories he had of growing up in the village and Link's on the implications of his lover's homicidal tendencies.

Finally reaching the staircase leading down to the plains, Link began to fiddle with drawing out the ocarina again, grinning embarrassedly at Sheik when the other gave him a look. The Sheikah adjusted his grip on the sleeping boy and fished the ocarina out of Link's pocket and handed it to the Hero, who took it.

"Uh…" said Link, nodding at his ruined fingers.

"Yes, yes, I know," replied Sheik.

They repeated the manoeuvre they had done in the mountains, Sheik doing the playing while Link provided the airflow. It took them a few times, though, for Sheik did not know Epona's Song by heart, and it was difficult playing while holding the boy. However, after a few minutes of muffled cursing from Link and tch-ing from Sheik, they managed to play a passable version of the song between them.

In the distance, the familiar sound of Epona's whinny echoed over the fields, accompanied by a deeper, more masculine version. Sheik grinned, knowing who that particular sound belonged to. Thundering across the plains, two horses appeared over the nearest hilltop, racing toward them with speed much greater than that of average horses. The jet-black Maladict was running slightly ahead of Epona, who seemed to be slightly…thicker? Link raised an eyebrow as Epona trotted up to him, having a considerable bulge where her usually lean stomach was. Maladict gently lowered his head and nuzzled Sheik's head, snorting him in the face shortly after, as if to say: "I missed you, doofus."

"I missed you as well," said Sheik, patting his muzzle. The stud then went over to Epona, standing close to her, almost protectively. "And I can see you've been busy," the Sheikah added.

"What do you mean?" asked Link. "Epona's gotten fat!" He poked the white-maned mare in the stomach, producing a snort from said offended mare. She then stepped on Link's foot, eliciting a yelp from the Hero. He managed to extract his foot from underneath her heel, jumping around, yelling "ouch ouch ouch!"

Sheik rolled his eyes, sharing a look with the black stud. "No, Hero, she is not fat. If I am not mistaken, she is…well, I believe our mounts have gotten on quite handsomely. Though I must admit I am surprised she is so far along, they have not been together for a very long time…"

"What are you talking about?" asked Link, finally able to put his foot down without feeling the sensation of it exploding. "Gotten on handsomely? What does that even mean?"

"If you do not understand what that means, Link, then I really do not know if I should explain it," said Sheik as he handed the boy to the Hero and climbed up into Maladict's saddle. "Give him to me," he said, reaching for the boy. "I'll be able to hold on to him better."

"Yeah, yeah," said Link, gently lifting to the boy up to Sheik's waiting hands. The Sheikah placed the sleeping boy in front of him in the saddle, putting his hands on either side of the small body, holding on to him along with the reins. "Why can't you explain it to me?"

"Because…well, I do not think you would handle it very well," said Sheik, turning Maladict to the fields. "Right, I suppose we shall simply have to cut across the plains. If Zelda's plan worked, Ganondorf's armies should be too occupied with moving to notice us." He looked at Link, who was climbing into Epona's saddle, the mare giving the Hero a look that clearly conveyed that she was only tolerating this because they had a history together…or so it seemed. "Remember, straight to the Gerudo Valley. Do not stop for anything."

"Right, got it," said Link. Sheik was about to spur Maladict on when Link interrupted him. "Tell me what's up with Epona!" he exclaimed.

Sighing, Sheik rotated his head to look at Link. "She's with foal, Link. She's going to be a mother. Now, let's go." Maladict whinnied and charged off, over the little bridge across the river from Zora's Fountain, and into the fields.

Link gaped, staring at the retreating rider for a few minutes before he looked at Epona, leaning down to stare into her eyes. "Is it true?" he whispered.

Epona snorted.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 95**

* * *

Maladict and Epona's hooves thundered as they rode across the plains of Hyrule, putting the burnt-out husk of Kakariko far behind, both in distance and in their minds. Sheik found that he had a surprisingly easy time with forgetting the village he had born in, its charred buildings as alien to him as the citadel now in the castle's place. There was nothing left of Impa's house, the one in which he had lived for the first eight years of his life, yet he simply did not care. This worried him. But then again, what didn't these days? Hell, even the boy sitting in the saddle in front of him worried the Sheikah, but that was in another way. He had expected the boy to wake up once he had spurred Maladict on, made the stud pick up the pace, yet the child remained as unresponsive as he had when Sheik had tried to get him off his back. He had tried prodding, poking and pinching the boy in order to wake him, but with no result. For a moment, Sheik had worried that the little one had stopped breathing, so still did he sit, but had been proved wrong after putting a hand in front of his mouth and felt the warm breath coming from his lips.

 _He must have been kept awake for a long time in order to sleep like this,_ Sheik thought, hoping that the boy was indeed only sleeping, rather than something else…and worse. His right hand gave a twinge, and he glared at it. The skin was still coloured a deep red by the blood of Phil, but the triangle beneath still stood out, a black tattoo against the red. _Vorpheus has many questions to answer,_ he thought. The warlock had clearly been withholding information, and not just about the triangle. There was something about the story he had served the Sheikah about his and Dehl's origins, something that simply didn't add up. But now was not the time to worry about such things.

They cleared the crest of a hill, Link on Epona mere feet behind Sheik on Maladict. Sheik pulled on Maladict's reins, urging the stud to stop. Link did the same. At the top of the hill, they were both given a magnificent view of the plains and the surrounding areas, all except for the castle and the town. They were both obscured by a bigger hill still, but this would do for now. Sheik reached into Maladict's saddlebag, fishing out the spyglass he had put in there before handing the backpack to Link. He extended it and looked into it, his gaze sweeping across the southern fields. Abandoned, burned, pillaged and sacked villages littered the countryside, all Ganondorf's doing. It filled with him rage to see it, though he did his best to fight down the urge to draw his sword and charge towards the castle.

Link came up beside him, his left, mostly undamaged hand playing lightly with Epona's mane, the Hero patting her every now and then as if to apologise for his rude comment about the future mother. "What do you see?" he asked of the Sheikah as he looked in the direction Sheik was spying.

"Nothing but dead villages and trees," said Sheik.

"You sound disappointed," said Link, his voice careful.

"I _am_ disappointed," said Sheik as he put the spyglass away, the joints clicking into place. "But for a whole different reason than you think." He looked at Link, wondering why the Hero was being so careful with his words all of a sudden.

"Yeah?" asked Link. "What is it I think?"

"You think I'm disappointed because I do not have anyone to fight," said Sheik, fighting down a grin of satisfaction as he saw Link's definite tell: the nervous blink, the quick look over his shoulder and a mouth opening and closing faster than a fish on land's. Sheik looked down the front of his exoskeleton, frowning at the blood. He hadn't expected Phil to bleed _that_ much, nor for it to be under such pressure that it simply sprayed…he shook his head, trying to get the memory of the session out of his head, knowing it would bring nothing but discomfort and shame. He had let the anger get the best of him, and what was he left with? A nervous lover, an aching, creaking hip and blood. In. His. Hair. He pulled at the lock, trying to free the strands of blond trapped in a cocoon of red. No luck.

Link finished his awesome display of showing everyone that he had been read, and looked out across the fields again, knowing that it was no use trying to beat Sheik at the staring game, even though the Sheikah was rather preoccupied with sighing tch-ing at the state of his hair. At least _something_ was still the way he remembered it. "What _are_ you disappointed about, then?" he asked finally.

"That I am not seeing any armies moving toward the Lost Woods," replied Sheik after giving up on the lock of hair, hoping to the Goddesses that Zelda had been able to make it to the Gerudo Valley and set up camp, in which he could hopefully take a bath. "That the decoy did not work."

"I'm sure it did," said Link, smiling at him. "I mean, we haven't gotten any messages from Zelda about her being in trouble, have we?"

"No, but no news of trouble does not necessarily mean that trouble does not exist," said Sheik, his tongue rolling clumsily for a bit, the sixteen-year-old blinking at his own odd choice of words. He had meant to use an appropriate proverb, but that gibberish had come out instead. However, despite his flustered mind, he was pleased to see that Link seemed to accept it, a small frown coming to his face.

"I guess you're right," said Link slowly. Then something dawned on him, and he leaned forward in his saddle, smiling even wider now. "But then, if something had happened to Zelda, we would've known about it anyway because…well, Ganondorf would have thrown a grand celebration or something, right? I don't think it'd be possible to avoid hearing about _that_!"

 _Oh, how wonderfully naïve and innocent you are, Link,_ Sheik thought, deciding not to burst Link's bubble this time, nodding in faux agreement. "Perhaps you're right, Link…perhaps I am worrying too much."

"Hey, that's your defining quality," said Link jokingly. "'Worrying too much' should be your middle name…but that'd probably be a bit too long…" He stared at Sheik, who could see the gears going round and round in Link's head, and could easily anticipate the next question on the Hero's lips. "By the way, what's your last name, Sheik?"

"I do not have a last name," replied Sheik quickly. "No Sheikah does. Again, like our masks, it is to preserve our mindset of one face, one name, one people." He readjusted his grip on the boy, making sure that his shoulder was still in the right place. It was. "Besides," he said and stared at Link, "I could easily ask you the same question. What is _your_ last name, Link?"

Link thought for a few seconds. "Don't have one, just like you. Just another thing we have in common," he said grinning. Sheik found it difficult not to grin back. He was just too…sweet.

"Heh, I suppose that is true," replied Sheik, taking out his spyglass one final time. The storm clouds were quickly approaching, and he estimated that they would not have long before they were caught in the middle of it. A strong wind was already blowing over the dying land, filling the air with dust as the ash-like trees and other plants were torn apart and hurled away. Sheik was just about to put the glass away once more and announce their departure when he saw it. A single flag, a banner, just behind a small outcrop of rocks. He tried to see what emblem he was carrying. A dragon.

 _The Third Legion, then,_ he thought.

Ganondorf organised his legions—or armies—in a pretty standard way, the strongest and most loyal legions receiving the lowest numbers. The First and Second Legions were pretty much considered his elite troops, always kept in and around the dark citadel, ready to spring at moment's notice. The Third Legion were filled with mostly veterans, being the legion with the most battles to their name, having clashed with the Hyrulian Remnant innumerable times, usually coming out on top.

 _If the Third is here, then the Fourth is not far away,_ Sheik thought. _But did they bring the Fifth?_

Legions Four and Five were mostly comprised of the lowest of the low, recruits and rookies, and were considered the worst of the legions. However, what they lacked in skill, they made up for in enthusiasm and sheer glee of battle. The Fourth Legion had engaged in somewhat of a rivalry with the Third, most of its members vying for a position in one of the first two. The Fifth…well, was simply cannon fodder. They were the ones sent in first, they were the ones considered the most expendable, and they were the ones who had suffered the most losses in the entire war.

 _If everything has gone according to plan, three of the five legions will be on their way to the Lost Woods. The Third is most likely at the back, waiting to ride in to take all the glory away from the Fourth and Fifth…that means we are well behind enemy lines._ He nodded to himself. _Then our ruse worked. It should be an easy task to sneak past Lon Lon Ranch and into the valley now…as long as we maintain a low profile._

He put the spyglass in the saddlebag and nodded at Link. "There is an army up there, it seems our plan worked."

"It did?" asked Link. "Great!"

"Indeed, but we do not have time to dawdle here. Come, let us be off," Sheik said and turned Maladict to the right, knowing that the Gerudo Valley was more or less a few hours from there. He dug his heels into Maladict's sides, the stud quickly taking off. He heard Epona whinny and fast hooves catching up with Maladict's. Despite her…condition, the mare was still as fast as ever, though hanging slightly back now, as if expecting Maladict to protect her and the coming foal from harm.

Sheik had been wrong about the storm, which caught up with them mere minutes after leaving the top of the hill. Rain showered, soaking them to the bone. Wind howled, deafening them, blocking out all other sounds. Thunder boomed and lightning crackled. This was even worse than the storm that had caught them up in the mountains. A small ravine they passed was already well on its way to being flooded. Sheik sincerely hoped that no civilians had tried to take refuge down there, as it would be impossible to climb out now, the stones slippery and difficult to grip.

The boy shifted, and Sheik almost lost his grip on him. For a moment, it seemed that he would slip out of the saddle and be trampled underneath Epona, but Sheik managed to pull him up again. He pulled the boy's head backwards carefully, looking at his face. His eyes were closed, and a peaceful—yet sad—expression was on his face. Still sleeping. Sheik looked behind him at Link, who had witnessed the almost-drop. He gave Sheik an approving sign with his hand—though the broken fingers ruined it somewhat. He shouted something. Sheik waved his hand at his ear, hoping Link got the idea. He seemed to, for he urged Epona on and came up beside him.

"Should…mak…mp?!"

"What?!" Sheik shouted back.

"Should we…camp?" Link shouted, his words almost lost to the wind.

"No! Too dangerous!" Sheik yelled. "We must push on!"

Link looked disappointed, but nodded.

They didn't talk anymore after that, the storm making communication impossible. Maybe it was just as well, as none of the two really had anything to talk about—at least not anything appropriate while riding through rain that seemed to fall _horizontally_. Sheik growled in annoyance as the wind took his hair and whipped it in his face a dozen times, wishing for his turban.

An hour—or something close to it, at least—passed, the two getting progressively more and more wet and annoyed. They were both shivering in their saddles now, as well as the boy. Sheik felt the tremble of the small body, and pulled the boy closer, hoping to share at least _some_ body heat, though he didn't seem to possess much of it himself.

That was what saved the boy from taking an arrow to the side. Sheik felt, heard and saw it fly by just after he had pulled the boy against him, barely missing Epona as well. The Sheikah's head flew wildly around, trying to find the archer. It had come from the left, and at tremendous speed. At that angle, so precise… _Mounted archers,_ Sheik thought, already feeling his heart beat quicker with anticipation. Link had noticed the arrow as well, his left hand going for his sword. However, his thumb was still as useless as ever in gripping, and Sheik saw the Hero draw his sword with his right hand instead. How effective Link would be fighting like that, he didn't know.

Another few arrows flew by, these easily dodged by the now alert pair of riders. Sheik knew approximately where the arrows were coming from now. A row of trees followed their trail, blocking of what was most likely a merchant road on the other side. In between the trees, lighted by the lightning, he could see figures, legs moving… As the row of trees ended, five riders came into view, one of them carrying the banner of the Fourth Legion. Sheik grinned. This would be an easy fight. The archers launched a volley, which went painfully short; stabbing the ground well after the horses' hooves had been there.

 _How the hell did they almost hit us?_ Sheik wondered. _Must have been luck…_

The enemy riders were approaching fast, still firing. It was obvious now that these men were amateurs. They had probably not even left one in their group behind to observe the battle and report to their superiors. Sheik rode close to Link, already knowing what would be the best course of action.

"Take him!" he shouted to Link and lifted the boy from the saddle, preparing to give him to Link, whose eyes widened as he tried to sheathe his sword.

"What're you doing?!" Link shouted.

"You're left handed!" Sheik shouted back. "You cannot fight effectively with your sword. Leave the riders to me!" He handed the boy to Link, not letting him drop an inch. Link placed him in front of him in the saddle, nodding that the operation was a success. Sheik nodded and drew Kazuya. "The valley! Don't stop for anything!" Without waiting for acknowledgment, Sheik pulled away, quickly moving toward the mounted archers, ducking under the arrows.

The enemy riders had clearly not expected such an obvious attack, and all began to fumble for their swords, their bows dropping to the ground, splintering against the stones and under the hooves. The first soldier was already within reach, and Sheik swung. The man screamed as Kazuya sliced his arm off at the elbow. He lost his grip on his horse's reigns and fell sideways, one boot still stuck in the stirrup. He was dragged along the road, down for the count. Sheik grinned, feeling glee at seeing the man in such a helpless and hopeless position. His hand burned.

The remaining four riders tried to surround him now, two on his sides, one in the back and one in the front, forming a box. The Fourth's banner had been dropped, their swords drawn. Sheik exchanged a look with one of the soldiers, whose eyes were wide and fearful.

 _Nothing but amateurs and rookies,_ thought Sheik. Without waiting for an attack, he lashed out with Kazuya, caught the wide-eyed soldier right in the visor of his helmet, slicing into the face behind. He screamed, dropping his sword, hands flailing. Sheik drew back and stabbed him through the joint at the neck. The soldier gurgled and went limp, his horse drawing away, its dead rider still in his saddle.

This opened the box back up, long before any of the archers had had the opportunity to attack. Still grinning, Sheik drew away once again. He ducked, avoiding the low-hanging branch of a dead tree. One of the soldiers did not. There was a satisfying, metallic **clunk** as his head was whipped backwards, the whole man thrown clear off his horse.

Link was gone, nowhere in sight. Sheik had subtly led the enemy into a wide circle, none of them noticing, apparently. Sheik swivelled his head around, trying to gauge the strength of the remaining two riders. His hair tried to once again whip his face into submission. But now he had had enough. Growling, he swung Kazuya as the hair came within reach. The once-golden, wet strands fell away, disappearing into the growing darkness. Now he could see again, he noticed that the soldiers had once again surrounded him, one on each side. And then they struck.

He was able to block one strike, but felt the second sword slice into his left arm, leaving a deep gash. Snarling, he pushed the first rider away with a quick stab which, while not hitting anything, was enough to spook the man. He pulled slightly away, reeling. Then Sheik swung at the one who had hurt him, catching his sword hand, feeling the blade of Kazuya slide upwards into his bracers. He heard the man howl, who stubbornly clung on to his sword. Sheik noticed that one of his boots was out of its stirrup. Pulling heavily on Maladict's reins, he made the large stud—larger than his opponent's—slam its weight into the other horse. The man went screeching out of his saddle, rolling along the ground and out of sight.

Then the first rider—the last—was back, screaming unintelligible gibberish as he wildly swung at the Sheikah, who dodged the blade and tried to counterattack, but found that his opponent was actually a slightly skilled swordsman as well as an archer. Back and forth they attacked, unable to find an opening. Sheik ducked under a blow, saw the saddle strap.

"Heh," he said to himself and easily cut the leather. The man plus saddle fell, the horse racing on as if not noticing the sudden lack of weight. Sheik pulled on the reins, making Maladict come to a sliding stop in the mud. The stud snorted as Sheik climbed down from the saddle, hitting the ground with a loud splash and a spray of mud. Lightning flashed overhead, thunder exploding above, under and around him. He could see the man ahead, climbing shakily to his feet, dizzy and confused.

To his credit, the soldier had been able to hold on to his sword, which he was now leaning against. He then saw Sheik slowly approaching, and the snarl he uttered was almost lost in the wind and rain. Sheik held Kazuya out from his body, blade pointing downwards, urging the man to attack him. His hand was just begging to be scratched.

The soldier screamed and charged, all his finesse seemingly gone now. Sheik sidestepped the first strike, seeing a perfect opportunity to finish him off, but chose not to. He was going to enjoy this. The man stumbled, bathing in the mud close to Maladict. He stumbled back on his feet, tried to attack Sheik again only to fall flat on his face in the slippery mud. The gash on the Sheikah's arm stung as he indicated for the man to come again.

The soldier's blade flashed, quickly slicing through the air, desperately trying to land a hit on the infuriating Sheikah, who just dodged and sidestepped. Eventually, though, Sheik grew tired of this little game and, with a light flourish, beckoned the man to attempt a final strike. Screaming, the soldier tried for a diagonal blow that would surely have cut Sheik in half at the shoulder, had he not ducked beneath and slid Kazuya through a joint in his armour, piercing his heart. With a loud "Urgh!" the soldier collapsed into the mud. Frowning, Sheik looked at the blood on the blade. That hadn't been nearly as satisfactory as he had expected. Maladict snorted, reminding him that he had other things to do. At least one of the other soldiers was still alive, and he could not be allowed to report back to his commander. Sheik climbed into the saddle and turned Maladict around, not looking forward to the task of finding the soldiers…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 96**

* * *

The man let out a final sigh, and fell to the ground with a wet thump. Sheik wiped the blood off Kazuya on the archer's shirt and sheathed the blade, standing up with an annoyed grunt. The final archer had been a bugger to chase down, despite Sheik charging after him on Maladict. Had it not been for a convenient dead tree branch sticking out of the ground, he surely would have lost the man in the foliage. Not that it would have mattered very much; the long-dead trees and plants were raining away, bursting into dust from the heavy downfall of water. He shivered slightly as he climbed into Maladict's saddle, the stud tossing his head to get his mane out of his eyes.

 _Speaking of mane,_ thought Sheik and pulled at the tattered remains of his once long ponytail, frowning at the stump he felt in the place where it had once been. _What possessed me to do that?_ He rolled his eyes at himself, knowing exactly what had made him cut his own hair. He looked at the triangle, glaring at it. _It's evil…_

He pulled on the reins, turning Maladict around. He took out his spyglass, trying to orientate himself. His ruse—leading the men in a wide circle to throw them off Link's trail—seemed much less clever now, as he realised that he had no idea which direction was which. The clouds blocked out the sun to such a degree that it was almost dark as night, despite Sheik knowing it was only in the middle of the day, and the rain obscured his line of sight, preventing him from spotting any landmarks. The muddy ground was full of tracks, but it was impossible to know which belonged to which horse. He had not—foolishly—gauged the size of Epona's hooves and shoes, and the tracks seemed to blur into each other.

Basically, Sheik was lost, something he had not experienced since he was six or seven years old—his memory was slightly fuzzy on that point—and he hated it. Lightning struck again, no more than a hundred feet away from them, setting fire to a seemingly bone-dry tree. It lit up in a glorious blaze for a few seconds, before the rain put it out again, taking the entire trunk with it to the ground, dissolving it into a fine mush that was eagerly absorbed by the muddy ground with loud slurps.

Sheik sighed, petting Maladict's neck. "I suppose there is nothing to do but start searching for the Hero's tracks, then," he told the horse, who snorted annoyed, as if he couldn't believe his rider had actually gotten lost. To Sheik's surpise, the stud began to walk by himself, quickly gaining speed until he was galloping across the plains once again, easily jumping any obstacles or holes in the ground. He tried to steer the stud, but found that his instructions were gently, but firmly, ignored. In the end, Sheik sighed again and tried to make himself comfortable in the saddle. Maladict obviously knew where he was going, and he had never given his rider a reason to doubt him.

* * *

Link looked around nervously, slowing Epona down slightly. The rain seemed to be lessening somewhat, although it was still impossible to see more than a couple hundred feet in front of him. As long as he kept having Epona run in one direction, he was certain that he would reach the entrance to the Gerudo Valley sooner or later—or at least the other end of the plains, where all he had to do was to follow the cliff wall to the left until he struck gold—or mud, depending on the weather conditions.

Sheik had been gone for too long—for the second time in a few hours' time, no less!—and he was starting to worry again. The boy was still sleeping, though shivering. Sheik's tabard was soaked right through, and Link had finally decided to put his ragged tunic on him as well, even though it didn't seem to do much good.

Thunder boomed overhead, and he saw a bolt of lightning strike something not far from where he was riding. The ground shook, Epona not missing a step. Despite being pregnant—apparently, Link wasn't entirely certain he believed that story yet—she didn't seem to be bothered in the slightest, just as fast and cantankerous as ever. She threw her head back again, showering Link with water—he knew she did to annoy him.

"Stop that, you!" he scolded over the roaring wind. "You're gonna make him sick!"

Snort.

"Stupid horse," he muttered, looking behind them. Nothing, only mud and dead trees. He turned around just in time to see a wooden bridge in front of them. The small river was beyond flooding, splashing over the fragile bridge in waves higher than some trees. Clenching his jaw, Link tightened his hold on the reins and rode on, hoping to the Goddesses that he wouldn't drop the boy. He didn't, though he came out of it feeling wetter than ever, sure that he would never be dry again.

But the bridge was a good sign. Only two rivers ran though the plains, one being the river coming from Zora's Fountain, the other being the river that terminated in the moat at the castle. And there were few bridges across it, and the only one that was close to the castle was made of stone. That meant he was still far away from Ganondorf's territory. At least he was doing something right, even though Sheik wasn't there to guide him.

"Speak of the devil," Link whispered when he heard hoof beats behind him. Grinning, he turned his head to look at Sheik, only for his jaw to slacken and his mouth fall open when he saw what the Sheikah had done to himself. Sheik came up beside him, raising an eyebrow at Link when the Hero did not stop staring at him. His hand went up to his now not-quite shoulder-length hair.

"Do you like it?!" Sheik shouted.

"Hell no!" Link shouted back.

* * *

"I just don't see why it was necessary to cut it!"

 _How many times is he going to bring this up?_ Sheik wondered, yawning. The rain had stopped—for now, at least—though the thunder and lightning still continued uninterrupted. They had ridden for close to an hour now, and both of them were irritable and had _extremely_ short fuses.

Somehow, the sleeping boy had found his way back into Sheik's saddle again, and was leaning lightly against the Sheikah, who found himself smiling every now and then.

"Because it got in the way, Link," he finally answered, the same answer he had given the other nine times Link had asked. "It slapped me in the face, I cut it off. If I hadn't, I might as well have died. It was a necessary action to level the playing field."

"Level the playing…?" asked Link.

"I thought it gave the enemy an unfair advantage," said Sheik, brushing a lock out of his eyes. He was going to have someone cut it properly for him, he realised, when they got back to the camp. As it was now, it was even more in the way than it had been than in the ponytail. "Not that they stood much of a chance anyway," he added when Link gave him a strange look.

"So they're dead?" asked Link for the second time that day.

"As dead as I could make them without travelling into the next world," said Sheik.

Link didn't answer, only acknowledged it with a grunt. He stared ahead, his expression softening. Sheik looked ahead also, and also felt relief when he saw the cliff wall in front of them. They had missed the ranch, but at least they had made it to the other side of the plains. Simultaneously, they turned Epona and Maladict left. Unnoticed by either of them, the two mounts gave each other a look of utmost love and appreciation.

By the time they reached the crack—it could not be described as much else, much less a road— in the cliff that led to the valley, the rain had stopped and the storm apparently moved on, though the skies were still covered in an impenetrable veil of clouds. They rode up the small hill to the crack, quickly disappearing into the passage.

Emerging on the other side, they saw that the bridge had finally been rebuilt—in a loose sense of the word as this bridge was obviously made to take the weight of an entire army marching over it at once, hundreds of anchoring wires having been hammered into the walls of the ravine, and mighty supporting pillars slammed into the river below. Sheik blinked.

 _Have Zelda truly been this industrious in the little time we have been gone?_ he wondered, disbelief running through his head. _No…impossible. We've not had the materials or the time build something like this. Have the Gerudo been preparing to move?_

"Huh, when did this get built?" Link asked as they slowly trotted across. It _was_ an exceptionally well-built bridge, iron plates laid across wooden boards and tightened with both rope and bolts. Not a single vibration went through it as they rode across it.

"I don't know, but it definitely took some time," said Sheik, noting the large amounts of tools and materials that had been left behind. He saw footprints in the little sand that had not been washed away by the heavy rain—footprints that only heavy, military-style boots could leave. _An army has been through here,_ he thought. _Though_ which _army is the question of the hour._

"You don't think Zelda had it built?" asked Link.

Sheik shook his head. "No. If she did, I would be surprised."

"Yeah, I guess so…" said Link. "By the way, wh—"

An arrow thudded into the ground in front of them, not a shot aimed to kill, but to warn. Sheik made Maladict stop, and Link did the same with Epona, and they waited. One by one, archers carrying heavy bows ducked out from behind rocks, out from alcoves in the cliff walls. Both Sheik and Link recognised the uniforms, and relaxed grins spread on both their faces.

"At least _someone_ made it here," said Link.

"Halt! Who goes there!?" asked the apparent lead-guard, his hood obscuring his face.

Sheik saw Link grin wider, and felt himself nod as he too recognised the voice.

"Colin! It's us! Link and Sheik! Hero of Time and Sheikah, remember?!" Link shouted, waving his right hand at the nineteen-year-old, the broken fingers still sticking out at ugly fingers.

Colin ripped back his hood and gawped, then waved at his men for them to relax and for Link and Sheik to approach.

"The princess has been telling us to look out for you two," said Colin as they came close. He had apparently decided to cut the scraggly beard and moustache of his. They both noticed a gleaming emblem on his cloak. "Told us to make sure you get safely to the camp."

"You're a captain now, I see," said Sheik and pointed at the emblem. "Congratulations."

Colin blinked, then nodded, a small smile coming to his face. "Thank you, Master Sheikah. My father's squad was left without a leader, and the princess herself promoted me."

"Congratulations, Colin," said Link.

The newly-promoted captain turned his head to thank the Hero also, but froze when he saw the state he was in. "Hero, are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, nothing I can't handle," said Link.

"Well, I still think you should make your way to the camp post-haste," said Colin and pointed up the pathway formed by the opposing cliffs. "Follow the road a mile and a half and make a left at the crossroad. There's a large, open field there where we've set up camp. There are several guard posts up ahead, but they will easily recognise you, especially since we've let you though."

"Very well," said Sheik, nodding. "Thank you, Captain."

"Thank _you_ , Master Sheikah," said Colin and waved them along, apparently not noticing the sleeping child in front of Sheik—or not willing to ask questions, perhaps.

"It's still Link, by the way," shouted Link after them as they disappeared into a turn.

They rode on in silence. Every now and then, they spotted or heard a guard cleverly using their natural surroundings to hide themselves. Some even shouted encouragements to Link, who looked confused.

"You really can't abide anyone not using your name, can you?" Sheik asked finally.

"Nope," said Link happily. "I've lost count of how many times I've told you I hate my title."

"Well over a hundred now, I believe," said Sheik helpfully.

"Thank you," said Link. "But I'd have thought the idea would've sunk into people's heads by now."

"Evidently not," said Sheik. "Or, at least not if you're injured and your face looks like it has been smashed in."

"Is it really that bad?" asked Link, touching his nose and hissing in pain.

"I am joking, Link," said Sheik, ignoring the dull itch that had once again seen fit to resurface in his hand. "It is a bit crooked, but it still looks like a nose, which is more than I can say for many others I've seen."

"Huh," said Link.

"Really, I'd be more worried about your fingers," said Sheik. "The thumb and ring fingers will probably be easy to fix for a trained physician, but that little finger…"

"Yeah, yeah, 'snapped tendon' and all that," said Link.

"Not necessarily, though," reminded Sheik. "As I said back there, I am not a professional, but I didn't want to take any chances of making it worse. It could very well be that it is simply…well, displaced and unable to move."

"Either way, it really hurts," said Link, grimacing at his little finger.

"I know, Link, I know," Sheik said as he reached over and patted Link reassuringly on the back. "But there is no need to worry. Kaura will definitely be able to repair the damage wrought…"

"Sure hopes so," mumbled Link. "Can't even fight like this…"

They came to the crossroad that Colin had mentioned—hopefully, Sheik hadn't paid attention to the distance travelled—and took a left. Another identical passage to the one they had ridden though until now, which continued for another hundred metres or so, but opened up ahead. They both sped up a little, clearing the corner that hindered their view.

"Wow," said Link.

Sheik didn't say anything, but he too was impressed. Not by the camp itself, which was—yet again—the standard tent city that armies so often favoured, but by the sheer amount of men and women they saw milling about. A large amount of civilians seemed to have joined the army after the attack, and many of them were being trained and outfitted. Another guard post just ahead blocked their entrance to the camp, but the guards quickly stepped aside when they saw who they were, though stared strangely at the boy.

There must have been well over ten thousand Hylian soldiers there now—including the newly recruited civilians—and they could also spot the Zora and Goron camps on either side of the Hylian one.

 _So they came through with their promises,_ thought Sheik with relief, having been worried about the other two races' loyalties.

They were forced to climb off their mounts by the stable master, who assured them that Maladict and Epona would be taken good care of, and had to walk the rest of the way. A friendly guard told them where to find the sick tent—or tents, as it seemed the soldier said—and quickly made their way there. Upon finding it, Sheik gave the sleeping boy to Link.

"You get yourself and him fixed up by Kaura," said Sheik and turned around, seeing the top of Zelda's tent sticking slightly higher up than the others. "I will go report."

"Hey, wait!" said Link. "Shouldn't we do that together?"

"Time is of the essence, Link," said Sheik. "We need to be effective. You're injured, and—"

"You're injured too!" interrupted Link and pulled Sheik's arm to himself to inspect the deep gash. "You're still bleeding!" Holding the boy with one arm, he seized Sheik by the shoulder and pulled him after him into the sick tent.

"But—"

"No buts!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 97**

* * *

For once, the sick tent was not filled with…well, sick people. No injured people either, for that matter, which came as a relief to both Link and Sheik, as that meant that no one had been hurt during the move to the valley. Row upon row of empty beds lined the tent walls, sheets clean and pristine. Each bed had a small table with a candle on it and a bedpan in the small space beneath. This was much better than the one that had been put up back at the Forest Temple, and Sheik was impressed at how speedily it had been done. But then again, not having any injuries to take care of would probably leave the medical personnel with a lot of free time which they could use to decorate the tent. A large desk had been set up at the far end of the tent, facing the entrance. A lone, burning candle stood on it, lighting up a complex collection of glasses, vials and beakers, in which various and mysterious liquids flowed and bubbled through. On the other side of the desk, with her head buried in a large book, Kaura sat. They could hear her annoyed mumbling all the way to the entrance, and both Link and Sheik gave each other apprehensive looks.

 _This is why I wanted to report to Zelda first,_ Sheik thought as he took a deep breath and stepped forward. Link followed closely after, carrying the boy. It took the physician a couple of minutes to notice them, even though they stood directly in front of the table. She was making notes, filling out complex formulas and mathematical equations, the like of which Sheik had been forced to learn by Impa. Of course, _he_ had been made to do them in his head instead of on paper—an enemy does not wait for you to calculate the dagger's path through the air and the amount of force needed to penetrate his skull. He intended to bring their presence to her attention, but found that he did not wish to do so. The woman frightened the life out of him, even though she had done nothing but help them so far.

In the end, it was Link who announced their arrival with a groan—the child had shifted in his sleep, knocking an arm against a broken finger. To her credit, Kaura did not startle. Instead, she slowly put her pen down, took off her spectacles and looked up calmly, eyes narrowed. "I thought I told you to leave me alone, idiot," she asked.

"Pardon?" asked Sheik, not quite understanding. What had they done to upset her _this_ time? He distinctly remembered parting with her on amiable terms.

She leaned forward, eyes narrowing further, squinting at them over the candlelight. She looked back and forth between the two teenagers, recognition dawning upon her. She bolted upright form her chair, nearly knocking over a vial containing a green concoction, quickly rounding the desk, studying them closely. "I was wondering when you two would show up and—not to my surprise—full of injuries." She noticed the sleeping boy. "And with a child as well…my, my, aren't we progressive?"

"Huh?" asked Link stupidly, not noticing the blush on Sheik's face.

"Bed," she said, pointing at one of the available beds. Link _did_ understand that and gently put the child down on it, careful not to wake him. Kaura promptly ignored the two and began examining the boy, shaking her head whenever she encountered something she clearly did not agree with. "Where did you find him?" she asked as she went.

"Kakariko," said Sheik. "Inside the temple there."

"Alone?"

"No. He was with…some men."

"Pleasure slave?"

"…yes."

"Hmph…"

Link leaned close and whispered to Sheik: "How did she know?"

Sheik shrugged. "She's probably seen things like this before…"

"He's been sleeping for long?" asked Kaura.

"Ever since we left the temple half a day ago," replied Sheik. "I had to reset his shoulder, though I am worried about not doing it right."

"Which one?"

"The left one."

"Looks fine to me. Nice job."

"Thank you."

The physician stood up and looked at them with an intense look. "I will need to examine him more…thoroughly. For decency's sake, would you two please step outside? There is some food in the other room, I'm sure you two are hungry."

They nodded wordlessly and went through the flap behind the desk, emerging into a tiny little room with a small table and some chairs around it. A lamp hung from a hook in the tent ceiling. A basket of apples stood on it along with a pitcher—filled with water upon further examination—and a set of goblets. There was a loaf of bread in another basket on the floor as well. Link picked it up and began to tear it to pieces. Sheik filled water into the goblets and helped himself to an apple. It crunched loudly as he bit into it, the sweet juice filling his mouth.

"Oh, man, I'm hungry," said Link as he sat down on a chair. He practically inhaled one half of the bread, and then the other when Sheik indicated that he did not want any. He drank greedily from his goblet.

"Well, it _has_ been a while since we ate last," conceded Sheik and looked at his apple, surprised that he had nearly finished it already. He must have been hungry as well. "And it's been a long day."

"Yeah," said Link, staring at Sheik.

"What is it?" asked Sheik.

"Your hair. It looks like hell," said Link.

"Why thank you," said Sheik sarcastically. "How sweet of you."

"It's not that it's not very long anymore that bothers me though," said Link, ignoring Sheik's remark. "It's just not…it doesn't look very good as it is. You need someone to take a look at it."

"Yes, I have already figured that out," said Sheik as he touched his tresses. The cut had been rather jagged and uneven, resulting in varying lengths of the strands of hair. There wasn't a mirror in the room, but he was sure that Link was right about it looking like hell. He hoped there was a barber somewhere in the camp. He took up another apple, pausing when he thought about the blood on his hands, then remembered that most of it had been washed off in the rain anyway, and began eating it. Link took one as well. For several minutes, the only sounds in the room were those of two people greedily munching on apples. Kaura's annoyed mutterings could also be heard along with the bubbling of her apparatus.

After a while, the physician herself came into the small room and plopped into a chair opposite of Sheik. She looked angry. Sheik filled up another goblet and pushed it toward her. She took it without a word and downed it in one gulp, grimacing when she realised it was only water. She took something out of her belt—a silver flask, apparently—and looked at it with an annoyed expression. "Ah, screw it," she said and unscrewed the top, filling the goblet to the brim with a reddish-brown liquid. This too she downed in one gulp, face screwing up in distaste. At the two boys' questioning glances, she only frowned. "Bourbon…never really been my thing, but that was all they had in the kitchens," she explained.

"Ah," said Sheik.

"Ah," said Link.

Silence. Sheik cleared his throat. "So…"

"Where can I start?" asked Kaura. "He is covered in bruises, he has been repeatedly and horribly violated, been beaten practically to a pulp, several bones—including most of his ribs—are broken. He is also malnourished, and by the look of the bags under his eyes, hasn't slept properly for months. It's a good thing you gave him some of your clothes, or he wouldn't have survived the trip." Her eyes were shiny at the end of the report. "But he will live…even though I am surprised he was still alive by the time you found him."

"Good thing we decided to investigate, then," said Link, unable to resist shooting Sheik a smug look. The Sheikah answered with a rude finger gesture.

"So what now?" asked Sheik. "What will you do for him?"

Kaura sighed and poured herself some more water, putting the flask away. Sheik knew for a fact that bourbon was a potent liquor, but the physician did not seem affected by it at all. "For now, I am focusing on warming him up. I suppose by your generally bedraggled appearances that you were caught in the nasty storm currently tearing through Hyrule?" Link and Sheik nodded. "Well, he is not in any life threatening danger at the moment, it seems, even though his pulse is a little weak. Hypothermia is the main enemy at the moment, and I've got that covered with a dozen blankets and a bed warmer. For now, there is something else bothering me."

"What's that?" asked Link.

"That thing," she said and pointed at Link's nose. She stood up and walked back into the main part of the tent. "Come along, you two," she called.

"After you," said Sheik and opened the flap for Link, who snorted and went through.

"Sit," said Kaura and pointed to the bed opposite of the one the boy lay in. Link obediently sat down, and she began examining him. She poked and prodded at his nose, making the Hero wince and hiss. "Oh shut up, you big baby," she said. "What happened to you? There's barely any bone left in here!"

"Took a shield to the face," said Link after pushing away her fingers.

"On purpose?" asked Kaura as she launched another prodding assault, much to Link's annoyance. "That's not very clever, is it?"

"It was either that, or a sword to the throat," said Link, rolling his eyes. "I like to think I made the right choice."

"As annoying as you are at the moment, I'm not so sure," said Kaura, pushing away Link's hands with a huff. "Stop it! If you don't let me see, how can I fix it?"

"If you keep doing it like _that_ then I don't want you to fix it!"

Sheik shook his head in disbelief at the bickering Hero and physician, choosing to use his time for something more useful. Such as looking at the boy. He was shivering, but he seemed to have regained some of his natural skin colour now. Unlike the pale apparition he had appeared as in the temple, Sheik could now see that his skin was really quite dark, almost bronze in appearance, similar to that of the Gerudo.

"He didn't speak," said Sheik suddenly.

"What?" asked Kaura.

"The boy…he did not speak. It was like he wanted to, but could not."

With a final push at Link's ruined nose, Kaura turned to look at the sleeping one, eyes softening. "What he has been through can…traumatise someone to such a degree that they lose their ability to speak. It's not something they can control."

"Will he ever regain it?" asked Sheik.

Kaura shrugged. "Hard to say. Some do, some don't. It depends on how well they manage to overcome the fact that they have been abused like that. We won't know anything until he wakes up, though."

"We don't even know his name," said Link.

"I do," said Kaura and flashed the Hero a grin. "Look at his neck," she told Sheik, who went over to the bed and lifted the blankets slightly to reveal the boy's neck, the ring of bruises still clearly visible. A necklace had taken the collar's place, however. It was a simple thing, made of wood shaped like a snake and a thin leather strand. On the snake's body, three letters had been engraved.

"Tao," said Sheik slowly. "His name is Tao?"

"That's the conclusion I came to, at least," said Kaura. "Parents usually like to engrave their children's names into their ornaments…it's either that or his family name. Either way, at least we have something to call him."

"Where did you find this?" asked Sheik, touching the wooden snake. It was a very well-carved image. "He didn't have it on him when we found him."

"Under the hat, hidden in his hair," said Kaura. She finally stopped touching Link's nose and sighed. "Along with a couple of bent nails." She looked at the Hero. "Your nose should be fine as long as you don't shift it much after drinking some red potion. It will help rebuild the pulverised bone, and it should look as it did before if—as I said—you don't touch it."

Link nodded. "Alright."

"Now, let me see those fingers," she said and took Link's right hand and examined the broken ring and little fingers. "Hm, the ring one is a simple reset and splint plus red potion. Can you move the little one?"

"No," said Link, shaking his head. "Sheik said something about a snapped tendon…"

Kaura frowned at the bent digit. "It may not be snapped," she said and suddenly grabbed Link's hand harder, fingers probing along the palm. Link winced all the way. "Hm," she said after a few minutes, "the tendon feels like it is whole, but it is under incredible tension."

"Can you fix it?" asked Link.

"That's what I've been trying to," said Kaura. "But it won't move. I have no choice but to make an incision and access it directly—"

"Whoa, whoa, wait!" exclaimed Link. "Incision? You're gonna cut me?"

Sheik looked at him. _For someone who kills creatures and men left and right, breaking limbs and faces so easily, he sure has a problem with getting hurt himself…_

"I have no choice, Hero," said Kaura firmly. "Unless you want to eventually lose that finger, I need to cut you open."

"But I don't wan—"

"Just let her do her job, Link, she's a professional," said Sheik, annoyed by Link's resistance to his own wellbeing.

"But she wants to cut me, Sheik!"

" _I_ will cut you if you don't calm down!" Sheik growled maliciously.

The tent went quiet, both Link and Kaura staring at the Sheikah in surprise. Sheik blinked, realising what he had just said and how he did it.

"I…er…"

The silence stretched on, three pairs of eyes all staring widely at each other. Kaura wordlessly reached for Link's other hand and began checking his thumb.

"I don't know what it is that you boys have been through," she said slowly, "but harbouring resentment and anger deep and releasing it like that is never going to help, no matter the situation." Suddenly, she pulled and bent Link's thumb, producing a loud snap and a scream from the Hero. Quickly, while he was still slightly paralysed from the first, she grabbed his other hand, quickly resetting the ring finger as well.

Sheik used the opportunity to slip out of the tent and into the cool early evening air, taking a deep breath as he tried to clear the sudden bout of nausea that had overcome him. Why had he snapped like that? Link's panic was well justified. Taking wounds in battle was one thing, but willingly letting someone cut open one's hand and fiddle around with the parts inside? Sheik would probably have reacted in the same way…in fact, he _had_ reacted the same when Impa had been forced to remove an arrowhead from his shoulder once. Taking another deep breath, he went back inside. Link was drinking deeply from a bottle of red potion. Kaura had begun gathering bottles from her desk and wheeled a small, wheeled tray to where he was sitting, several sharp scalpels gleaming in the light from the candles.

"Right, are you feeling up for assisting me, or will I need to call another medic?" Kaura asked Sheik as she finally found the pair of bottles she was looking for. She also grabbed a large roll of bandages and put it on the tray.

"I do not think I would be an able assistant in my condition," said Sheik and twisted his arm slightly to show the still-bleeding gash.

" _You_ are injured as well? Good grief," she said and waved him over. She took a look at it, and frowned, fingering the edge of his torn exoskeleton. "You'll need to take this off if I am to access the wound fully."

Sheik wordlessly grabbed the edge and pulled, tearing the exoskeleton's arm off in a single motion. While quite strong and durable when whole, the fabric of the Sheikah suit was easily destroyed when weakened like this. "There," he said. Link was staring at him with wide eyes. "What?"

"Nothing," said Link, taking another draught of the potion bottle. "It's just that…well, I've never seen that suit get damaged like that. And you just ripped the arm off." Whether or not he was still wondering what Sheik's outburst was about, he did not give any such indication.

"It's useless now," Sheik said. "I do not know how to repair it…no one knows, not even Impa. I always knew I would outgrow it, but it seems I'll be forced to find new clothing sooner than I had thought."

Kaura quickly inspected the wound, cleaned it and wrapped it, declaring that it was not a very serious wound (for once) and that he was more than able to help her. "Right," she said and uncorked a bottle containing a clear liquid. "This will dull the area I will be cutting, you won't feel a thing," she told Link, who nodded nervously.

"Is this really something you should be doing on a full goblet of bourbon?" asked Sheik, also feeling a tad nervous.

"Heh, it'll take more than a single goblet to affect me," she said proudly as she fished around in her bag for something. She pulled out a clear glass cylinder with a needle at the end. "Okay, this is a syringe," she said as she stuck the needle into the clear liquid and pulled on the tiny handle at the end. The cylinder quickly filled up. "Put your hand here," she said and pointed to the small tray. "On top of the bandages. Don't worry, they're sterile."

Link slowly did as he was told. "You'll feel a light prick," Kaura said. "But there's no need to worry, this will make the operation completely painless."

"Easy for you to say," muttered Link, his eyes firmly fixed on the needle.

"You can hold his hand, if you like," Kaura said and waved a hand at Sheik.

Sheik shook his head. "I do not think the Hero of Time needs someone to hold his—"

"Hand, Sheik!" Link exclaimed as Kaura stuck the needle into Link's hand. Sheik was at his side in an instant, gasping when he Link tightened his grip to a painful level.

"There we go," the physician said seconds later, happily pulling out the needle again. "It'll take a couple of minutes before the anaesthesia begins to work. You just stay here while I go get some things I need, stronger light and such." She stood up and disappeared into the little backroom.

"Anas—what?" asked Link.

"Anaesthesia, Link," said Sheik helpfully. "Dulls the pain."

"Oh."

"Where is that damnable lamp?" they heard Kaura half-shout from within the room. Something crashed loudly to the floor. "Shit!"

"Quite a mouth on her, huh, Sheik?" Link said, his voice quivering.

"Yeah…" said Sheik. He blinked. "Link, you're crushing my hand."

"Sorry."

"Aha!" Kaura exclaimed and came out of the room, triumphantly waving a strange lamp. It was shaped like a normal oil lantern, but Sheik could see several mirrors inside, probably positioned to focus the light from the flame inside. She put it down next to Link's hand. She prodded at the hand. "Feel that?" she asked.

"A little," said Link.

"But you don't feel any nausea, urge to throw up like?" she asked.

"No."

"Good, then it means you're not allergic to it. And I can see it is working by the little paling area here," she said, pointing at a small circle of skin that was lighter than the rest. "Another few minute should do it. Gives me ample time to light this damn thing." She started to fiddle with the lantern, struggling to light the small beaker of oil inside. After a few minutes, she finally managed to do it. The mirrors functioned the exact way Sheik had anticipated it to, focusing the light to shine strongly on Link's hand. "Feel this?" she asked and poked him again.

"No," said Link, a small grin on his face. "I don't feel…anything. It's like my hand's fallen asleep, only without the prickling."

"That's anaesthesia for you," said Kaura and picked up a scalpel, examining it in the light from the lantern, nodding in satisfaction. "Okay, are you two ready?"

"No," said Link.

"Yes," said Sheik.

Kaura paused, noticing Link's intense stare at the spot where her scalpel was hovering above his hand. "You know, many people prefer to look away from the spot where I operate. Perhaps you would like to do so, Hero?"

Link's head couldn't have moved faster, his gaze firmly settling on the opening to the tent. Kaura waved Sheik over to her, and he reluctantly moved to sit on the other side of the tray on a small stool she had brought.

"I will make the incision," she explained, "and then you will take these forceps and hold the skin back while I perform the surgery, understand?" She pointed at the scissor-like instrument, and Sheik nodded.

"I understand," he said.

"Good. Let's begin."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 98**

* * *

"Okay, now carefully grab that flap and pull it back…let it go…good." Kaura gave Sheik a smile as he locked the forceps and put them on the table, opening the incision in Link's hand made by the physician. "And there you have it, the human hand revealed."

Sheik stared. He had seen this before. Well, not exactly the inside of a hand, but it didn't seem much different than the rest of the body—except for the exceedingly ludicrous amount of joints. He looked at all the…all the parts connected to the little finger, wondering how it was possible to see if anything was wrong or not. Everything was covered in blood and other fluids. "Where is the tendon?" he asked.

"Here," said Kaura and pointed at a long string of tissue with her scalpel. "You may not see it, but it is under incredible tension. I'm surprised the Hero hasn't been screaming in pain this whole time."

"See? I'm tough," said Link, his gaze still firmly fixed upon the tent flap. "I can endure pain."

Sheik ignored him. "So how do you fix it?" he asked.

"Depends on why the tension is there," said Kaura, shrugging. "I won't be able to figure it out before I…well, you know," she said and grabbed Link's little finger, twisting it into place with a loud crack.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" Link asked, still not daring to look at his hand.

"Just resetting the finger," said Sheik. He frowned. The tendon hadn't moved an inch despite the finger being in the seemingly correct position now. "It didn't work," he said.

"No," said Kaura in agreement. "I suppose I'll have to look a bit closer…pull the skin a little further back, will you?"

Sheik obliged.

"Aha!" she exclaimed. "I knew it!"

"What?" Sheik asked.

"Eh, it's hard to explain," said the physician. "But it seems that the tendon has gotten wedged inside the joint connecting the finger to the palm."

"Can you fix it?" asked Link, who was now sweating heavily.

"Are you alright?" Sheik asked, noting that his lover had gone rather pale. Link shook his head.

"Not really…it feels weird, having someone fiddling around with the inside of my hand while I can't feel it…and not looking at it." He swallowed. "I don't like it."

"See it like this," said Sheik. "If we don't do this, you will lose the finger. What do you want, a useful, moveable finger in exchange for some discomfort, or a stump?"

"A stump sounds pretty nice right about now," said Link.

"Don't be foolish, Link," said Sheik.

"Man up, Hero," said Kaura.

"Aw…" said Link.

"In fact, why don't you take a look and see how important this particular finger is to you?" asked Sheik, fighting down a grin when he saw Link apprehensively start to turn his head, hesitating every step along the way. If Sheik knew Link correctly, then perhaps he'd be able to secure some peace and quiet.

"Hey, that doesn't look so bad," said Link, smiling weakly while his face started to take on a green hue. "I can even see the…" he swallowed, "the…uh…thingies…"

"Take a better look," said Sheik.

It was too late. With a strangled sigh, Link fell backwards on the bed, nearly knocking over the tray with his feet. Kaura gave a surprised cry when Link's hand was suddenly ripped out of her sight. Sheik stood up and walked over to the collapsed Hero, checked breathing and pulse.

"What the hell was that?" asked Kaura, who had apparently not listened in on the conversation. "What happened?" She looked at Sheik with suspicious eyes. "What did you do?"

"I merely made the Hero look at what made his hand work," Sheik said innocently. "He was shaking, and I noticed you gritting your teeth whenever the tremors made their way to his extremities," he said, trying to explain why he had just made the Hero of Time knock himself out. "He'll be fine."

Kaura glared at him. "What if I had begun to do something in the middle of your little stunt there? I could've cut something vital!" She shook her head and huffed. "I don't understand you two…"

"Very few do, I think," said Sheik and positioned Link so that his hand could be put on the tray again. Wordlessly, Kaura went back to work, humming a tone with no set melody while she carefully tried to lift the tendon out of its anatomical prison. Sheik watched in silence, fascinated by how complex one's body truly is. He looked at his own hand, wondering if he was exactly identical to Link in there, then looked at the Hero in question. "I'm surprised the sight of his own blood and bones made him faint…"

"How so?" asked Kaura, not looking up from her work.

"Almost daily, he kills something, usually in self-defence," said Sheik. "I don't think I need to explain how messy everything can get when swords are brought into a fight, but it never seems to bother him, having to cut up a monster…"

"See this a lot in soldiers," muttered Kaura. "Many people have no trouble causing death and havoc, have no trouble seeing litres upon litres of blood spraying everywhere—provided it's someone else's." She looked up at Sheik. "You'd be surprised at how many people are nauseated by their own blood."

"I have never understood that," said Sheik. The first time he had seen his own blood had been at the age of six, during a particularly rigorous training exercise with Impa. It had never bothered him in the slightest. "I mean, it's only blood…"

"I think it's because it reminds them of their own mortality," said Kaura. She picked up another set of forceps, tiny ones, and seemed to take hold of the tendon itself, pulling carefully. With a soft **plop** , the connective tissue popped back into place. Kaura moved Link's little finger, folding and unfolding it, nodding in approval when she saw the tendon move accordingly. Wiping away the excess blood, she put the scalpel and forceps away, closing the wound neatly. Reaching for needle and thread, she began to stitch the incision closed. "Go for too long, spilling other people's blood without shedding some of your own, you're bound to get a feeling of superiority," she said. "A good bleeding now and then is usually sufficient to bring someone down to earth again."

"But Link does _nothing_ but shed his own blood," said Sheik, wondering why she had requested his help if all he had to do was to hold the skin flap away. "It shouldn't bother him like that."

"Well, there's spilling blood, and then there's seeing the _inside_ of one's own hand," said Kaura, smiling. "I'm pretty sure I'd be a little nauseous if _I_ saw mine…"

"Huh," said Sheik.

"Huh, indeed," said Kaura and finished the final stitch. She wrapped Link's hand in bandages and laid it gently on top of the Hero's chest. The physician scratched her jaw. "I suppose it's not very comfortable for him to lie there on top of the blanket wearing all his weapons…"

"I suppose," replied Sheik, who had already begun to unbuckle Link's bandoleer and remove his weapons. He stopped for a second. "I am…sorry for making him faint."

"Eh, no biggie," said the physician as she helped Sheik pull off Link's boots. "He was starting to annoy me, to be honest."

"Ah, so I did you a favour then," Sheik said as they were finally able to pull the blanket over Link, covering the slightly shivering Hero.

"I guess you could say that," she replied as she wheeled the tray into a corner, not bothering to clean up the blood that covered it. "I'll deal with that tomorrow," she said offhandedly when Sheik gave her a look. "Anyway, I'm not done with you," she said and stared pointedly at him.

"Pardon?" asked Sheik, knowing exactly what she was talking about.

"You've favouring one side of your body," she said, crossing her arms. "Your legs are not injured from what I can see, and your upper body seems fine. Ergo, you have hurt your hip. Your slanted stance only further supports my theory, and the fact that you walk with a slight limp only confirms it."

 _How did she see that?_ Sheik wondered, certain that he had been able to cover up the result of Ime's mace neatly. He sighed, nodding. "Took a mace to the hip in Kakariko."

"Right, you know what to do," said Kaura and turned around. "Take off your suit and cover yourself with a blanket. And don't even _start_ to protest! You know I can't treat your injury _through_ that fabric."

"Yes ma'am," said Sheik, knowing it was no use in starting to argue, and began to undress, taking off his boots. He stretched the neck opening of the exoskeleton so that he could pull his arms out and began to roll the suit down, pulling it off his feet. The chilly air nipped at his naked skin as he quickly pulled a blanket of an unoccupied bed and wrapped himself in it. He cleared his throat to let Kaura know he was done.

"Show me the hip," she commanded, and Sheik did so, wincing when he saw how discoloured it was. She groped and prodded, humming as she did so. Sheik found it difficult keeping any groans and moans in as she continued examining him. It hadn't hurt so badly before, and now she was making it worse! This continued for a few minutes until Kaura leaned back and sighed. "Definitely something broken in there," she said. "What _is_ it with you two and breaking things?"

"We enjoy the sensation?" Sheik tried, realising that he was silently crying. He wiped the tears away, annoyed with himself more than ever now. He had broken limbs before, why should a hip suddenly make him bawl his eyes out like a child?

"Ha-ha, very amusing," said Kaura. If she had noticed the tears, she did not mention them, instead fetching the bottle of red potion Link had been drinking from. "Very little I can do about it apart from wrapping you with bandages and wait for it to heal. Good thing we have potion, eh?"

"I suppose," said Sheik and drank from the bottle, grimacing at the taste. No matter how many times he'd had it, the taste of the potion always caught him off guard.

"Tastes horrible though, doesn't it?" Kaura asked and took the bottle, helping him sit down on the bed. "Well, that's all of you treated, methinks. Well, Tao's got a long way to go until recovery, but you two should be fine, for now anyway."

"What about the splinters in Link's back?" asked Sheik.

"I'll deal with them later. The wounds aren't bleeding, and extracting them now…" She stopped, an idea seemingly coming to her. "But now that he's unconscious would probably be the best time to do it…"

As she went to fetch some instrument or other, Sheik suddenly remembered where he was, and almost bolted upright. "I need to report to the princess—"

"No worries," said the physician, carefully rolling Link onto his stomach, grimacing at the mess made by the splinters. "I've already sent word of your arrival, and she shouldn't be too far off—"

"Where are they?" Zelda all but shouted as she strode into the tent, a worried look on her face. She spotted Sheik first and quickly went over to him, noting his general appearance with worry, eyes inevitably going back to his hair. Sheik quickly hid his right hand under his blanket. There was no need for her to see that triangle yet. Zelda opened her mouth, and out flooded a million questions, mostly pertaining to what had happened and why his hair looked like hell, where they had been, why his hair looked like hell, if the shadow was dead and why his hair looked like hell.

Sheik took a moment to look at the princess, blocking out her questions. She was back in her leather armour now, hair pulled into a tight bun like Kaura's as opposed to her usual ponytail. Her black eye had healed nicely, and only a ring of slightly pinker flesh around her eye was visible, and only if you looked carefully. Her sword hung at her hip, supplemented by a plain dagger on the other hip. But there was something else too… She seemed to carry herself with a lot more confidence now, a rather noticeable change from the tired, almost resigned Zelda he had parted with at the Forest Temple. She much more…energetic. Sheik liked this. She reminded him of the Zelda he had grown up with a lot more now.

"Zelda, calm down," said Kaura suddenly, seizing the princess gently by the shoulders and guiding her into a chair. "They've been through a lot, all three of them, and we don't need a stressed princess on top of it all."

"Yes, yes, I suppose you are right, doctor, I just—wait, three?" Zelda asked, blinking. Kaura nodded and pointed at Tao. "Who's he?" she asked.

"It's a long story," said Sheik.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 99**

* * *

Zelda stared at Sheik. "So the shadow is dead? Permanently this time?" she asked, uncertainty lingering on her voice. Why she had a reason to doubt him was beyond Sheik, but he nodded anyway, hopefully confirming what he had just told.

"He is," he said. "According to Link, there was no way the shadow could have survived the wounds he gave him."

"'According to Link'?" asked Zelda. "You didn't see it?"

Sheik shook his head, slightly embarrassed. "No, I was not awake at the time. The shadow had knocked me unconscious, and I woke up after he had passed on. But if you do not believe me, then check Link's hand, the Triforce of Courage has made its home there."

"No, no, I believe you," said Zelda and smiled, reaching over to pet Sheik on the shoulder. "I'd hug you, but I'm worried about hurting you more than you already are."

"It's only my hip," said Sheik jokingly. He looked at Kaura, who was busy pulling the splinters out of Link's pack. "And I didn't even hurt in the fight with the shadow. Link was the one who came out of it worst, nearly losing three fingers and his nose."

"I noticed the splints and bandages," said Zelda slowly. She then looked at Tao, her eyes misting over again, just like they had done when Sheik told his story. "Poor boy," she whispered. She looked at Sheik, eyes suddenly hardening. "You didn't tell me what happened to the men who did this to him."

"Dead," said Sheik simply. "Their leader was the first to die; I cut his throat and threw him off a platform. Three lie dead with various wounds, one of them betrayed by the last of them…"

"And the last one?" asked Zelda.

Sheik allowed a small grin to slip onto his mouth, wondering if Zelda would read much into it. He had truly lost control when he had Phil at his mercy. "Annihilated."

"That's good," said Zelda, not a shred of sympathy for the dead men in the temple in her voice. "Animals like that should be put down…"

"My only regret is that I could not put them through the same they put Tao through," said Sheik, staring at the sleeping boy. "I would've liked to…see how they could handle it."

"His name is Tao?" asked Zelda, apparently ignoring what Sheik had just said. At Sheik's nod, she smiled. "It's a nice name…"

"I couldn't agree more," said Kaura, suddenly joining the conversation by pulling up another chair to Sheik's bed, wiping her hands on a cloth at the same time. "That's it for the Hero's back, I think. As long as he doesn't decide to do back stretches, it should heal fine. Now, how does that hip of yours feel?"

"It feels alright;" said Sheik, glad that the potion had dulled the creaking pain, which he had been able to ignore during the ride across the plains. "I am sure it will heal nicely."

"As long as you don't move, that is," said Kaura, her stare clearly challenging the Sheikah to protest, which he wisely did not. "The same goes for the Hero, and Tao…you know what, nobody is allowed to move here except the princess and I."

"Don't worry, I've no intention of moving for a while," said Sheik, feeling quite tired. "It's Link I'd be worried about."

"Believe me, I _am_ ," said Kaura. "I'm considering sending for some rope to keep him in bed."

"There _is_ one thing you haven't told me yet," said Zelda pensively. Sheik looked at her questioningly. Her eyes moved upward, settling on the Sheikah's hair. "Why does your hair look like—"

"Hell?" finished Kaura. "I'm curious about this too. From what I remember of our first meeting, you seemed quite…er, protective of it, proud of it, really. And I don't blame you, of course," she added after a few seconds of silence, "it was really beautiful."

"What can I say?" asked Sheik, shrugging. "We were attacked on the way here, the hair got in the way so I decided to cut it. That decision may have saved my life." The statement, while possibly true and correct, lost some of its weight when a jagged lock of hair suddenly decided to fall into his eyes, making him sigh in annoyance and push it away. "However, it is clearly not particularly useful this way either. I suppose I shall have to find a barber and—"

"No you won't," said Zelda hurriedly. "The only barbers here are the army barbers, and they will only want to cut it all off completely. Sheik, I know you take your combat efficiency seriously, but I'm putting my foot down on this."

"Then what do you suggest I do?" asked Sheik.

"Let me fix it for you," said Zelda, smiling like she had just received a new toy. "I have some ideas that would look good on you…"

 _Dear Goddesses, what have I done?_ Sheik thought, eyes widening. _Did I just agree to become her fashion toy?_

Zelda must have noticed his silent reaction and slapped him on the same shoulder she had patted him on. "Don't worry, silly, I won't get too carried away!"

"Somehow, that does not fill me with confidence," said Sheik.

Kaura shook her head in amusement, wondering how these kids were able to still be able to focus on something as shallow as hair styles in the middle of a war. She supposed they tried to cling onto any cheery subject in all the hideousness that went on around them. "You kids," she muttered.

"But there is something else I have to ask you," said Zelda suddenly, face growing serious again. "Did you see any evidence of our ruse working? Were any of the legions on the move?"

"Yes," said Sheik, nodding. "I saw the rear guard of the Third Legion."

"Where were they?"

"I was not entirely sure of our position at the time, but probably close to halfway across the fields, well away from Ganondorf's fortress. And if I know the legion hierarchy correctly—"

"Then Legions Four and Five will not be far ahead," finished Zelda, excited. "Then it means it worked. Ganondorf's fortress remains almost unguarded!"

"Except for the two remaining, elite legions," Sheik said quietly, not wanting to burst Zelda's bubble too harshly. "Speaking of legions…have you made contact with the Gerudo yet?"

Zelda shook her head sadly. "No, we have not. But we have yet to be attacked, and the bridge has been rebuilt—not by us, mind you—and I can only guess that it was for our benefit. I've sent a few riders to the fortress. Hopefully, they'll make contact in a few days…"

"Are we absolutely certain the Gerudo won't betray us?" asked Kaura suddenly. "Surely we would have heard something if they were willing to ally with us. How long has it been since you sent the proposition?"

Zelda thought about it for a second. "Several weeks at the least, but it has not been easy to send messages lately. Many of our pigeons have been shot down. Even Kaiza came back injured the last time—"

"Kaiza's injured?" asked Sheik, interrupting her. "How? When?"

"Don't worry, Sheik, she' fine," said Zelda reassuringly. "She had some sort of dart through her wing, but the falconer has assured me it is fine and just need time to heal. I can even bring her here later if you'd like."

"I'm sorry, but I can't be having with that," said Kaura. "I need to preserve at least _some_ modicum of sterility and hygiene in here."

"Your Highness?" asked a voice. The three turned their heads toward the entrance to the tent, where a Zora dressed in the apparently standard-issue blue tunic was standing, the fins on his arms rigid, a sign of utmost respect apparently.

"General Myde?" asked Zelda, standing up. "Can I help you?"

"I was told to notify you of General Crass' demotion in response to his rather rude commentary during the last council," said the general, whose eyes kept flickering to the still form of Link in the bed. "I have also been asked to take his place at the table. That is, if Your Highness believes I would be a worthy replacement."

Zelda smiled and nodded. "I would be happy to have you at the table, general. But there really was no need to degrade Crass as his comments did not insult me in the slightest, even though I could have done without the questioning of my bed mates."

The last part clearly made the Zora uncomfortable, and he shuffled his feet slightly, eyes fastened on the unconscious Link. Zelda must have noticed and, ignoring Sheik's piercing, questioning stare, beckoned him over.

"Sheik, I'd like to introduce you to the general. His quick thinking was what saved us from being discovered out on the plains," she said, her eyes clearly telling the Sheikah that she would elaborate later.

"Your Highness, all I did was to alert the scouts of a lens flare I noticed up on a hill—"

"Which no one else had noticed," said Zelda, interrupting the general. "Had you not notified the scouts, who subsequently rode up said hill and eliminated the _enemy_ scouts, Ganondorf would have been notified of our move, and we would all have been slaughtered."

"Well, then I owe you my thanks for making sure the princess arrived here safely," said Sheik, nodding to the Zora. "I would stand up and shake your hand, but I've been given strict orders not to." He stretched out a hand to Myde. "Hopefully a sitting handshake will do."

"It certainly will," said Myde and took the offered hand. He squeezed firmly, Sheik noticed. "I would also like to thank you for saving _our_ princess in her time of need," he added. "We were told you pulled her out of the ice before she was trapped in it."

Sheik smiled, or tried to. His hip had begun to sting, most likely the red potion starting its job on mending it. "I only did my duty."

"As did I," replied Myde. They broke the handshake, and the Zora stepped back. "Now, if you will excuse me, Your Highness, I must be on my way back to the other commanders. There is still some dissent as to what rank Crass will be given. Good evening." He nodded stiffly and disappeared outside.

"Heh, someone's proud of their newfound position within the military hierarchy," said Kaura, grinning. "Did you see how his eyes lit up when you agreed to him taking over the other one's chair?"

"Well, it is probably a highly coveted position," said Sheik. "Who wouldn't want to be part of the planning process of the liberation of Hyrule? It's historic, after all."

"Only if we succeed, however," said Zelda. "If we fail…we are just another footnote in the revised history of Hyrule that Ganondorf will surely have written once he's stabilised the territory." She shook her head, another smile appearing. "But we aren't beaten yet, of course!" To Sheik's ears, it sounded just a _tiny_ bit strained, but he let it slide. Everyone had to be allowed a moment of negativity and pessimism.

 _I should know,_ he thought. _I am negative and pessimistic all the time._ The triangle gave a twinge, and he had to fight down the urge to scratch it. He had to ask Vorpheus about it, had to find out what it was before he could reveal it to the others. Link already knew about it, of course, but he was out cold at the moment.

"What time is it?" asked Zelda suddenly.

Kaura glanced at a large hourglass on her desk. There were lines and numbers painted on the glass, which seemed to correspond to the time of day. "About five, why?"

"I have some business to attend to with the Gorons in a few minutes," Zelda answered, standing up from her chair. "Mostly about possible tactics in which their strength can be utilised. Sheik, I will be back later tonight," she said. "And I will bring scissors."

"Oh goody," muttered Sheik.

"Don't be such a baby, Sheiky," she said, nodding to Kaura in the process. "Doctor."

"Your Highness," the physician said, nodding as well.

Zelda glared at her.

"Zelda," Kaura corrected herself.

Zelda smiled and disappeared outside. Sheik shook his head, wondering where she had gotten the idea that she needed to be courteous to everyone and none to her. But then again, Kaura was her teacher in the healing arts, so perhaps there was some sort of unspoken agreement there. He looked to his right, noticing the intense stare said physician was giving him. "Is there a problem?" he asked.

"What's with your hand?" she asked.

"I don't know what you—"

"You've been hiding it from the princess the entire time she was here," she said. "I happen to be a good people reader, and I've noticed that you and the princess are as close as two siblings. If I am not mistaken, you two share secrets and such and such." Sheik could not refute that statement, and nodded. "Well, if there is something you'd want to hide from _her_ , then it's obviously big."

"And what makes you think that I would reveal it to _you_ , then?" asked Sheik, feeling another twinge from the triangle and the heat of anger suddenly exploding in the pit of his stomach.

Kaura sat back, eyes widening slightly, surprised at the outburst. "Wow, sorry 'bout that. Must've stumbled onto something big." She stood up and went back to her desk, face disappearing behind her alchemical apparatus.

Sheik slapped himself mentally; cursing himself for once again letting what was obviously the triangle's influence get to him. "I'm sorry," he said.

"Don't worry about it," Kaura answered after a couple of seconds of silence, hands waving on either side of the bottles and beakers and Goddesses knew what else. "Touchy subject. I won't probe any further."

 _I just pissed her off, didn't I?_ he thought. An embarrassed silence followed, neither parties having anything to say, apparently.

"By the way," he said after a minute, "there was one injury Link forgot to tell you about."

"Yeah? What's that?" she asked.

"His knee is bothering him, apparently. It makes loud clicking noises."

"Must be some damaged cartilage or something. Has he complained of not being able to move it?"

"He can move it just fine, it seems, but he _does_ say it hurts."

"Cartilage, then. The red potion will take care of that."

"Oh."

"Indeed."

More silence. The alchemy equipment bubbled merrily, heated by a small flame placed underneath a beaker. Tao turned slightly in his bed, not making a sound and moving ever so slow, as if his body had learned not to attract attention during his time with the men. Sheik felt more anger boil at the thought of Phil and the rest, but fought it down this time. "Why did you call us idiots when we came in?" he asked.

"Hm?"

He repeated the question.

"Oh, I didn't call you idiot _s_ ," she said, emphasising the plurality. "I called you _idiot_ , because I thought you were a certain arsehole that's been coming into my tent every day to bother me with inane and incessant questions. He usually comes around this time of day."

"Who?" asked Sheik.

"That bloody warlock, that's who," said Kaura, still not appearing from behind her equipment. "He seems to have gotten the idea in his head that I like him, or something, and comes in to confess his infatuation with me!" She finally stood up, pacing back and forth behind her desk. "I'm telling you, I'm _this_ close to stabbing him with a scalpel!"


	7. Chapter 7

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 100 (!)**

* * *

Sheik winced every time he heard the snip of the Zelda's scissors, almost sad whenever he saw a pair of golden strands of hair floating past. He was sitting on a chair in the small backroom of the sick tent, wrapped in blankets. Kaura had protested heavily against his moving out of the bed, but had relented after a few minutes of a glaring match with Zelda, something the Sheikah had never thought the young princess would be able to. Of course, it had been a bit painful to get out of the bed and sitting down again, but he'd been able to fight down any urge to express said pain in any visible or verbal manner. Of course, the sight of Zelda wielding a multitude of pairs of scissors had been rather frightening, but then again, he'd be more worried about what she'd do if he had said no. He would probably have woken up in the dead of night hearing snipping sounds and maniacal laughter. Not that Zelda was insane (okay, perhaps a little), but she tended to behave rather…strangely in matters like these. Even now he could hear her giggle a bit. She ruffled his hair, shaking out any cut hairs that stubbornly clung to what had once been their abode. Then the princess went back to snipping, oblivious to her bodyguard's slight worried shaking.

"Hm…maybe if that goes there…" he heard her say and felt a tug at the top of his head. From what he could see (out of the corners of his eyes) and feel, she was done with the front of his head and was working her way toward the back. It seemed she had decided to give him bangs similar to Link's, only less full and more pulled back, or so it seemed anyway. Another tug, another snip. "Oops."

Sheik stiffened, almost turning his head to look at her, but remembered that she was holding sharp blades close to his head. "What do you mean, 'Oops'?" he asked slowly, clenching his jaw in order to prevent his voice from rising any higher. Bad enough that news of his protectiveness of his hair should leak out, he did _not_ need anyone to know that he sounded like a girl when he was nervous. "I'd really like to know that."

"Hee, nothing to worry about!" Zelda exclaimed hurriedly, her voice slightly _too_ panicky for Sheik to take her seriously. "I just…cut a bit generously."

"Generously?" asked Sheik, almost to the point of gnashing his teeth. If she had ruined his hair forever…

"Yeah…it got a bit shorter than I intended to," explained the princess hesitantly. "But don't worry; it's not visible unless you really look for it. Besides, it's not like I completely skinned you, like I did with poor Sindar the other day…" The last part was said with a mumble, trailing off into something similar to a whisper.

"Completely skinned?" asked Sheik.

"Yes, there was an unfortunate incident with the sheep shears, but don't worry, it's not even close to as bad back here. Besides—oh…"

"Oh, what?" asked Sheik. His heart was pounding now, worried that Zelda had now condemned him to several months of bad hair days. "What's wrong _now_?"

"There's a few hairs here that are…well, they're not regularly coloured," Zelda said slowly. Sheik heard a snipping sound, and then her hand appeared next to his face. "Take a look," she said. Sheik did so, and saw—to his surprise—three pitch-black straws of hair, thicker and longer than anything he had ever had.

"Those were attached to my head?" asked Sheik, taking the hairs and studying them. He had never had any black hairs, as far as he could recall. "Where?"

"At the very top," said Zelda. "There are few more of them. Shall I remove them?" she asked.

"Please," said Sheik. Zelda sighed happily and began cutting again.

They spent another few minutes in silence, only the sounds of the scissors breaking it. Sheik looked at the floor. There was a _lot_ of hair down there, and he half-wondered whether or not Zelda had actually skinned him like Sindar, whoever that was. How long had it been since he had cut his hair like this last? He couldn't remember. It felt like he'd had hair like this for as long as he had lived.

"Yes…yes…this looks great!" exclaimed Zelda and stood up in triumph, brushing the fallen hair from Sheik's back as she did so. "Here, take a look!" she said and gave him a small mirror.

Slowly, Sheik lifted the mirror, taking in what was to be his new appearance from now on. To Zelda's credit, she had done quite a good job, he had to admit. As he'd suspected, his bangs were cut more like Link's now, only lighter and pulled more backwards. She had managed to cut the sides and back in layers, creating a sort of floor-effect, he really couldn't describe it. Coupled with the fall in his hair…well, he didn't _hate_ it, even though it was very different from what he'd had. Zelda looked at him expectantly as he turned his head to look at her, her form shaking with anticipation. He nodded, smiling.

"I like it, thank you," he said.

Zelda's face erupted into a huge smile and she—after discarding the scissors—hugged him tightly. "I knew you would, I knew you would!" she said over and over again, overjoyed, as if this was the only piece of entertainment she'd had in the past couple of years. "I even made it possible so you can draw the bangs back behind your ears in case you want it completely out of your face, see!"

"Yes, I saw. Very practical," said Sheik, trying it out. The lengths were perfect. The hair at the back just reached the bottom of his neck, where Zelda's hand was currently fiddling with it, pulling and tugging, making sure it was—according to her—perfect. "I don't think anyone could have done a better job. Thank you, Zelda." He looked in the mirror again, staring at his blinded eye. The white slit glared back. Experimentally, he tugged the left bangs so they covered it. He sighed. No go. The hair was long enough, but would not stay still. No matter how slight the movements of his head were, the hair was not thick enough.

 _I guess that's what you get when cutting_ _your hair with a sword,_ he thought, putting the mirror down. No matter how many times he was reassured about it, he found slit hideous and disgusting.

"Sheik?" asked Zelda carefully, looking at him. "What's wrong? Did I do the hair wrong? I'm so sorry, I'll fix it right away—"

"It's not that," said Sheik, trying to give her a reassuring smile. "It's just…no, never mind, it is silly and quite stupid."

"Anything that can upset you like this is _not_ silly," said Zelda and wiped a tear from Sheik's cheek.

The Sheikah looked at the wetness on her hand, wondering where it had come from. _I'm crying_ again _? What's happening with me?_ he wondered. _And for what? Because of a white line in my eye? Pull yourself together, Sheik, pull yourself together. You're pathetic…_

"Come on, Sheik," said Zelda imploringly. She took his hand, squeezing gently. "Tell me what's wrong."

Sheik looked at her, glad he remembered to keep his right hand under the blankets. "I…I just…" The words were so difficult to come up with. How could he explain that he hated the way his eye looked, to the point where he would begin to silently cry at the sight of it? He blamed the triangle. It _had_ to be the triangle! "I…hate the way I look, Zelda," he finally said, unable to think up anything else to say.

"You hate the hair?" asked Zelda.

"No, I love the hair…but my face…well, my eye, really…"

"It's beautiful, Sheik," said Zelda firmly, squeezing his hand again. "I admit, it was hard to get used to at first, but now…well, it makes you look more mysterious, handsome…dangerous, even."

Sheik hesitated. "Would it…would it surprise you if I told you that I don't _want_ to…to look dangerous?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" asked Zelda. "I thought Sheikah were _supposed_ to look…you know, dangerous and mysterious. I mean, Impa always scared me when I was younger. She did not exactly look the…motherly type, after all."

"I don't mind mysterious, but dangerous…" said Sheik, ignoring the comment about his aunt, who'd always been beautiful in his eyes, even though he agreed slightly on her not looking very motherly. "I've been thinking about something…for quite a while, really."

"What?" asked Zelda, eyes widening when she saw another few tears slip from Sheik's eyes, wiping them away with hands so gentle.

"Link told me…about how he felt like when he killed those men at the lake," he said. "He did not take it very well."

"I know," said Zelda. "He broke down in front of me, Sheik."

"Later, he asked me how I could be so comfortable with killing," said Sheik, and now he felt a quiver in his jaw. _What's going on? Why am I reacting like this?_ "And it made me wonder if…if that's what Link sees me as. A murderer."

"What do you mean? I thought you were…you know, together," asked Zelda.

"Yes, but…does Link worry about whether or not I am going to go on a homicidal rampage at any moment?" asked Sheik. "I saw it in his eyes when…after I had taken care of the men who enslaved Tao…"

"What, Sheik? What did you see?"

"Fear, Zelda. I saw fear!" exclaimed Sheik, crying openly now.

Silent, Zelda put her arms around Sheik and drew him into a hug. "Now _that_ is a silly idea, Sheik," she said. "Why would Link fear you? After all you've been through together? I can't imagine a reason why. He may be a child in some ways, but he understands what needs to be done, and he has a strong sense of justice. He understands why you…punished the men, even though you may have been a bit…overzealous, as you told me. If you did indeed show up covered in blood…then, don't you think he may have feared that _you_ were hurt, rather than afraid that you had hurt someone else?"

"I…I don't know…" said Sheik. "And that's what scares me…"

"There's no reason to be afraid of what Link thinks of you, Sheik," said Zelda calmly. "He loves you, and he always will. But you need to share these thoughts with him, so that he can reassure you. He may not enjoy the fact that killing is necessary in these times of war, but I have no doubt that he would detest the fact that you do not share your troubles with him, if he were to find out." She looked down at Sheik, noticing for the first time that she was taller than him. "Please, don't cry. You _know_ Link doesn't fear you. It is simply a figment of your imagination. In fact, I think he loves you even more now that you have shown your stance on…monsters."

The Sheikah didn't answer, his eyes having slid shut, his breath even and gentle.

"Sheik?" asked Zelda. "Did you fall asleep while I was lecturing you?"

No answer.

"You silly boy," she said, shaking her head. She let go of him and made sure he was leaning back in his chair, not falling over. Then she poked her head out of the door, catching the attention of Kaura, who was checking up on the sleeping Tao. "Kaura," she half-whispered, half-shouted. "I need your help."

They carefully lifted Sheik out of his chair and carried him back to the bed, gently laying him down. As they covered him up with the blankets, Zelda noticed that Kaura, who was standing on the right side of the bed, was giving the Sheikah weird looks, appearing as thought she was going to tear off the blankets any minute, like something was bothering her greatly.

"What is it?" Zelda finally asked.

"Hm?" asked Kaura, looking up. "Oh, nothing. I just…I like what you did with his hair."

"Thank you," said Zelda, smiling. "I did my best." She decided that Kaura was lying, but did not have the energy to start probing. The meeting with the Gorons had exhausted her, and the final haircut-and-hugging session with Sheik had just about knocker her out. She had to get up early in the morning to inspect the troops, the camp as well as mediate some negotiation or other between the Zoras and the Gorons. She yawned.

"It suits him," said Kaura.

"Mhm," Zelda answered, stroking Sheik's cheek, having made sure to wipe out any evidence of his crying before Kaura had seen him, certain that the Sheikah wouldn't want anyone to see him at his weakest. "Well, I believe I must be off. Another big day, tomorrow," she said. "Please take care of them."

Kaura nodded. "Naturally, Your Highness. I have come to see them as my friends, even though they can be annoying as hell at times. You can trust me to look after them."

"Thank you, Doctor. Good night."

"Good night, Zelda."

Kaura stared after Zelda's retreating back, flanked by her heavily armed and armoured royal guards, for a few minutes while smoking a cigarette. Then she snuffed it out and went back inside. She paused at Sheik's bed, feeling an overwhelming urge to find out what he had been so desperate to hide from everyone. She almost lifted the blanket, but recoiled as if burned.

"Stop it, Kaura," she whispered to herself. "Stop it. You're better than this. You're a doctor; you're not supposed to be snooping through their secrets. Remember your oath." Nodding to herself, she went back to her desk and resumed taking notes on the various chemical properties of the many potions she had been gathering from around the world. It tore at her, knowing that all she had to do was to lift the blanket and…

She slammed her pen down on the table, growling to herself. "Stop it." Link snored. Kaura found herself grinning. "At least you're out of your fainting spell," she whispered. "Even though you didn't bother waking up first…"

She stood up and walked back to Sheik's bed, her fingers itching, eyes drawn to _it_. She relaxed. "Ah, screw it. I haven't followed that oath in years," she said and lifted the blanket.

* * *

"Hoo, even during the worst of autumn this place remains an oven," said Zelda, wiping away a bead of sweat from her brow. She was presiding over a meeting between two merchants, one Zora and one Goron, who were discussing possible trading agreements for after the war was over. While the princess had tried to be reasonable and told them not to take victory for granted as a sure thing, they had simply answered that it was better to be safe than sorry, even though Zelda had a feeling they'd be a lot more than just sorry if they lost the war. Dead, for example.

"It is an inhospitable land, Your Highness," said the Zora trader. While the Gorons and Hylians were suffering in the heat, none did so more than the piscine race. The lack of water in the area had forced them to resort soaking their clothes in water only once a day and this took its toll on them. Even now Zelda could see that this particular Zora was close to passing out from dehydration.

"I do not think we can continue negotiations at this time, gentlemen," Zelda said, standing up. A tarpaulin had been set up as any closed tents became far too hot during the day, but even this was a small measure as the mountains around the camp simply trapped the heat, concentrating it. For a few moments, Zelda envied the scouts who had positioned to observe the Hyrule plains from the mountains, where there would surely be a cooling wind. She took a drink of water from her goblet and offered the rest to the Zora merchant, who took it gratefully. "I suggest we reconvene at a later time today, perhaps after the sun has set. From what we've done for now, though, I believe it will not take long to reach an agreement."

"You are right, Your Highness," said the Goron merchant, rising to his feet. No chair would hold up a Goron, and he had been sitting on the ground. He nodded to the Zora merchant, smiling. "It's been a pleasure discussing with you."

The Zora nodded back. "And you have been an utmost satisfying opponent. I can only see a fortunate future for us all."

Zelda shook her head as she watched the merchants walk back to the central area of the camp, side by side. She had never seen two members of the races get along as well as they had. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that they both cared more about glittering rupees than racial and political differences. "If only more of them could think like that," she whispered and sighed.

She looked at her guards, wondering how they were able to stay so still and unbothered by the heat. They didn't even seem to sweat under all that armour. She had to admit it was quite admirable. Had it been up to her, though, she would have disbanded the royal guard and not have anyone protect her at all times as she was more than capable of defending herself. Besides, what were the chances of some unknown assailant making their way through the entire camp and sneak into her tent—in the very _middle_ of the barrack tents—and attack her without getting discovered?

But, as she knew, a princess of Hyrule was expected to have a royal guard, and, if anything, she needed to keep up appearances. When they defeated Ganondorf, she could not appear weak to the other nations of the world, lest they invade a seemingly weakened and pathetic Hyrule, which had always prided itself on being the strongest kingdom in the world.

She beckoned the guards after her as she began to walk. "Come," she said. "We are going to the medical tent."

"Your Highness," the guards said in unison, slamming their gauntlets against their breastplates.

That was another thing they continually surprised their princess with. These royal guards were new, the previous garrison having suffered a devastating loss during the attack on the camp at the Forest Temple. The new guards had all been regular soldiers, but they had taken to their new task with surprising ease. They even _walked_ in sync, none of them skipping a beat as they followed her through the streets.

The air inside the sick tent was, surprisingly, nice and cool through some sort of ventilation system she had no idea how worked. Either way, she breathed a sigh of relief the second she stepped inside.

"How many times do I have to tell you? This ain't a rest stop!" Kaura shouted at a man standing in front of her desk. She had removed all her alchemical equipment from last night, opting to cover the desk in books and notes today. The man was shrugging apologetically.

"I'm sorry, doctor, but it's so nice and cool in here—"

"And?" asked Kaura. "It's for the patients' benefit, not for some lazy bastard's." She pointed at the exit. "Get out, and don't come back unless you're injured!"

Zelda stared at the spectacle as the man tried to come up with an excuse to stay inside, though Kaura wouldn't have any of that and began cursing the man out like a third-rate sailor returning from a five-year trip. She heard someone clear their throat. She looked at Sheik's bed, in which said Sheikah was looking at her with a faintly amused face. Zelda shook her head at the raging physician and sat down in the chair next to the bed.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, raising her voice so Sheik could hear her over the din.

"Better," said Sheik. "About last night, I'm sorr—"

"Don't be," said Zelda. "I can understand why you would jump to such a conclusion, but there's no reason to dwell on it. Do you still like your new hairstyle?" she asked, hoping to change the subject. She had _never_ seen Sheik cry before he had revealed his attraction to the Hero of Time to her, and she felt horribly inadequate at comforting him whenever he did.

Sheik nodded. "I like it very much, even though it feels strange."

"That's to be expected, given how long it's been for so many years," said Zelda. "How did Link take it?" she asked.

"I'm not sure," said Sheik, shrugging. "He hasn't woken up yet." He pointed at the bed opposite of his, in which Link was making a sound similar to a rockslide just by breathing. "What time is it?" Sheik asked.

"It'll be noon soon," said Zelda. "And it's a Wednesday, if you were wondering."

"Huh," said Sheik. "I hate Wednesdays."

"As do I," said Zelda.

This was something they had shared ever since childhood, a profound hatred for the middle of the week. They weren't entirely sure _why_ they despised this day, but there was just something about it that raised their ire in such an indescribable way. But then again, Zelda hated it when the sun was visible during rain, so she supposed that unreasonable hatred of mundane things were simply part of her personality. As for Sheik…well, he hated many things.

"Enough!" shouted Kaura from her desk and threw something at the man, most likely a pen. "Get out!"

"Fine, fine, geez," said the man and retreated outside, visibly nervous as he passed the guards, having not noticed Zelda's presence at all.

"Having trouble?" asked Zelda, grinning.

"That's the understatement of the millennium," said the physician. "All day people have been coming in to seek shelter from the heat, but I'll be damned if I let the filthy, unwashed masses into my sterile environment!"

Sheik and Zelda shared a smile at the annoyed physician, who was already back to taking notes on whatever it was she was reading about. It never ceased to amuse Zelda just how easily annoyed Kaura was. Of course, she tried her best not to do so whenever the physician was teaching her, but otherwise…well… The princess' gaze happened to fall upon Tao, who was still sleeping as well. He was so thin…

"How is he?" Zelda asked.

"Better than he would have been in the temple, that's for sure," said Sheik. "He had nightmares last night."

"He spoke?"

"No, but he whimpered and sobbed. He calmed down after a minute or two, however." The Sheikah shifted in his bed, tried to sit up more. Zelda helped him. "Thanks. It's hard to move today, the bones are healing."

"You're welcome," said Zelda. "Nightmares, huh?"

"I'm not surprised, considering what has been done to him."

"Did you comfort him?"

"I would have, if I had been able to move at the time. Kaura was asleep in the backroom, and Link was snoring like an explosion. All I could do was to try and whisper to him, but I doubt he even heard me."

"Hey, not my fault that sleep overcame me," said the physician from her desk. "You ungrateful brats should be happy that I even bothered patching you up after the stunts you've pulled. Tao excluded, of course. He's yet to incur my wrath. But you two…"

"Yes, yes, we're an annoyance and you'd be so much better off without us, we know," said Sheik, rolling his eyes.

* * *

"Ah, another lovely day," said Vorpheus as he strode into the tent, right past Zelda and Sheik, heading right for Kaura's desk. "But nothing compared to thine beauty, Doctor Kaura," he added as he stopped in front of her.

Sheik looked at the warlock. His hair was back to its seemingly regular length, reaching just past his shoulders, but was now coloured a golden blond the type of which he had only seen in Zelda's hair. He seemed much younger, many of his wrinkles and furrows gone, and his eyes were an electrical, light blue. His dented, black armour had been discarded in favour of a more comfortable, cotton-y farmer's outfit, which were most likely a few sizes too small, which clung tight to his body, showing off a far more powerful and muscled frame than Sheik remembered him to have. All in all, it appeared that Vorpheus had made himself into a whole new man, and he could easily guess the reason.

"May I also add that your eyes are looking particularly fiery today?" the warlock asked, most likely flashing her a grin that shone of a thousand suns—in his mind, at least.

"Should we say something?" whispered Zelda.

"No, this should be a right laugh," Sheik whispered back.

Kaura said nothing for a few minutes, only stared up at the undoubtedly smiling Vorphus. She calmly put her pen down on the table and closed her notebook. Then she started fiddling with something in her bag. It flashed in the light from the lamp. A scalpel.

"Fuck off," she said simply.

"Oh, come now, doctor!" said the warlock, seemingly unbothered by the _very_ sharp implement wielded by the person who obviously had little to no patience for him. "How can you say such a thing on a fine day as this? Have you reconsidered my offer?"

"Oh, I've reconsidered alright," said Kaura calmly. "And I arrived to the same answer. Hell. No."

"Oh, I'm hurt, truly I am hurt," said Vorpheus melodramatically, holding a hand above his heart in a melodramatic fashion that would have put the worst of actors to shame. "The lady of my life will not have me! I absolutely _must_ make you change your mind. It is destiny, can you not see?"

"All I see is an old man who thinks he can impress people with his flashy conjurer's tricks," said Kaura flatly. She lifted the scalpel a little higher. "And he is about to get this through his scrotum should he not leave immediately."

"Point taken, you're having a bad day," said Vorpheus, standing back. "I shall be back later. For now, I have lunch that needs to be eaten." He turned around and noticed the princess and the Sheikah for the first time, stopping dead in his tracks. "Well, isn't this a morning for seeing lovely faces…"

"Vorpheus," said Zelda, inclining her head in greeting, to which the warlock bowed deeply. "How are you?"

"Couldn't be better, Your Highness," said Vorpheus.

"Caspar," said Sheik, nodding to him.

"Master Sheikah, aren't you a wondrous sight with your new…hairstyle? What, someone finally told you that you are, in fact, a boy and you decided to reflect this to the world through your hair? And what have I said about using that name?" A strained smile accompanied the entire, disjointed tirade.

"What name?" asked Sheik innocently. "Caspar E—"

"Shh!" said Vorpheus, desperately looking around. "No one must hear that name!"

"I'm confused," said Zelda. "Isn't Vorpheus your real name?"

"It isn't," said Sheik before Vorpehus had a chance to answer. "His real name is actually—"

"Thank you!" said Vorpheus loudly. "Here I reveal my secrets to you as a sign of goodwill, and you immediately rattle on about it to anyone who will hear! That's what one gets for being kind and humble and—"

"An annoying prick," added Kaura.

"Not exactly what I was going to say, but at least you're talking to me."

"Hm, I wonder what this jar of acid would feel like if poured onto your d—"

"Okay, that's enough, all of you!" said Zelda loudly, a headache developing rapidly behind her eyes. Three sides, all equally annoyed with each other, bickering unceasingly was not something she was inclined to deal with this particular day. "We're all on the same side, let's try and keep a civil attitude."

Sheik leaned back against his pillow. "I apologise."

"Indeed, we are sorry," said Vorpheus, chest deflating.

"I'm not," said Kaura snidely.

* * *

"Right, what is it you wanted to speak to me about?" asked Vorpheus. Sheik had voiced his need to speak with the warlock privately soon after the small argument had been punctured by Zelda, and while the physician and princess did not appreciate being told to leave, they had done so, Zelda recognising Sheik's tone of voice as most important and Kaura…well, Kaura just wanted to get away from Vorpheus. Understandable, given what Sheik had heard of his courtship.

"Sit, please," said Sheik, waving to the chair Zelda had occupied minutes before. He made sure Tao and Link were sleeping as the warlock sat down. None of them needed to hear this either. "We encountered your granddaughter again," he said.

"Dehl?" asked Vorpheus.

"What other granddaughters do you have?" asked Sheik, raising an eyebrow.

"Never hurts to have extra confirmation before one starts to flap one's lips," said Vorpheus innocently. Then his face grew serious. "Where did you meet her? What is she up to?"

"We didn't talk to her specifically," said Sheik. "We only spied on her from a distance. She had allied herself with the Hero's shadow."

"The same shadow that killed you?" asked Vorpheus.

"The very same," said Sheik, nodding. "And before you ask, yes, it is now dead. The Hero finished him off once and for all. Anyway, it appears Dehl has been feeding him information on a strange artefact we discovered there."

"You still haven't told me where 'there' is," said Vorpheus.

"We found a path inside a strange door at Lake Hylia," said Sheik. "It led up through the mountains."

Vorpheus' eyes widened, confirming Sheik's suspicion that the warlock _did_ indeed know something about this, but he pressed on.

"Up there, we found a temple, carved into the very mountainside itself. It was empty, but it could probably have accommodated thousands of inhabitants. We discovered the bodies of Zelda's spies outside, murdered by the shadow after they alerted us of the path. Inside, we found a large chamber in which Dehl and the shadow were arguing. After a few minutes of talk, Dehl said something about their partnership having ended, that she did not need to explain to the shadow how to use the artefact. Then she disappeared through a portal. And then we struck."

"Before you go on," said Vorpheus, holding up a hand, "I have a question."

"Ask."

"This artefact of yours…it would not happen to be a clear triangle, floating upside-down upon a plinth?" said Vorpheus.

 _I knew it,_ Sheik thought. _He knows exactly what it is._

"Yes, yes it would."

Vorpheus sighed heavily. "So…she _has_ discovered it, then. Tell me, has she taken it?"

"No, she has not," said Sheik, seeing the warlock visibly relax. "What is it?"

"How can I explain?" asked Vorpheus. "It is a long story."

"Try," said Sheik. "I need to know what it is."

Vorpheus sighed, leaning back in the chair. "Where should I begin?"

"From the beginning, naturally."

* * *

Thousands upon thousands of years ago, before the first humans set foot upon this fair land, the Goddesses created the sacred Triforce. After Din formed the land, Farore gave it life and Nayru gave it wisdom and law, they each imbued a triangle with their powers, and put them together to form the Triforce itself.

But what very few take into account is that, according to the universal law of balance—and believe me, there _is_ such a law—with all that positive magic and energy, there must be a counterweight. Everything that is the opposite of that. Even the Goddesses knew of this, and that is how the transparent triangle was made, hidden inside the Triforce. If you have ever seen a graphic depiction of the Triforce, you will have noticed the empty space in the middle of it, the upside-down triangular gap.

It has no known name, though some have come to call it the Delta Force, as do I. And before you ask, yes, I have known of it for a long time, though I had little hope of ever seeing it, much less hear about it from someone who has. About ten centuries ago—or a millennium, if you are fond of that particular word—the royal family of Hyrule, for an unknown reason, wanted all knowledge of the Delta Force erased.

It was said that the Delta Force, while the opposite of the Triforce, would give the one who possessed the same powers as a piece of the Triforce, though imbued with negative energy. Naturally, in the iconoclastic times that followed, certain people became interested in acquiring the Delta Force for their own gain. They knew that they would never be allowed a part of the Triforce as it is destined for heroes of legend. But the Delta Force… the Delta Force can be claimed by anyone, provided they are strong enough to handle it, and knows how to activate it.

No one knows how they managed to do it, but a group of people managed to gain entrance to the temple of time and opened a portal to the Sacred Realm—without the use of the sacred gems, even—and stole the Delta Force. They disappeared with it, and no one heard of them for years afterward.

The thieves formed a secret cult around the Delta Force, built a mighty temple in its honour, and worshipped it like a god. They did not know how to use it, and every time someone attempted to, they were turned to dust by the violent energies contained within. Years passed, and the cult became paranoid that someone would find out their activities. They knew that if the royal family discovered them, the entire cult would be destroyed, its members executed and the temple razed. They began to take precautions, began to build defences. The royal family's protectors, the Sheikah, your people, were the cult's biggest threat, and the first line of defence against them was placed in the only tunnel into the mountains they called their home. They magically imbued a handrail—made of the finest onyx—to poison the very air inside the tunnel, specifically made to target any Sheikah who found their way inside.

As it was, the royal family never found out the cult, and it flourished. However, some members were not happy with their lack of progress in using the Delta Force, and a schism formed. Eventually, the rebelling members took over, and had the loyalist members killed. The leader of the rebels declared that he had discovered a magical ritual in which he would be able to activate the triangle and receive its power.

It was supposed to be a grand ritual. All the members of the cult were called upon to observe the glorious happening. The new leader tried to use the Delta Force by binding it with a powerful spell. It backfired. In an instant, the entire cult was annihilated, its members turned to dust. The temple was left empty, the screams of the terrified cult members forever echoing inside the mountain from which it was carved.

And you are now telling me, that you have found the entrance to the temple?

* * *

Sheik nodded. "Yes, we did. I was almost killed by the onyx handrail."

"But my granddaughter has not taken the Delta Force?" asked Vorpheus.

"No, she has not," confirmed Sheik. _I wonder what would happen if I told him_ I _have taken it._

"But the shadow wanted it?"

"Yes. But he did know how."

"So it's still up there?"

"Well…"

Vorpheus stared at him. "I do not like the sound of that trailing 'well'. What did you do?"

"I…" Sheik sighed and lifted his right hand from underneath the covers, showing Vorpheus the mark on his hand. The warlock gasped, grabbing his hand and studying it closely.

"Goddesses," the warlock whispered. "Do you realise what you have done, Sheikah?" he asked. "You have…you've activated it. But how?"

"I don't know," said Sheik. "I was…incapacitated by the shadow in the beginning of the fight. It…it killed Terra, and—"

"I _knew_ it," said Vorpheus, suddenly interrupting him. "There was something different about you, but I did not give it enough thought to realise that there is just one soul in your body now. But…Terra's absence should have killed you…"

"It almost did, but Link made me touch the triangle while I was dying," said Sheik. "And…well, it seemed to have saved my life."

"Huh…that I did not expect," said Vorpheus. "How does it feel?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you feel…physically different, mentally, emotionally?" the warlock pressed on.

"It itches," said Sheik. "But only when I'm annoyed, or angry…or experiencing any negative feelings at all, really."

"That would be the triangle doing its magic," said Vorpheus. "But these negative feelings…are you experiencing them more often?"

"Does it matter?" asked Sheik.

"It does, because what this triangle gives of positive things, it heaps twice as much negativity upon you. You will be angrier, easily annoyed, have a short fuse." He sighed and pulled out his tattered journal. "Let me see if this explains it better," he said and opened a page, and read aloud:

"'The Delta Force is a distilled, compromised version of the three pieces of the Triforce; those of Wisdom, Courage and Power. The user will experience an increase in one, two or all three attributes, but will also receive a serving of any of the three opposites as well; Ignorance, Cowardice and Weakness. The user may find that, in certain situations, he is more courageous and daring, but a complete and utter coward in others.'"

"Wait, how did your teacher know that?" asked Sheik, feeling another itch coming on.

"He didn't, but that's what he learned from his teacher, who again learned it from his teacher, and so on and so forth. One of the teachers spied on the cult, apparently, a short time before they wiped themselves out."

"Just how old _is_ that journal?" asked Sheik.

"This?" asked Vorpheus and flapped a few pages. "A couple of decades, maybe. I copied it all from my teacher's journal and burned the original. This is how I keep the knowledge alive."

"So…what do I do now?" asked Sheik. "Can I remove it?" He scratched the triangle.

"Most likely not," said Vorpheus apologetically. "It has finally chosen a bearer, and—from what you've told me—it is probably the one thing that is keeping you alive. In a way, it's both a blessing and a curse, I suppose. It gives you strength, but also weaknesses. In your case, you have lost control of your temper and think more negative thoughts than ever. By the way, have you been in combat since then?"

"Yes…we discovered that a group of men had enslaved a young boy—"he pointed at the sleeping Tao"—and I fought them."

"And what happened then?" asked Vorpheus.

"I killed them, of course."

"More violently than you would have done…otherwise?"

"Not really," said Sheik, shrugging. But then he remembered the look on Phil's face when Sheik had started to cut…and what had remained of the man once Sheik was done. "I…I think I lost control of myself when I took care of the last one…I left nothing."

"Nothing?"

"There was literally nothing left of him that could be classified as human remains," said Sheik shamefully, wondering why he was feeling any shame at all. Phil had gotten exactly what he had deserved, in his opinion.

"And this is something you have not done before?"

"I have always…prided myself on doing such work cleanly without any mess," said Sheik.

"Huh…well, there you have it. The Delta Force is affecting your disposition in general."

"What can I do about it?" asked Sheik.

"Well, there is little you can do about it, really. You certainly can't affect the triangle. It is there to stay until it decides that you do not need it, or it does not need you. And, since you would die without it—"

"I'm stuck with it until I…expire," said Sheik.

"That would be the gist of it, yes."

"Goddesses," said Sheik, burying his head in his hands. Things were getting so complicated, more than ever.

"Don't worry," said Vorpheus, patting him on the shoulder. "I will help you, should you need it."

"No strings attached?" asked Sheik suspiciously.

"Well, I wouldn't be beyond asking to study it for a bit, but I know when to back off, if you know what I mean."

"Thanks."

"No problem." He stood up, rubbing his hands together. "Heh, this is exciting. But now there is a lunch waiting for me to be eaten, and I daresay that my stomach is missing it something fierce." He picked up his journal and carefully placed it inside his shirt. He was halfway to the entrance when Sheik decided to ask a question that had been bothering him ever since the Forest Temple.

"You didn't tell me everything about your granddaughter, did you?" he asked.

Vorpheus froze, not turning to look at him. "I suppose…I left out a few details, yes."

"Such as…?"

"Such as the reason for why she hates me and the rest of her family more than anything," he said.

"Will you reveal it to me?" asked Sheik. "In exchange for me letting you study the Delta Force?"

The warlock hesitated, glaring at Sheik. "You little runt," he said. Then he sighed. "I suppose I've no choice if I want to learn more about it. Alright, you have your deal, but I will not talk now. Later."

"Alright."

"Good day, then."

"Good day."

* * *

"I love it, I love it! Ow!"

"Don't overexert yourself, you idiot."

"Sorry."

"Link, don't—"

"But I wanna see—ow!"

"You can see it fine from there, Link."

"But I want to see it up close!"

"Then bloody stay there and I'll come over."

The exchange took place about half an hour after Vorpheus had left and Zelda had gone to a meeting. The Hero had woken up with a massive yawn (only interrupted by a yelp when his healing nose shifted) and had quickly looked around for his lover. At first, he hadn't recognised Sheik, but then…well his eyes had widened considerably, and then…well, the aforementioned exchange had happened.

Sheik made to get out of bed, but froze when he remembered one critical detail. "Er…I am not wearing any clothes at the moment," he said.

"So?" asked Link innocently.

"I don't know about you, but I don't really feel comfortable exposing myself to a military camp, much less a young boy," said Sheik. He looked imploringly at Kaura, who seemed close to laughter.

"I'll fetch you a robe," she said and disappeared into the backroom, emerging soon after with a thin robe made of some sort of rough wool. "It's not the best in the world, but it'll do. Also, let me get you some crutches."

"Crutches?" asked Link.

"He _did_ break his hip, you know," said Kaura disbelievingly and gave Sheik the robe. The Sheikah quickly put it on, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. The damaged hip gave a twinge in protest, but he didn't feel anything grinding against something else now, which he supposed was a positive thing. "How is it?" asked the physician.

"Feels alright, I suppose," said Sheik, standing up with the help of Kaura. He slowly hobbled over to the waiting Link, who immediately began running his hands through the Sheikah's hair.

"Wow, it's still soft," Link said enthusiastically.

"What, you expected my hair to turn to stone once I cut it?" asked Sheik jokingly, leaning in to plant a kiss on Link's lips (careful not to bother his nose), which the Hero returned happily.

"Who knows?" asked Link. "Lots of weird things happen these days."

"I guess you're right," said Sheik. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Fingers hurt like a bitch, my knee is burning, my back feels like it's on fire, my nose…well, you can see it." He shrugged. "But otherwise, I feel fine. How about you?"

"I'm fine," Sheik answered. "I was more worried about you."

"How's Tao?"

"Still sleeping."

"Still?"

"In his defence, he has a lot of sleep to make up for," said Sheik. "And…I don't think he is sleeping very well, even now. He had nightmares last night, you know."

Link didn't answer, only looked at the boy. "Is it just me," he said after a while, "or is he getting darker and darker?"

Sheik looked as well, noticing now that Tao's skin colour had darkened considerably than last. It became quite obvious that he was not of traditional Hylian descent, even though his ears were pointed, just like Link's. "You're not wrong," said Sheik slowly.

"But I guess we won't know any more until he wakes up again, eh?" said Link, poking Sheik in the side. "How 'bout you tell me what I've missed, like how you got gorgeous haircut."

Sheik smiled, making himself comfortable against Link and began to tell…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 101**

* * *

Sheik yawned, wondering just how long this was going to take. Night had fallen, and all the lights in the sick tent had been extinguished, the physician on duty (Kaura refusing to be addressed by name after certain hours, for some unknown reason) sleeping in the backroom. The Hero was snoring once again, sounding like he was attempting to replicate the sound of two tectonic plates colliding with each other. And here Sheik was, staring into the dark ceiling, trying to fall asleep, yet unable to do so. Why? He didn't know. The only thing he _did_ know was that his hip was itching like hell, and his lack of sleep was starting to annoy him something fierce. He scratched at the unreachable itch. Despite knowing that it was a good thing, that it meant that the bones were healing—and were even in the final stages—he had a good mind to break it again just for annoying him so.

He sighed, feeling like smacking himself for even thinking such thoughts. Break his again? After the pain of the first injury? His train of thought was going rogue, he knew. Any minute now he was going to start thinking about possible outcomes of a pie fight with Zelda, or something. Why a pie fight? He didn't know, but it had always appealed to him, throwing pastries around just like the clowns at certain fairs. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind up. He missed Terra. The Sheikah spirit had managed to clean up in his head like no other.

Sighing, he sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, throwing off the thick blanket. Someone had finally had the decency of fetching him some underwear so that he could walk around without having to roll himself into something akin to a desert explorer just so he could go to the bathroom. He scratched his eyes, realising that there was no point in trying to go to sleep.

He was excited for something. He had no idea what, but something was going to happen tonight, and he was not going to miss it for the world. _Or I could just be confusing myself,_ he thought. Link had been particularly exhausting today. The Hero's questions had not ceased for a second while Sheik had told him of everything he had seen and heard in the brief time he was asleep. And then the blond-haired idiot had demanded to run his hands through Sheik's hair for hours upon hours, the two just talking nonsense. Sheik had to admit that he had not _hated_ it, he had quite liked it, in fact, but it was rather tiring.

Sheik stood up, feeling his hip creaking. No pain, though. Massive improvement. The red potion had done its job once again. A thought hit him. Now that the main camp of the Remnant had moved all the way to the Gerudo Valley—where would they get the ingredients for the potion? Lake Hylia was too far away. The herbs and weeds in the Lost Woods…well, going there to gather them was out of the question. Having three enemy legions bearing down upon you was not a particularly interesting or desirable situation.

He turned left at the foot of his bed, intending to take a breath of fresh air. He stuck his head out the flap, shivering in the cold air. That was something that had always amused him about deserts. No matter how much the temperature rose during the day, it would always be cold like an ice cavern during the night. His breath came out in a small cloud of vapour. He looked around. It was a beautiful night. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky—at least not from what he could see—and the moon and stars shone bright, much brighter than they would have done over the plains. The entire camp was silent for once, to his surprise. Only the bare minimum of guards were watching the perimeter, the rest…well, simply sleeping. _I suppose they feel safe here,_ he thought. _The Lost Woods, while safe, always carries an eerie air of someone watching you the entire time. I'm surprised_ anyone _is able to sleep there._ He took another deep breath, waking up properly. No use in walking around like a ReDead now that he was up anyway.

 _Damn, why did I have to think about ReDeads?_ he wondered, smacking his forehead mentally. The mere thought of those dead and empty eyes was enough to set his teeth rattling…though that _could_ have had something to do with the cold as well. He closed the flap, stopping when he realised just how warm it was inside the tent compared to outside. How did it do that? During the day, while it was like an oven outside, it was cool like Zora's Fountain, but warm and comfortable during the night?

 _The marvels of technology?_ he contemplated as he walked over to Kaura's desk, almost stumbling over a chair placed haphazardly in front of Link's bed in the dark. Growling, he pushed the chair into a corner. His fumbling hands found the pack of matches in one of the drawers, and he quickly lit the solitary candle on the desk. One of Kaura's books was still lying on the desk, entitled **"Blood and Spit: An Introduction to the Political Climate of Termina"**. He blinked, wondering whose idea the title was. There was no writer's credit attributed to anyone on the cover. As far as he knew, Termina was one of the most politically stable regions in the world—at least in these days, not so much in the olden times. He opened the book on a random page and began to read.

"… **something many would agree to. As for the current mayor, Dotour, little has been seen of his political competence and leadership skills yet. Many would attribute this to the fact that there has been little instability in the region after he took up the mantle, nor have there been any armed conflicts. Sceptics, however, claims that this is because he has no ambition whatsoever for the little country, and that his time in the office will be short lest something happens in the near future. No, there is little of interest to study in the political affairs of Mayor Dotour. Of far more interest, however, is his family life. More specifically, his adopted son: Kafei Dotour.**

**It is a well-known fact that the young Kafei is not the mayoral couple's own flesh and blood, despite sharing a rather interesting shade of hair. It has not been confirmed, but the appearance of the young man bears a remarkable similarity to the ancient shadow people of Hyrule: the Sheikah. The mysterious people, having sworn allegiance to the royal family of Hyrule, has been declining in numbers for decades following a devastating war with the equally mysterious—and fierce—warrior people of the east, the Gerudo.**

**Many would say that it was an act of generosity that the mayoral couple would adopt the young orphan Kafei, that they only wished the young man well. Some dissenters, however, many of them sceptical to the Sheikah in general, think that nothing good will come of it. Some even claim that the mayor wanted a Sheikah for a son in order to ensure his own safety in an eventual coup once his time as mayor comes to an end. Much remains to be seen, and this writer believes that come the next election, Termina will be the centre of attention of the world."**

Sheik slammed the book shut, grunting in annoyance. Just what he needed, gossip in a book he had thought would be informative. And gossip about _Kafei_ , of all people. He shook his head, banishing any thoughts about the young man who had seen fit to abandon all traditions and family ties to his people. Another yawn fought its way past his lips. At least the gossip had made him sleepy. He considered going back to bed, wondering if it was just a trick of his mind that something was going to happen tonight.

Just as he blew out the candle, he got his answer. Whimpers and sobs in the dark. Rapid tossing and turning of a body in a bed to his left. Tao. Sheik quickly went over to the boy's bed, stopping just a foot away, wondering what he should do. He had no experience with children! He waited a little, his night vision gradually coming back. He could see the shivering form of Tao in the bed, could almost see the tears rolling down the little cheeks. Sheik leaned down, carefully poking Tao's back. The boy stilled completely, not a sound coming from him.

 _Automatic reaction?_ Sheik thought, poking him again. Nothing this time, only stillness and silence.

"Hey, are you awake?" Sheik whispered. He received no answer. "It's okay to talk, you know. You're safe now. Those men will never hurt you again, I promise." He heard a choked sob come from the boy, and he crouched next to the bed, ignoring the creaking of his hip. "Please don't cry," he whispered. "There is no need to be frightened—"

He froze when he felt a small hand gripping the one he had been resting on the mattress. The fingers were surprisingly strong, clenching desperately. Sheik smiled sadly and squeezed back, wondering if he was making progress. The boy had trusted him enough to carry him through the Shadow Temple, but he had probably been half-delirious right then. His suspicions were confirmed when Tao suddenly sprang from his lying position to hug Sheik. The added weight of Tao—although practically non-existent—finally roused the pain from his broken hip, and Sheik gasped slightly. Ignoring it, though, he hugged Tao back, feeling how the boy was shivering and shaking, probably frightened out of his mind.

"Bad dreams, huh?" Sheik asked quietly. "Is that why you were crying?"

Furious nodding accompanied by a sob.

"Nightmares about the men?"

More nodding.

"And when I touched you…you thought I was one of them?"

Even more nodding.

"I'm sorry. I didn't meant to frighten you like that," said Sheik, wincing. His hip was really hurting now. "I'm sorry, but I have to move for a bit. May I sit on your bed?"

Tao nodded, letting go of Sheik just long enough for the teen to move to a more comfortable position, leaning against the headboard. Faster than he could blink, Tao dumped himself into his lap, clinging onto him for dear life. Sheik wanted to smile, but felt too sad to do so. Just how starved was this boy of human contact that was not of a lewd nature in order to cling so desperately to someone he barely knew? Phil had _definitely_ deserved all he got. He gently stroked Tao's hair, hoping to soothe the crying boy.

"Don't cry, Tao," he whispered. Tao suddenly stopped sobbing, and he leaned back, looking at Sheik's face with shock. Even in the little light from the outside he could see the trails of tears on his cheeks. "That's your name, isn't it?" asked Sheik, pointing at the necklace he was wearing. "The doctor found it underneath the hat. We assumed it was yours. Is your name Tao?"

Tao nodded, blinking at the necklace, probably having wondered how it got there if he had hidden it under Link's cap.

"Can you talk?" asked Sheik.

Tao shook his head, looking sad.

"Is it because you _don't_ want to?" asked Sheik.

Tao shook his head.

"You want to talk, but cannot. Is that it?"

Tao nodded, a small smile on his face. Sheik took it as a positive sign.

"Well, then I find you a much more interesting conversation partner than blondie over there," Sheik said jokingly and pointed at Link's bed. Tao turned his head to look. "That's the one who found you, but you probably won't be able to get a reaction out of him as he sleeps heavier than a Goron. When he's awake, though…he'll talk your ears off, kind of like fairies, only worse."

Tao's face burst into a smile—the largest one yet, even showing teeth—and the corners of his eyes crinkled. A small tremor went through him, but Sheik saw no signs of emotional trauma. _He's laughing,_ he realised seconds after. _I made him laugh._ This brought a smile to Sheik's own face, and they shared a moment of amusement on Link's expense.

Then Tao's stomach growled, and the boy's eyes widened.

"Are you hungry?" asked Sheik, feeling foolish for not asking that question immediately. Tao had been sleeping for almost two days; of course he'd be hungry. He'd be famished, in fact, given Kaura's analysis. Tao nodded, smiling when Sheik's stomach suddenly growled as well, resulting in a strange stereo-like effect. "Well, let's find some food, then." He lifted Tao off of him and stood up. "You stay here, I'll go find something," he told the boy, who obediently sat down with his legs crossed.

Smiling, Sheik went to the backroom, opening the door in such a hurry that the loud flapping sound woke up the sleeping Kaura. In an instant, the physician was on her feet, scalpel in hand and spectacles on nose, ready to kill any intruder who _dared_ to interrupt her sleep…and possibly bother some of her patients.

"It's me," Sheik whispered harshly, dodging a badly aimed stab.

"Who?"

"Sheik."

"What the hell do you want at this time of night? I thought you were the quiet one," said Kaura tiredly and put the scalpel down.

"Tao has woken up," said Sheik.

Kaura began to fumble with some matches, lighting the oil lamp that hung from the ceiling. To Sheik's surprise, she slept in her medic outfit, only releasing her hair from the tight bun as a sign of relaxation, apparently. She quickly tied it into a ponytail and fixed Sheik with a serious look. "Is it true?" she asked.

"Yes, and he's hungry," said Sheik.

"He spoke?"

"No, but I asked him, and he nodded."

"So…he hasn't tried to run away from you?" asked Kaura sceptically as she began to look through the cupboards and drawers in the backroom, apparently forgetting the bowl of apples on the small table. "Rape victims are usually highly distrustful of strangers," she said while fishing through a sack of sorts that was inside a large drawer.

"Well, Link and I brought him away from the temple and those who hurt him," said Sheik. "I think he trusts us. Especially Link."

"Well, then he'll probably fear me like the plague," said Kaura, getting back on her feet. In her hand was a loaf of bread. "This is all I have, I'm afraid. And the apples, of course."

"I'm sure it will do fine," said Sheik.

"I wouldn't be so optimistic," said Kaura, shaking her head. "If Tao's been starved for a long time, then it's possible that his body will not take to solid foods as easily. He could end up even sicker if he tried to force it."

"Don't you have any porridge or something?" asked Sheik, looking around the small backroom, wondering why he was even asking the question. There was barely room for the few cupboards, the table and chairs and Kaura's futon as it was.

"No, that's all with the army kitchen," said Kaura, shaking her head. "And believe me; those guys are _not_ willing to cook outside hours. I tried to go there for a few more bowls of porridge after dinner the other day…heh, I bet some of those swear tirades could outclass mine."

"Well, I promised Tao some food, and that's what he shall have. If he shows any signs of getting sick…well, we'll tell him to stop eating," said Sheik, grabbing the bowl from the table as well as the lamp from the ceiling. "Come on."

Kaura stared at him for a few seconds. "Have you _ever_ tried to tell a child to do something it doesn't want to do? It's impossible."

"Yes, that's probably why the Hero and I get injured all the time," said Sheik, appreciating a bit of self-irony every now and then. He turned around and quickly walked back to Tao's bed. The dark-skinned boy eyed the apples hungrily as Sheik put the bowl down on the mattress and the lamp on the floor. The Sheikah turned the little handle on the lamp, brightening the flame just a little. On the other side of the room, Link was still trying to beat an earthquake in loudness. Sheik vaguely considered waking him up, but decided not to. He deserved a bit of rest, especially since his injuries still bothered him greatly.

He looked at Tao, who hadn't moved from his position. He was practically salivating now, staring at the apples.

"Go ahead," said Sheik. "Eat."

Carefully, almost as if expecting Sheik to suddenly take the bowl away again, Tao slowly picked up an apple by its stem, studying it like he had never seen one before. He looked at Sheik, as if waiting for permission. When the Sheikah nodded, another huge smile came to the boy's face, and he bit into the apple, the skin breaking with a loud pop.

What followed was probably one of the most incredible sights Sheik had ever witnessed. He had never seen anyone eat an apple as fast as the young boy was doing. Literally, within seconds, the apple was down to its core, and even that did not seem able to escape Tao's appetite. Sheik interfered, however, handing Tao a new apple and taking the core away.

"Slow down, or you will make yourself sick," said Sheik gently, wondering where Kaura was. He got his answers a few seconds later when the physician came out of the backroom, carrying a pitcher and a goblet in addition to the piece of bread. He noticed Tao eyeing her warily. "Don't worry," said Sheik. "She's a doctor. She's the one who's giving us all this food. She doesn't mean you any harm."

Kaura carefully placed the pitcher and goblet on the floor, handing Sheik the bread. She smiled brightly at the boy. "Hi, how are you?" she asked. "My name is Auntie Kaura. What's yours?"

Tao looked at Sheik imploringly.

"His name is Tao," said Sheik, playing along with Kaura's little game.

"Hi, Tao," said Kaura, sitting on her knees in front of the bed. Slowly, she poured water into the goblet and showed it to the boy. "Are you thirsty? Would you like some water?"

Tao nodded, and carefully—just as carefully as he had done with the apple—took the offered goblet, emptying it one big gulp. Kaura smiled and filled it up again. This time there was no hesitation from Tao, and Sheik knew that he trusted her now—rather quick, but still…

Sheik absentmindedly took an apple himself and began eating, realising how hungry he was. Nowhere near the hunger Tao was displaying, of course. Kaura offered the boy the bread, and he took that as well. The Sheikah and the physician shared a look of triumph. Several minutes passed by, the two only watching Tao as he was finally able to still the hunger that must have been gnawing at him for the longest time, and Sheik found himself smiling broadly whenever Tao did.

"Should we wake Link?" he asked Kaura.

"And listen to him prattle on and on for hours upon end like earlier today?" asked Kaura, adjusting her glasses. "No thank you, I've had enough of that for now."

"My thoughts exactly," said Sheik in agreement.

Kaura was about to answer—most likely with another joke on the Hero's expense—but was interrupted by a loud trumpet sounding over the camp. She looked at the entrance to the tent. "The alarm…" she said.

All around them, the sound of soldiers rapidly rising and putting on their weapons and armour filled the air, creating an unholy cacophony of squeaking and crashing metal. Tao looked frightened, but Sheik quickly tried to reassure him with calming words. People began to shout, wondering what was going on, complaining about the time of night, and so on.

"Look after him," said Sheik to Kaura, gently patting Tao on his arm, and rose from the bed, quickly running to the tent entrance. On the way, he noticed that Link was blinking, roused from his hibernation by the racket.

"What's going on?" he asked sleepily.

"I'll find out," said Sheik in passing, once again sticking his head out of the flap. Torches had been lit all over the camp, and soldiers rushed by, all heading for the entrance to the small canyon. He tried to catch the attention of those who ran by, but had not luck. Finally, he lost his patience. He shot an arm out of the flap, grabbing the arm of a private. "You!" he shouted over the noise. "What's happening?!"

"The Gerudo are coming!" the private shouted back as he gave Sheik a look of utmost disgust, ripping his arm out of the Sheikah's grip and continuing on his way. Sheik stared after him. Then he smiled.

 _About bloody time,_ he thought.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 102**

* * *

"What's going on?" asked Link, already halfway out of bed. His knee seemed quite well now, and the bandages on his back weren't red, which hopefully meant that the cuts and lesions from the splinters had healed. His nose seemed more…solid as well.

"The Gerudo are here," said Sheik.

"Really?" Link asked, looking around his bed. "Where are my clothes?"

"Ruined," said Kaura. She hadn't moved from her position by the bed. Tao was giving the two teens a nervous look, for a reason Sheik couldn't fathom. "I tossed your tunic and shirt away. There was no point in even trying to mend them. Your tights and boots are still alright, though."

"Great, where are they?" asked Link.

"Under the bed, Hero," said the physician, rolling her eyes.

"Link, what are you doing?" asked Sheik.

"I'm gonna go see what happens," said the Hero, already pulling on his tights, the boots soon following after.

"Half naked?"

"Why not? Might do me a little good, actually," replied Link, smiling like a half-wit.

"Not on my watch, you're not," said Kaura, standing up. She gave Tao a kind smile and quickly disappeared into the backroom. Seconds later, she came out, carrying a cloth sack. She opened it, reached in, pulled out a thin, light-blue shirt and tossed it to the Hero. "Wear this, at least," the physician said. She then tossed the bag to Sheik, who deftly caught it, raising an eyebrow.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" he asked.

"Wear the clothes inside, maybe?" asked Kaura sarcastically. "I took the liberty of having some clothes made for you in case you decided to get cabin fever. It's not designed for wear and tear, though it will serve you well if you're just wandering around. There're some sandals in there as well."

Sheik looked inside and saw that Kaura was speaking the truth. Pants, a shirt and a pair of wooden sandals. He looked back at her.

"I assumed that you would grow sick of this place at some point or another," said Kaura. "And if you're wondering, I took the measurements while you both slept the first night you came here."

"Thanks," Sheik said and began to put the clothes on, all the while wondering to what extent the physician had measured them. The clothes were indeed quite light, and the material was silky soft. They were definitely not meant for walking around during the night; however, as he noticed that the wind blew right through. Link had the advantage with his thick tights right there, even though he looked slightly ridiculous with only them on and not his usual outfit. He happened to glance at Tao, who now seemed on the verge of crying. For a second, Sheik wondered what was wrong now, but quickly realised that he was afraid that they were leaving. He pulled on the last sandal (both of which were so roughly made that he was sure he was getting splinters all along the soles of his feet) and walked over to the boy's bed, crouching down, ignoring the slight burning in his hip. "There's no need to worry," he said gently. "We're just going to have a quick look, and then we'll be right back."

"Yeah," said Link in an equally gentle tone of voice, smiling at Tao. "We'll be back before you know it." Sheik wondered how long it had taken Link to realise that the boy was awake, although it seemed that he had adjusted to it surprisingly quick.

However, their assurances had no effect as Tao's eyes began to water. Panic struck, and Sheik gave Kaura a desperate look, a plea for her to do something. Sighing, she sat down in the chair again, glaring slightly at Sheik. Then she put on the biggest (and most frightening, given the knowledge of the general undertones of the physician's temper) smile he had ever seen and said:

"Tao, I promise they'll be back. They're still my patients, and if they're not back as quick as they say…well, let's just say that they've been burned before, and have learned not to test me." She smiled broader when the boy looked at her. "What do you say I teach you a new game to pass the time?"

Tao looked sceptical, but upon getting reassuring nods and smiles from both Sheik and Link, he nodded slowly. Kaura reached into her shirt and pulled out what seemed to be a deck of cards, only thicker and more…colourful?

"We'll be right back," said Link again as they stood up and headed for the exit. They emerged into the cold evening air, both shivering slightly as the wind blew right through their clothing. They quickly located the point at which the soldiers were converging and began walking, both still limping slightly. No one seemed to pay them heed as more and more soldiers ran by. "You could've told me Tao was up," said Link suddenly. "Been awake for long?"

"Half an hour at the most," said Sheik. "He woke up as I was reading, and we had a little feast. Or, he had a feast, I had an apple."

"And he doesn't talk?"

"No. But it's not on purpose," said Sheik. "And before you ask, he communicates through nods and shakes of his head. And hugs, apparently."

"Heh, that's cute," said Link, smiling. "I bet you two look adorable when you hug."

Sheik glanced at Link, wondering if the Hero's brain had actually woken up properly and was not on some sort of autopilot. When Link blinked at him, he only shrugged. The soldiers were gathering at the entrance to the canyon. On the ridges, they could see several riders armed with spears, creating profiles that could only belong to the desert women.

"Think they come in peace?" asked Link.

"I certainly hope so," said Sheik. "Though you heard what Aveil said last time. There is little reason for them to be hostile at this time, unless there's been some sort of coup…"

"Coup?" asked Link, his mouth obviously tasting the word.

"Rebellion, revolution, an unlawful takeover of the throne, Link," clarified Sheik, feeling an odd pang of déjà vu. What was that word again? Inculcate? Yes, that was the word Speil had struggled with understanding. "I don't think Ayla would have allowed something like that, though."

"No, especially not since someone already tried to after we left for the Spirit Temple," said Link. He looked at Sheik's hand. The Sheikah could almost feel the piercing stare. "Figured out what that thing is yet?" he asked.

"No," Sheik lied. "Not yet. The warlock and I have yet to cross paths."

"Oh. Can we find him afterwards? Maybe we can ask him now."

"Perhaps," said Sheik.

The small incline up to the canyon entrance proved difficult for both of them. Link because of his knee, and Sheik because of his hip. It was slow—and humiliating—going for them both, but they eventually reached the top. The large crowd of curious onlookers had formed a large half-circle around the entrance, and the two could only see the points of the spears carried by the Gerudo. They tried to break through, but it was impossible to find any gaps between the tightly crowded soldiers. After five failed attempts, Sheik noticed Link puffing up his chest in annoyance.

"Link?" he asked, having to shout over the talking men.

"I don't want to do this," the Hero said, balling up his fists, "but they leave me no choice."

For a moment, Sheik wondered if the Hero was about to start punching his way through the crowd. But then he suddenly grabbed hold of Sheik's arm and began to yell loudly: "Excuse me! Coming through!" Then he began to push through the crowed, dragging Sheik behind him. "Hero of Time, coming through! Outta my way, I'm gonna save Hyrule! Outta my way!" To Sheik's surprise, it worked, the soldiers begrudgingly (not all of them, though) moved out of Link's path, recognising him despite the lack of a tunic and his iconic sword and shield.

They finally pierced through the crowd and emerged from the half-circle. The Hyrulian soldiers had stopped a fair distance away from the Gerudo, their weapons half-drawn in case this was a pre-emptive attack, though Sheik doubted the six riders were able to pose any harm against thousands of trained soldiers. The Gerudo wore thick robes with veils and hoods, obscuring their faces. They had arranged themselves in a cube-like formation, two of them riding inside, protected by the four others.

One of the Gerudo in the middle noticed the two blonds and brought them to the attention of the other, who quickly looked at them. There was something familiar about the eyes that glinted just beyond the darkness of the hood. The two climbed off their mounts, and the soldiers tensed just a little. They slowly approached Link and Sheik, eyes locking with the boys', stopping not two paces away.

"We meet again, Hero of Time," said one of the women. Link and Sheik instantly recognised the voice, and smiled as she pulled the hood off her head and the veil was quickly removed.

"Ayla!" exclaimed Link, unable to stop himself from stepping forward and hugging the surprised warrior. After extracting herself from Link's iron hug, she looked at Sheik, smiling broadly. She was wearing green, Sheik noticed. He had only seen that colour on one other Gerudo.

"I am glad to see that you found your way home, Sheik-sama," she said, bowing. Sheik did the same.

"It is good to see you once again, Ayla," he said.

"Ayla…" said the other Gerudo, an impatient tint to her voice, though no less recognisable than the first.

"I apologise, Exalted Leader," said Ayla quickly and bowed her head. "May I introduce to you, Princess Aveil, Exalted Leader and Divine Priestess of the Gerudo!"

While Ayla was speaking, Aveil removed her hood and veil, revealing the princess to all the gathered. She had not changed much, it seemed, though she now wore the white clothing apparently reserved for the leader of the Gerudo, complete with white lipstick and eye shadow. She displayed the brightest smile Sheik had ever seen, and he heard several weapons (and probably jaws) dropping in shock at the Exalted Leader's beauty.

"Hero of Time, Sheik-sama," she said, nodding to them.

"Your Highness," Link and Sheik said in unison.

Aveil was about to speak, but a loud trumpet suddenly sounded over the camp, and a loud commotion started in the half-circle as people parted in order to make way for someone. Princess Zelda emerged from the soldiers, clad in her (all things considered) best armour, her hair down and spilling over her shoulders. She looked just as beautiful as Aveil, though in a different way. Zelda was grinning widely, as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. She didn't seem to notice Link or Sheik, though the Sheikah made sure to keep his right hand out of view.

Ayla and Aveil immediately stiffened, as if standing to attention. They both then fell to their knees, quickly followed by the other Gerudo as they dismounted.

"Princess Zelda, I apologise for barging in at this time of night, but your riders arrived earlier this morning, and I felt it best not to waste any more time," said Aveil. She looked up at Zelda, a most serious expression on her face. "There is much we need to discuss."

Zelda's smile died slightly, though she tried to keep it up. "Princess Aveil, please stand up. I do not feel comfortable when someone kneels to me. You too," she added to Ayla and the others when they did not rise to their feet along with their princess. "I believe you are right, Princess Aveil, and we do indeed have many matters to discuss. If you will follow me to my tent, please," she said.

"One request," said Aveil. "We have been riding non-stop since early today, and my girls are hungry and thirsty. May they impose upon your hospitality?"

"Certainly," said Zelda, nodding and smiling. "I shall have some food and drink brought to my tent, and—"

"It is not proper for regular soldiers to join a princess in her tent," said Aveil reproachfully. "They will gladly eat where your own men do."

"Are you sure?" asked Zelda. "It is certainly no trouble…"

"They would not have it any other way," said Aveil, nodding to her women. "Am I right, girls?"

"Yes, Exalted Leader!" the four Gerudo shouted in unison. They had still not revealed themselves to the gathered soldiers, but the sheer discipline in their movements and speech was not to be mistaken.

"Well, then," said Zelda, surprised by the shouting. She pointed at the closest royal guard, a completely bald man. "Sindar will take them to the kitchens and rouse the chefs immediately. Now, follow me, please," she said, offering her hand in friendship to Aveil, who took with a smile. Just as they were about to leave, however, Zelda noticed Link and Sheik standing there, and her brow furrowed, as if annoyed. "What are you two doing out of bed?" she asked. "You're still injured!"

"We wanted to see what was happening," said Link innocently. "They're our friends too, you know."

 _Good show, Link. That was not juvenile at_ all _,_ thought Sheik, shaking his head.

"Well, you two will march straight back to the sick tent and go back to sleep. That is an order from me, your princess." She nodded, as if reasserting herself, and smiled at Aveil and Ayla. "Now, please follow me." As they disappeared, the crowed dispersed, many of the soldiers talking excitedly amongst themselves about the Gerudo, many of them undoubtedly following Sindar—who Sheik remembered as Zelda's unfortunate hair skinning-victim—and the women to the kitchens.

Link stared after Zelda, Aveil and Ayla, who quickly disappeared in the direction of the middle of the camp. "Did we just get ordered?" he asked.

"I believe we did," said Sheik. "And I do believe Zelda would be quite irate were we not to follow her orders."

Link turned his head to look at Sheik, giving the Sheikah a crooked grin. "Since when did we follow orders, eh?" he asked.

"You know, I cannot for the life of me remember," said Sheik, grinning back. "In fact, I cannot even remember what Zelda told us to do just now."

"Shall we, then?" asked Link, bowing to Sheik. "After you, Master Sheikah."

"Thank you ever so much, Hero of Time," said Sheik. Together, they followed the two princesses.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 103**

* * *

Apparently, the camp had split into three regarding the arrival of the Gerudo. One part, as Sheik had predicted, immediately took an interest in the desert thieves, surrounding them and the kitchens as they ate, bombarding them with questions regarding tactics, fighting styles and dating chances, fascinated by the dark-skinned women. Another part remained distrustful, returning to their posts or tents, but remained awake and armed, ready to spring into action if the Gerudo were revealed to have planned some kind of ambush or attack. Sheik felt like scoffing at them as they passed the barracks tents. And finally, there was the group that simply could not, in their words, give a shit and went back to sleep. The first group, unsurprisingly, consisted mostly of the youngest men in the army, wide-eyed and naïve youths who only thought with the wrong heads. The Gerudo seemed to enjoy the attention, however, and smiled, laughed and winked seductively at the soldiers while they answered their questions.

There was something…off about them, though, Sheik noticed, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. They seemed…tired. Stretched, perhaps. The soldiers all parted way in front of them as the two followed the direction of Zelda's tent. Soon, there were few signs of any soldiers save for the mentioned distrustful ones keeping vigil outside their tents. They kept giving Sheik and Link weird looks, apparently having trouble recognising them, probably wondering what two teenagers were doing wandering around the camp, probably forgetting the fact that over half of the remaining Hylian fighting force had yet to reach twenty years of age as well.

Zelda's tent was as grand as ever, though even more heavily guarded than the last time either of them had seen it. Not only had sentry posts been set up along the street at no less than three junctions, but a fence of sorts, built from any spare bit of wood that could be found by the looks of it, had been erected around a good-sized area surrounding the princess' abode. The three sentry posts gave way to them immediately upon recognising Link, but the final, most secure of the gates proved a little more trouble. The new royal guards seemed to take their jobs much more seriously than the previous, and eyed the approaching blonds with suspicion in their eyes.

"Halt!" one of them shouted. "Who goes there?"

"The Hero of Time and Princess Zelda's bodyguard," said Link before Sheik could even open his mouth. "We'd like to come in, please."

 _So_ now _it fits him to use his title,_ thought Sheik. He said nothing, however, only steeling his gaze at the guards, who were now screwing up their faces in concentration, undoubtedly trying to see any glimmers of heroism in either of their—honestly—tired and bedraggled appearances. These guards seemed quite stupider than Zelda's usual picks for her personal guards, but then Sheik noticed that none of them were wearing the royal insignias. Why were regular—and quite idiot-looking—soldiers manning the final guard post?

"You don't look like the Hero of Time," said one of the guards, his thick brow practically hanging over his eyes. "The Hero of Time is bigger."

"And he's got a sword," said another.

"And he can breathe fire," said a third one. The first two paused, looking at the third with questioning glances. The third soldier looked embarrassed. "That's what me grams told me, any way…"

"Yeah, well, I can create fire with a small crystal, and my sword's back in the sick tent, but I _am_ the Hero of Time," said Link patiently, smiling broadly. "I may look a bit crappy, but anyone with three broken fingers, a busted nose and a cranky knee does that, right?"

"I don't believe you," said the first guard. "The Hero of Time ain't a kid."

"And he breathes fire," said the third one again, weakly.

"And if you're the princess' bodyguard," said the second one, directing his gaze to Sheik, "how come you're not in there with her right now? And he's a damn Sheikah."

Sheik sighed, noticing that Link had suddenly tensed up beside him. He then stepped forward, staring right into the guard's eyes, glaring. "And what exactly do you think I am?" he asked icily. "Look at my eyes, you blithering fool!"

The guard's eyes widened, and then narrowed as he held a torch up. "Bah, just a trick o' the light," he said finally, turning to his fellow guards. "They're lyin' little buggers."

"Come back when ya grow up!" said the first guard, the second and third joining him for a laugh.

Sheik felt his fists ball up, and he took a step forward, felt the Hero's hand on his shoulder.

"Sheik, don't," Link said.

It was already too late. Sheik had seen his opening, and he tore away from Link's grip as the nearest soldier turned around, moving to join his friends around a fire. Sheik's foot found its way into the back of his knee, making him fall forward. The soldier had little time to realise what had just happened before Sheik's arm came round his neck, pulling him backwards and cutting off his air supply. Sheik gritted his teeth, clenching the muscles in his arm to keep the soldier in place, knowing that just a small jerk in either direction would snap the man's neck like a toothpick. The soldier gasped.

The other guards had drawn their swords and were approaching them. Link quickly placed himself between Sheik and the other guards.

"I am Sheik of the Sheikah, and I demand to be allowed to see the person who I have sworn allegiance to," said Sheik slowly. "Or I will break this one's neck."

"Sheik, what are you doing?" asked Link, looking back and forth between him and the armed guards. "What's happening?"

"They are denying us entrance," said Sheik simply. "I am merely asserting my position as Zelda's bodyguard."

"By threatening to kill someone who's only doing their job?" asked Link. He was sweating nervously, Sheik noticed.

 _Whatever for?_ Sheik wondered. The man he had pinned tried to get Sheik to release him by smacking his mailed fists into his arm, but he merely ignored it, tightening his hold. _How dare these…these brutes to block our way?_

"Eh…" said Link, eyeing the other guards nervously. "This is all a _big_ misunderstanding," he tried feebly.

"If you don't get your mate there to release 'im, we'll carve the both of you," said the first guard.

"Eh…" said Link again. Then he realised where they were, and turned to Zelda's tent. "Zelda!" he shouted. "Help!" When nothing happened, he repeated the shout over and over again.

"Oi, shut up!" said the guard, moving to kick Link in the chest. He was interrupted, however, by a loud shout from the tent.

"What's going on here?" asked Zelda, appearing in the doorway, a furious look on her face. She surveyed the situation, glaring particularly at the drawn swords. "You two, put away your weapons!" she said. The guards did so. "Sheik, stop choking that man!"

Sheik obediently let go. The guard he had pinned quickly crawled away from him, cursing and gasping.

"Right, what happened just now?" asked the princess.

"Your Highness, these two runts tried sneaking into—"began the first guard.

"Runts?" asked Zelda. "Runts? These two are probably the two most important people in the entire Remnant, soldier! You nearly kicked the Hero of Time!" She pointed at Link, who had begun to open his mouth, silencing him with one gesture. "I distinctly remember telling you to get back to bed! And Sheik, why were you attacking Hylian soldiers?"

"He did not believe us when we told them who we were, and they dismissed us like we were no-one," said Sheik. "And…I lost my temper," he admitted seconds later, unable to stand the piercing stare of the princess.

Zelda sighed heavily, looking at the ground for a few seconds.

"Did we miss something?" asked Ayla, appearing in the doorway behind Zelda. She spotted Link and Sheik. "Weren't you supposed to go back to bed?" she asked.

"Yes, they were," said Zelda.

"Come on," said Link. "You can't expect us to just go back to bed when Ayla and Aveil are here! They're our friends!"

The guards looked on in an embarrassed silence as both sides stared at each other, Zelda in disbelief and Link and Sheik in passive rebelliousness. Carefully, slowly, they disengaged from the area and retreated to the other side of the small compound-like area in front of the princess' tent.

Zelda tried to say something, but didn't seem to be able to come up with anything. Then she groaned and looked at Ayla, who only smiled helplessly. "Fine, you can come in. But only if you promise to go back to bed afterwards!"

"Sure thing," said Link, beaming.

"That would be quite agreeable," said Sheik.

"But Sheik," Zelda said as they headed inside, "if you do something like that to one of my guards again, I'll shave your head bald!"

* * *

Once again a table had been set up in the largest room in the tent. Aveil and Ayla sat on one side and Zelda, Link and Sheik on the other. Unlike the other meetings Sheik had attended, there was no tense atmosphere here. In fact, there seemed to be quite a bit of relief hanging about, most of it coming from Zelda. He studied the Gerudo closely, noticing that both of them looked somewhat tired, their fatigue quite obvious in a well-lighted environment. And they seemed thinner as well, bones poking out more visibly than usual. Their clothes were far more conservative than anything they had worn back at the fortress. Sheik liked to think that it was because they were travelling, but he also knew how well the desert thieves enjoyed exposing themselves, especially to possible male suitors...

"Let me start first by once again apologising for the lateness of our reply," said Aveil, reaching into her robe. She pulled out a faded, rolled up piece of parchment and passed it to Zelda, who eagerly unfurled it, reading it in a matter of seconds. "You will find my signature there," continued Aveil, "which ratifies the treaty, sealing a tentative friendship between our two nations. I have already ordered our standing army to march. They should be here in a matter of days."

Zelda's smile knew no bounds, it seemed, only widening further and further as she stared at the elegant signature that spelled out Aveil's name as well as her ridiculously long title. 'Princess' was not adequate to the Gerudo, apparently. Zelda put the parchment down, her eyes glittering with…tears?

"It is," she said, voice almost hitching, "a great relief to know that we can count on your support."

Aveil blinked, surprised at the reaction from her Hylian ally. The older woman then smiled kindly. "Again, this message should probably have reached you weeks ago, but unfortunately, we do not possess any carrier pigeons or similar."

"What about Anaruteir?" asked Zelda. "You could have sent the reply with her."

Aveil looked at Ayla with a questioning glance, and the warrior leaned forward, clearing her throat. She was not wearing any eye shadow, and Sheik could see dark bags under her eyes. Had something happened at the fortress? "Anaruteir…" said Ayla slowly, "was the name of the noble eagle that carried the message, correct?" she asked.

"Yes," said Zelda, nodding, her body tensing up. "Where is she? I thought she would have been back by now…"

Sheik and Link gave each other a glance, wondering if Zelda had overseen the past tense concerning Anaruteir on purpose or by accident. Aveil gave them the same look, and all three shared a sudden feeling of dread.

"Anaruteir the eagle is, I'm afraid, dead," said Ayla apologetically. "It appears that, while flying over the Hyrule plains, she was hit with a poison dart by one of Ganondorf's—"she spat the name"—archers. She soldiered on, but succumbed to the poison well on her way into the valley. We did not discover her remains until one of our scouts happened upon them during a routine patrol. She brought the treaty to us, and the Exalted Leader—"

"Ayla, we're in private now. You don't need to refer to me by anything other than my name," interrupted Aveil with a kind smile to her subordinate.

Ayla nodded, and then continued: "Aveil signed it immediately. However, we've had some…trouble in the past weeks, and we have not been able to spare a single warrior to dispatch with the treaty. We have given Anaruteir a proper burial, honouring her for making sure the treaty remained out of enemy hands."

Zelda nodded quietly.

"Problems?" asked Link. "Has there been another rebellion?"

"No, there hasn't. In fact, I believe there isn't a single Gerudo that would not lay their life down for Aveil," said Ayla. "No, the problem we've had has been related to something else…something you two are already quite familiar with, I believe."

Sheik blinked. "What do you mean?" he asked. It was hard, trying to seem completely normal while hiding his hand under the table. He wondered when he should tell Zelda about the Delta Force…

"We've had somewhat of a…infestation in the fortress," said Aveil. "By creatures we thought were long extinct."

"Wyrms?" asked Sheik, remembering the horrible creature that had attempted to eat him out in the desert some time ago. So much had happened since then that it seemed that years had passed since that horrible event. That mouth, with all the staring, blind eyes…

"Indeed," said Aveil. "Not two days after you left, the first one breached the grand hall while we were eating. They tore through two tables before we realised what was happening. We managed to fight them off, and we thought that was it."

"Never before has a Wyrm been able to find its way through the hard rock under the mountains to our fortress," continued Ayla. "But an entire colony had burrowed in at strategic points. We were chased out of our own home by the Wyrms, and we have been hunting and killing them ever since. We believe we managed to kill the queen a week ago, since they stopped coming." She clenched her jaw. "I just _know_ Ganondorf is behind this!"

"He has resurrected an entire colony of Wyrms?" asked Zelda. "But that means there could be hundreds of them in the desert now."

"How is that possible?" asked Link. "I mean…they were practically extinct, but a single colony has been brought back, but they've gotten to the hundred numbers already?"

"Wyrms procreate rapidly," said Aveil. "Which is why it was so hard to hunt them down in the first place. Only with the help of Sheik-sama's ancestors were we able to finally kill them all…but now they're back, and the valley is no longer safe if the Wyrms are able to burrow through stone."

"So…" said Zelda slowly. "We are at danger, even now?"

"No, we believe it takes them quite a while to burrow through stone, and it would take them months to reach this far out of the valley," said Ayla. "But the immediate area around the fortress has been declared a danger zone."

Silence. Zelda looked from Ayla to Aveil and back again, and Sheik could see a question on her lips. "Tell me," she said, "how long has it been since you ate a proper meal?"

The Gerudo looked at each other, both shrugging. "A couple of weeks," Ayla finally said. "Our food stores were destroyed by the Wyrms. We've been able to scrape by on the little we managed to save, but even that is running low."

"How many people have you lost to the Wyrms?" asked Sheik suddenly.

"Sheik!" Zelda exclaimed. "What kind of question is that?"

"About seventy in the initial attack," said Ayla. "Several hundred in the subsequent hunts." Aveil nodded, confirming the numbers. "The Wyrms are sneaky bastards, as you Hylians say, and most of us have forgotten how to hunt them and not fall into their traps."

"Which leaves how many?" continued Sheik.

"Well, counting non-combatants, wounded and children," said Aveil, counting mentally. "About two thousand give or take a few dozen."

"Without them, though, we are down to five hundred girls ready and eager to take the fight to Ganondorf," said Ayla. "But trust me; those girls are some of the fiercest and skilled fighters in the entire world. I have trained many of them."

Zelda was staring at Sheik with a shocked expression, probably wondering how he could ask such questions of their newfound allies. He looked at her, raising an eyebrow. _What? We need to know if they are willing to fight with us considering their weakened state._ He then looked at Ayla. "I certainly believe you if say they are skilled. I still remember that fight we had the first time we met."

"Ah, the good old days," said Ayla, grinning.

"Excuse me for a second," said Zelda politely, rising from her chair. The others rose as well, as proper etiquette demanded, even Link. "I just need to get something," Zelda explained and walked out of the room. Sheik didn't miss the small tear that streaked down her cheek as she left.

"Did we say something wrong?" asked Aveil.

"No," said Sheik. "It's just…she loved Anaruteir very much, and I think she…empathises with your losses."

"Poor girl," said Aveil, smiling sadly. "How old is she?"

"Eighteen," said Sheik, knowing that she and Link were probably around the exact same age.

Ayla sniffed. "Far too young to be a ruler in such troubled times," she said, despite the fact that Aveil couldn't have been much older. When an awkward silence descended upon them, she took matters into her own hands. "So, how have you two been?" she asked. "Consummated your relationship yet?"

"Ayla!" exclaimed Aveil.

"What?" asked the warrior. "It's a valid question. They've been together for a long time!"

"Consummate…?" asked Link slowly.

"We haven't had the time," said Sheik quickly, trying to hide his blush by pretending to scratch his nose, hoping to the Goddesses that Link didn't know what the word meant. "We have been on the move constantly lately."

"Speaking of moving," said Ayla, realising that her choice for a topic of conversation had been sunk, "what happened at the Spirit Temple? Where did you go? And what happened to your hair? And your eye, for that matter?"

"Ayla!"

"What? I'm curious!"

* * *

"Wow, I have never heard of this 'Twilight' place before," said Ayla.

"Neither had I," said Sheik. "But it's there. And I made two good friends there."

"But this…Phantom Ganondorf," said Aveil. "Where did it come from? And how did it find the realm of Twilight?"

"Ganondorf created it to corrupt the Forest Temple," said Link. "I defeated it, and Ganondorf banished it to the…eh, the void between the dimensions, I think it was."

"I believe the Evil King miscalculated and sent it to Twilight instead," said Sheik. "But it's gone now…and it cost me an eye."

"What do you mean?" asked Ayla. "Your eye's still there."

"Yes, but it does not function," said Sheik. He leaned across the table, giving the Gerudo a good look of the white slit in his eye. "I am completely blind in it."

"Oh, Sheik-sama…" said Aveil. "I am sorry."

"Don't be," said Sheik, smiling slightly. "I can still fight, I only have to be more careful on my left flank, check it more often."

"What happened after you came back?" asked Ayla. "Was the shadow still with you?"

"No, he disappeared when we arrived in the Lost Woods," said Sheik. "And I did not see him again for quite some time…"

"Until he tried to kill Sheik in the temple," said Link sourly. "But we got back at him, though…"

"Wait, I thought the shadow _liked_ Sheik," said Ayla. "What happened?"

"There were…complications," said Sheik simply. "But that does not matter. He is dead now."

"And won't be coming back," said Link.

"Well, it is good to know that you are no longer playing host to this shadow," said Aveil, smiling. "You are just like I thought, Sheik-sama. Invincible."

"Just about," said Link, grinning.

"Yes," said Sheik.

"I do hope your princess is well," said the Gerudo leader. "She has been gone for quite a while…"

No sooner had she said that, Zelda came back into the room, smiling brightly. It was a distinct difference from the princess that had _left_ the room. "I am sorry I am late, but I had to go for an errand to the kitchens."

Several of Zelda's aides and servants came in, carrying trays and plates. Quickly, they set the table, served up goblets of wine (or water, depending on the wishes) and a large, steaming pot of porridge.

"I couldn't bear going another minute without seeing you eat something," explained Zelda. "I'm afraid all we had that was hot at the moment was porridge, but—"

"Thank you, Princess Zelda," said Aveil, nodding. "I believe I speak for my currently gorging bodyguard as well when I express my sincere gratitude for your hospitality." She glanced sideways at Ayla, who was already working on her second portion. "She has been giving her rations to others she believed needed it more."

"Well, there's plenty more where that came from," said Zelda happily. She began to ladle a portion for herself, joined by Link and Sheik soon after. For a few minutes, the only sounds that could be heard were those of eating. The Gerudo wolfed it down, displaying just how serious the Wyrm attack had been. They had been starving.

* * *

"On the behalf of all Gerudo, we thank you for your hospitality," said Aveil. She climbed into the saddle of her horse. "I will return to my people and accompany them on their way here."

"We will make room for them in the meantime," said Zelda. She extended a hand, and Aveil took it, shaking it. As they let go, Sheik couldn't help but notice a certain…reluctance on Zelda's part. Either that or he was getting tired. The sun was beginning to rise, the sky gradually growing brighter and brighter, starting to take on a light shade of pink. They had spent the remainder of the night talking about the future cooperation, and it had stretched on and on. Link had almost fallen asleep.

Ayla blew them kisses as they rode off, soon disappearing behind the cliffs. Zelda turned around, smiling at Link and Sheik. "Well, I suppose that meeting couldn't have gone better."

"It did indeed go quite well," agreed Sheik. "But I did not realise the possibility that Ganondorf would turn on his own people without reason. Had he known of the treaty, yes, but he didn't."

"Well, he _is_ evil," said Link.

"Yes, but he is also intelligent, frighteningly so," said Zelda. "Perhaps he simply thought it best to remove any possible competition for his total dominion of Hyrule."

"Either way, if there was any doubt before, we can now count on the Gerudo's aid against him," said Sheik.

"Indeed," said Zelda. Then her face went serious. "Now, I have held my part of the bargain. You two march straight to bed!"

"Yes, Zelda," said Sheik.

"Ah-ah!"

"Zelly…"

* * *

They turned the corner of the sick tent, where a light was still burning brightly within. Just as they went to enter, Sheik stopped, remembering something. Link paused.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"There's someone I need to see," said Sheik. He patted Link on the shoulder. "It won't take long. Why don't you go inside?"

Link opened his mouth to—surely—protest, but stopped himself, and nodded. "Don't take too long, yeah?" he said, going inside. Sheik heard the voice of Kaura greet him, and then Link "Oof"-ed as something collided with him, probably Tao. Shaking his head, Sheik continued down the street. He could have sworn he had heard some familiar sounds that way. As he walked, he noticed that several soldiers were getting up, surely to be ready for the day's duties. They gave him a mixture of glances as he passed by, some of them recognising him, some of them don't. Those who did either smiled politely and nodded or scowled. Sheik smiled and nodded back to the first, but simply ignored the others. There were some things that would never change, he knew.

He recognised the small tent at the very end of the street, and smiled. He poked his head inside, knocking on a pole. A man who had been standing with his back to the entrance quickly turned around, revealing his impossibly large beard, which covered most of his face. He was large, this man. His eyes wrinkled when he saw whohad knocked.

"Ah, Sheik, good to see you again," he said and came forward, shaking Sheik's hand.

"And you, Hodges," said Sheik, smiling as well. "I think you know why I have come."

"Of course, of course," said Hodges, turning around. The walls of the tent were lined with several cages of different sizes, its occupants twittering or cawing within. The falconer picked up a cage that was slightly more decorated than the others, reaching inside. "She has been rather impatient with getting back on her wings, but I want to give her a few more days to recover." He held out the falcon. Sheik extended his arm, and Kaiza happily perched herself on it.

Sheik smiled, stroking her head. "I was worried about you, girl."

* * *

When he stepped back into the sick tent, he was greeted by the sight of Tao and Kaura playing some sort of game with the coloured cards, and Link snoring loudly on his bed. Kaura noticed him and nodded.

"I'm _this_ close to getting a big cork and stuffing it down his throat," she said. "How can you stand sleeping close to this one?"

"It's not a habit he's had before," said Sheik.

Tao turned around, noticed Sheik, and smiled broadly. He literally jumped out of the bed and threw himself at Sheik, wrapping his arms around the Sheikah in an iron hug.

"He did the same with the Hero, who then proceeded to fall asleep," said Kaura, gathering the cards together and packing them away into her pocket. "He refused to go back to sleep until you two returned."

"Well, we're back now, and it's time for little boys to go to sleep," said Sheik, lifting Tao's alarmingly light form and carried him back to his bed, tucking him in. The boy was already asleep by the time Sheik had pulled the blanket over him, leaving the Sheikah blinking and wondering how tired Tao had actually been. As Kaura blew out the lamp, he was already burrowing into his own bed, yawning.

"If any of you dare wake me up again tonight, I will skin you alive," Kaura warned as she disappeared into the backroom.

"No problem," muttered Sheik.

Sometime during the remainder of the night, he vaguely felt something small crawl into his bed and fall asleep next to him.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 104**

* * *

Of all the things he didn't expect to hear as he woke up, it was giggling. Muffled giggling, at that. Nor did he expect to find Tao curled up next to him, sleeping. He vaguely remembered Tao suddenly appearing in his bed, but he had thought that was a dream. He opened his eyes, and saw the source of the giggles. Link was sitting in a chair next to the bed, staring intently at them, a hand held over his mouth as he tried to suppress the sounds. He noticed that Sheik had woken up, and waved.

"Morning, sleepyhead," he said, grinning.

"You are far too lazy to be able to use that word to describe _anyone_ ," said Sheik quietly, not wanting to wake up the boy next to him. He managed to free his arm from the boy's strong grip and sat up. "What time is it?"

"Eight or nine in the morning," said Link. "We haven't slept for long." He adjusted his position in the chair. Sheik saw that he had removed the bandages around his fingers now, the only indication of any traumatising procedure being a slightly raised, pink area on his right hand. "I woke up first too, for once," he added. "And then I saw you two, and it was just too adorable for words."

Sheik looked at Tao. The boy shivered slightly from the lack of a blanket. Sheik quickly covered him up, his head barely poking out from underneath. "This was quite…unexpected," he said.

"Why?" asked Link. "He likes us. I'd figure it's natural he wants to be close to us."

"Perhaps, but I expected him to crawl into _your_ bed rather than mine," said Sheik. "You're the one who found him, after all, and comforted him when he needed it the most."

"Yeah, but you're the one who was there when he woke up and was hungry," countered Link. " _You're_ the one who fed him and stuff…"

Sheik was about to retort, but then realised something, and hung his head, sighing. "Are we actually arguing about which one of us he likes the most?" he asked quietly.

"Seems like it," said Link, beaming. "I'm just glad to see you adjusting well to him." He held up a finger, cutting off Sheik before he could speak. "And don't you try and deny the fact that you don't work well with other people than Zelda and me…and maybe Kaura."

"Fine, I concede to that," said Sheik, swinging his legs out of bed, planting his feet in the sandals Kaura had given him during the night. Standing up, he surveyed the sick tent. A new arrival laid in the bed next to Link's, thick bandages wrapped around his head. He was Hylian, by the looks of his general facial structure. "What happened to that one?" he asked.

"Kicked in the head by a horse," said Link. "Sure hope it wasn't Epona or Maladict," he added.

"If it were either of them, then he deserved it, most likely," said Sheik unsympathetically. He stretched, feeling a few joints popping slightly into place. His hip felt fine now, he noticed. He pulled the hem of his pants down slightly to survey the area. There was a slightly green discolouration of the skin, but it looked fine otherwise. "Hm, looks like I'm fully healed. How about you?" he asked Link

The Hero grinned and stood up, showing him that he was in no way restricted by any injuries any longer. "Knee's fine and dandy, my back isn't full of cuts and my fingers are working perfectly!" To demonstrate, he waggled them in Sheik's face, eliciting another sigh from the Sheikah.

"Where's Kaura?" Sheik asked, noticing the distinct absence of the easily annoyed physician.

"Getting breakfast," said Link. "She's worked out some sort of deal with the kitchens, she said. They agreed to keep at least one chef on duty at all times as well as have a ready supply of food for the wounded and sick."

"How did she manage that?" asked Sheik. They had been quite lucky, receiving such a large ration before they left for the strange temple in the mountains, he knew, and they didn't even eat most of it. And now that the Gerudo were coming, surely there would be difficulty getting more food than what was rationed to you…

"The regular way, of course," said Link. "Acid to the—"

"Yes, yes, that's all I need to hear, thank you," said Sheik, shuddering. _Remind me to never, ever, cross that woman again,_ he thought. Someone came in through the door. _Speak of the devil…_

"Ah, good morning, lads," said the physician, unusually chipper. She was wheeling a small trolley, on which several trays with bowls stood steaming. She came right up to Sheik and Link, studying them closely. "And how are we feeling today?" she asked sweetly.

"Fine, just fine," said Sheik, wondering what was going on. "Completely healed, I think."

"Yeah, yeah, me too," said Link. The Hero seemed to notice that something was off this morning as well. "Feel better than I've done in a long time."

"Good," said Kaura. She gestured to the trays on the trolley. "Finally got the bastards at the kitchens to make some porridge for us. Hungry?"

Sheik felt his stomach grumble in response and took a tray. He had never realised how much he appreciate the porridge, despite how boring it was, until now. It was the perfect hunger food, really. He ate a spoonful of the porridge, relishing in the feeling of his hunger being stilled.

"Wake up Tao, will you?" Kaura asked, leaving the trolley by the beds and heading over to her desk, rummaging around in the drawers. "I think the little tyke is quite hungry."

Link gave Sheik possibly the most triumphant look over his bowl of porridge from his bed. Sheik glared back at him and placed his tray on Tao's bed. He hesitated. How best to wake up the sleeping boy without upsetting him? He settled for shaking him slightly, which elicited nothing from the boy except an annoyed shrug and further burrowing into the blanket. Sheik gave Link a pleading look, but the Hero only shook his head and continued eating, apparently enjoying this morning's entertainment very much. Sheik tried shaking Tao again, a bit more roughly this time. Still no response.

Finally, he settled on poking Tao in the arm while asking: "Are you going to sleep all day?"

At last, Tao's eyes fluttered open widely, a moment's panic overtaking him as he tried to get away from Sheik. The Sheikah thought quickly and grabbed Tao's arm before it was out of reach, holding the boy back. Again, the boy surprised Sheik with his strength, almost ripping his hand right out of his grip.

"Hey, it's okay, it's okay, you're still safe," he tried saying. His voice must have done something, for Tao stilled immediately, slowly turning around to look at him. Then Tao at least had the decency to look embarrassed, blushing. "Good morning," Sheik said, smiling sadly. Not even the moment of awakening could Tao have in peace? Tao smiled back, though.

"Morning, Tao," said Link from his bed. "Sleep well?"

Tao nodded.

"I can imagine that," said Link, grinning. "Sheik's great to curl up next to when you're sleepy."

Tao nodded again, blushing slightly as well. Sheik only shook his head in Link's direction and then pointed to the loaded trolley.

"Breakfast is here. Are you hungry?" At the boy's frantic nodding, he reached over and pulled out a tray, placing it in front of him on the bed. "Porridge might be somewhat boring, but it's—oh."

By the time Sheik realised that his words were falling on temporarily deaf ears, Tao was already halfway through his portion. Amused, he went back to his own food. The portion was quite large, and he wondered if Kaura hadn't pulled out her scalpel as well as her beaker of acid for it. By the time _he_ was halfway through his portion, he was more than full. He looked back at Tao, who was licking his bowl, trying to get the remaining sludgy bits. Without a word, Sheik handed him his bowl, nodding. Tao happily took it, practically inhaling the remainder of Sheik's portion.

"I knew Kaura said he was malnourished and would be hungry," he said to Link. "But this is ridiculous."

"Can't blame him, though," said Link. He was actually able to finish his portion and placed the bowl back on the trolley along with his tray. "By the way," he said, "how much did _you_ eat?" He looked at Sheik, studying him closely.

"Half a bowl," said Sheik, wondering what the Hero was up to now.

"Remember what I said back in the Shadow Temple?" asked Link.

"Which time?" asked Sheik.

"The first time," answered Link. "Right after we screwed up the fan puzzle the first time."

Sheik recalled being blown about by the large fans, but any comments made by Link afterward had slipped from his mind. "No, I don't remember."

"I said you had to eat more. You're practically just skin and bones," said Link. "Hell, you're almost as thin as Tao!"

Tao looked up at the mention of his name, saw that the conversation was not focused on him, and continued eating.

Sheik didn't say anything to that. Really, he didn't understand what Link was talking about. He may not have been as large or imposing as the Hero, but he was pretty sure he didn't look any thinner than most others his age. "I have no comment to that," he finally said.

"Right, breakfast time!" exclaimed Kaura as she slammed her drawers shut, her fingers clutched around a truly sacred relic (to her, at least), a cigarette. She lit it with a match as she inspected the man with the head injury, tried waking him up, failed and pulled out a tray of her own. She unceremoniously flopped down on Tao's bed and started eating, taking a moment to wave to the little boy. Sheik and Link simply stared in mixed wonder and horror as the physician managed to eat and smoke at the same time.

"Eh," said Link, "why so happy?" he asked, trying to lift the strange silence.

"Hm?" asked Kaura, swallowing a huge mouthful of porridge while blowing out enough smoke to fill a chimney at the same time. "Me? Happy?"

"I'd say you're possibly…chipper," said Sheik.

"Oh, chipper!" said Kaura, as if she had not understood the word 'happy'. "I finally got to punch the warlock today," she announced, grinning. "He snuck up on me while I was on my way to the kitchens, and I got him with a quick one-two-combo."

"You punched an old man?" asked Link horrified.

"He certainly doesn't look like one," said Kaura. "Besides, he's two centuries old. I'm pretty sure he's gotten used to a fist to the face every now and then. Maybe he even likes it."

"Wouldn't surprise me," said Sheik. "He does strike me as a man eager for punishment of any kind."

They heard a hollow **plunk** behind them. Tao had finished Sheik's portion and finally looked somewhat full, smiling happily at them all. It was impossible not to smile right back.

"He looks rather good with your hat on, Hero," said Kaura.

"Yeah, well, he can keep it," said Link. "I left it behind in the Shadow Temple, and I guess it was on a first come first serve basis by the time he found it. Besides, I don't think Sheik minds me being hatless."

"Not at all," said Sheik.

* * *

A few hours passed by. The time was spent mostly by finally having the opportunity for a wash—which was sorely needed by all three of them—and just shooting the breeze. Kaura refused to discharge Link and Sheik before noon, as was apparently the norm in Termina when it came to hospital visits. Tao, however, was still dangerously malnourished and weak, and was probably going to have to stay in the tent for a while longer.

Kaura, still unusually—and frighteningly—happy, taught Link and Sheik the card game she had played with Tao during the night. There were only a few rules, and it only came down to collecting colours and numbers. She had been slightly worried about it being too complicated for Tao to understand, but the boy had taken to it very quickly. Sheik had a firm grasp on the rules after a few rounds. Link, on the other hand…well, he and numbers did not go hand in hand, it seemed.

The four were engrossed in an interesting standoff. Sheik, Kaura and Tao all had combinations of cards that neutralised the others'. Only Link had yet to show his cards, and the Hero was busy scratching the back of his neck in confusion.

"I can't make heads or tails of it," he admitted embarrassed. He looked at Tao. "Wanna show me if I can actually compete with these?" he asked, gesturing to his cards. Tao nodded and examined his cards. Then a sour expression came to the boy's face and he showed Kaura and Sheik Link's cards. He had the best hand in the entire game and beat them all.

"No wonder the kid got pissed," said Kaura as Link seemed to do a sitting victory dance, wriggling around in his chair like a spastic fish on land. She gathered the cards and began to shuffle them. "Another round, anyone?" she asked.

"I'm done," said Sheik. "It's impossible to win this game if Tao's involved."

"Yeah, you keep winning every game," said Link, poking the boy in the shoulder.

Tao only grinned in return.

* * *

It was a warm day. Even the strange ventilation system inside the sick tent was struggling to keep it cool. The occupants didn't even _want_ to think about how hot it must have been outside. Link was currently telling Tao about his and Sheik's adventures, as he called them, currently working on the part with the trek through the desert.

The tent flaps suddenly parted as Zelda came marching in, flanked by a man carrying two bundles of something wrapped in paper. The princess looked positively radiant today, though she too was obviously suffering in the heat as her face was shining with sweat. She sighed in relief when she entered the cooler air. "Ah, you're awake," she said. "Good."

"Good morning, princess," said Kaura from her desk. She was writing some sort of report, or something similar.

"Good morning, Kaura, or good afternoon is more appropriate, I suppose," replied Zelda. She spotted Link on the bed with Tao, and then did something Sheik had never expected of her. She squealed. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Tao was sitting in Link's lap or the way the Hero's cap was firmly sitting upon the boy's head.

Link, also surprised by the high-pitched sound, took a few seconds to readjust his grimace into a smile and pointed at her. "That's Princess Zelda," he explained to Tao. "The one I told you about, remember?" Tao nodded. "Yeah, she's our boss." He let Tao climb off him and stood up. "Zelda, I'd like you to meet Tao."

Zelda crouched down to be face to face with the boy. "Hi, Tao," she said. "I'm Zelda, but you can call me Zelly if you want."

"He cannot speak," said Sheik, rising from his own bed. All this sitting around was driving him insane, especially because he knew that Kaura was refusing to discharge them out of spite, which he had theorised was her very life force. "He…has been through so much that he's lost the ability."

"Oh," said Zelda. "Well, then I'll have to the talking for both of us, eh?" she asked Tao, who smiled and nodded. He liked this lady. Zelda stood up and took the bundles from the man, dismissing him with a smile and a nod. She then deftly threw a bundle to both Link and Sheik. "I had some clothes made for you," she said. "I heard most of yours were ruined."

"Awesome, thanks Zelda!" said Link, tearing up the paper, pulling out his new clothes. It wasn't terribly imaginative. A gray tunic matching his old one and a new, black undershirt, couple with new tights.

"I didn't think you would want too much of a deviation from the clothes you're used to," explained Zelda, not flinching a bit as the Hero began to dress right there and then. Sheik had a good mind to smack him for being so vulgar in front of a princess, but decided it was not worth the trouble, preferring to unwrap his own clothes.

"I had a bit of a hard time figuring out something for you, Sheik," said Zelda apologetically as Sheik began to pull out articles of clothing from the package. "Your exoskeleton was really one of a kind. Impa left you another tabard before she left for the Shadow Temple, but that was it. I had the tailor make you an outfit similar to my leather armour, only lighter and more flexible."

Sheik put the pair of boots down, studying his new outfit. It was, compared to his exoskeleton, less practical than he had wanted it to be, but it would do. He nodded to Zelda. "This will do just fine," he said. "How did you dye the leather?"

"That is a secret," said Zelda. "I figured you would want it to be as dark as possible."

"Ideally, it should have been gray like Link's tunic," said Sheik. "For that is the most occurring shade in the dark, but I doubt there will be many more infiltration missions in the future." He smiled. "Really, Zelda, this is perfect. Thank you."

"You're welcome," said the princess, beaming. She looked at Tao, and her eyes widened. "Oh, Goddesses, I forgot about Tao completely! I'm so sorry," she said, crouching down again. "I'll have some clothes made for you immediately!"

Tao looked confused, but nodded hesitantly.

"Great!" Zelda exclaimed, turning around. Then she turned around again, apparently remembering something. "Oh, the warlock wanted to see you, Sheik," she said. She made to exit the tent, but Kaura's yelling stopped her.

"Oi, oi! You're going to need Tao's measurements if you're gonna make clothes for him!" she yelled. Zelda nodded, embarrassed, and collected the piece of paper Kaura was holding out for her.

"Alright," said Link as he pulled on the tunic. "Let's go."

"Vorpheus only wanted to see Sheik, Link," Zelda said. "He was quite adamant about that."

"Fine, where is he?" asked Sheik.

"He's having his lunch at the kitchens," said Zelda.

"Alright, I'll just continue my story then?" Lin asked no one in particular. Tao seemed happy with this though and climbed back into bed, looking at him expectantly. "At least _someone_ here appreciates my company," Link said he made himself comfortable again. "Now, where was I…oh yeah! Let me tell you about the Wyrm…"

Sheik tuned out the story as he started putting on his new clothes. He was trying to forget that horrific moment when he was suspended above the gaping maw of that horrible monster. He had a feeling Zelda had only based the measurements of the clothes off her own as she and Sheik was approximately the same size, Zelda perhaps a bit taller. It fit perfectly. The collar was a bit high, but then he discovered that a piece of cloth had been sewn on the inside, so that he could pull it up and once again cover the lower half of his face. _How thoughtful,_ he thought as he pulled on the white tabard, once again displaying the Sheikah eye to the world at large.

The outfit itself was as featureless as it could be, having been designed with only fighting and moving in mind. He had expected it to be a bit difficult to move around in, but it only felt like a bit bulkier and more noticeable than his exoskeleton. All in all, he quite enjoyed it, even though it would take a while to get used to it. Link approved as well, it seemed, as he whistled when Sheik passed him.

"Like what you see?" Sheik asked.

"Definitely," said Link.

Tao clapped.

* * *

 _Hm…perhaps it's a bit too revealing,_ Sheik thought as he walked through the streets of the tent city. Everywhere he went people turned their heads to look at him, wondering who he was. Of course, it was the regular routine when they saw the eye on his tabard, some turning away in disgust, other nodding their heads in respect. He felt a bit foolish for thinking that first thought. _Honestly, the exoskeleton was far more revealing than this! Pull yourself together!_

The agility and manoeuvrability offered by the new outfit came at the price of it clinging to his body almost as tight as the exoskeleton had, only he found that he was suddenly far more conscious of his appearance, for reasons he couldn't fathom. Also, this new outfit did not breathe as well as the exoskeleton had, and the Sheikah had felt sweat beginning to wet his brow the second he stepped outside the tent. It wasn't drenching him, at least. And the fingerless gloves were quite comfortable, even though they left him nowhere to hide his daggers…which were scattered all over the Shadow Temple anyway.

He finally arrived at the kitchens. It was really just an outdoors mess hall, several dozen tables and accompanying chairs set up in front of a tent. Two extra long tables had been set up in front of the tent, behind which at least two dozen men were working frantically in order to appease the hunger of several thousand men. The actual meal times seemed to be on a rotary schedule, company by company eating at allotted times. However, there was one person who clearly did not fit in among the soldiers wolfing down their food like there was no tomorrow. Vorpheus had procured some armour, it seemed, which gleamed in the sunlight. It was of Hylian design, probably given to him by Zelda, covered in images of the Triforce.

"You wanted to see me?" he asked loudly over the din of the eating men, who hadn't noticed him at all, too busy stuffing their faces. When Vorpheus didn't react, he tapped the warlock on the shoulder. He turned his head and noticed Sheik, smiling broadly. Carefully, he eased himself out of his chair, wiping his mouth with a handkerchief.

"Ah, there you are," he said. "I've been waiting."

"Though you kept busy, I see," said Sheik, gesturing to the empty plate in Vorpheus' seat.

"What can I say, I'm a gourmand," said Vorpheus. "Though I would not dream of giving this place a fine review. Honestly, I wouldn't serve this to pigs."

"Was there something you wanted?" asked Sheik, already feeling his patience being tested. The mere sight of the man annoyed him now, it seemed.

"Yes, there is!" exclaimed Vorpheus. He took Sheik by the shoulder and began to walk, leading him away from the eating area. "I am going to embark upon a tiny little…expedition, with the princess' approval, of course."

"And you need me for…?"

"Protection, naturally," said Vorpheus. He screwed up his face and shook his head. "No, wait, that's the wrong word. Really, I need you more for intimidation. The mere sight of you will be enough. This new outfit of yours is really quite dashing, you know," he added.

"Intimidation?" asked Sheik.

"Exactly," said Vorpheus. "I need you to look dangerous and all those foolish things young men do. Where's your sword?"

"Back in the tent."

"Well, go get it then."

"Are you sure Zelda has approved of this?" asked Sheik sceptically.

"Yes, she has. Now go get your sword and meet me back here. We won't be away for long, a couple of hours at the most. And I can promise you that there won't be any danger," said Vorpheus, shooing him away.

"I'm not moving a finger until you tell me what we are going to do," said Sheik, crossing his arms in what he hoped was a defiant gesture. His hand was itching again.

"Fine, fine," said Vorpheus, suddenly appearing quite stressed. "You and I, my friend, are going to pay a visit to my granddaughter."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 105**

* * *

"Hey, you're back," said Kaura as Sheik entered the tent. She was examining the man with the head injury again, with no more luck than last time, apparently. "That was quick."

"I just stopped by to pick up my sword," said Sheik. He went to his bed and fished out Kazuya from underneath it, quickly strapping it to his back. "I'll be gone for a couple of hours."

"Where are you going?" asked Link. He was in the middle of some sort of imitation—some sort of monster, by the looks of it—to a happy Tao, who seemed to be in some sort of blissful state that not even an interruption could break. Sheik already knew what Link was going to say next. "Need any help?"

"No, I do not believe your skills will be required for this one, Link," said Sheik. He drew Kazuya, checking the blade for chinks and cracks. Not a single one. Whoever made this blade knew what they were doing. "It's more of a…wait and see mission. No fighting involved whatsoever, apparently."

"Then what does the warlock need you for?" asked Kaura suspiciously.

"Intimidation," said Sheik. "That's what he said, at least." He headed for the exit. "Anyway, I'll be back soon."

"Hey, wait a minute," said Kaura suddenly, looking at him. "Did the warlock get a shiner?"

"Not from what I could see," said Sheik and went outside, regretting it immediately as the harsh sun began to slowly fry him again. Just as he went to meet up with Vorpheus, he heard Link speak.

"Hey, Kaura?"

"Yes?"

"What does intimidation mean?"

 _Good grief,_ thought Sheik as he walked. _I need to work on his vocabulary when I get back._

Vorpheus was waiting for him at the intersection, just like he had said. He smiled and beckoned for Sheik to follow him. They were heading for the entrance to the canyon, apparently.

"I must say, you look really imposing and dangerous now," said Vorpheus casually. "The sword really brings out the…hm, mystery in you. Though there really should have been a mask or something. Your face still looks far too innocent for an assassin."

"It is always the ones you suspect the least, though," said Sheik. "I'd rather have the element of surprise on my side than be caught immediately because I looked the part of a spy or an assassin."

"Fair enough, fair enough," said Vorpheus. "I suppose the tabard makes some sort bold statement regarding your skills. I have yet to meet anyone who does not believe all Sheikah were more than capable fighters."

"But then, most people hate us, so I really don't see how that could be positive," said Sheik.

"Heh, you never beat around the bush, do you?" asked Vorpheus. "You always go straight for the throat, the crux of the matter, as it were, don't you?"

"I do not like discussing pointless semantics or unnecessary details, no," agreed Sheik. "I do not see the point in not speaking clearly. Now, please explain to me how you expect a meeting with your granddaughter—who hates you to the very core, I might add—to go off without a hitch, as they say? I seem to recall quite a fiery explosion preceding her very appearance."

"Yes, well, I am taking precautions," said the warlock. "I am quite sure that the only magic that will be performed today are the teleportation spells." They made a turn at another intersection. Now the entrance to the canyon was clearly visible, as well as the large posting of guards up there. "My word; has the princess decided to lock down the entire canyon?" he asked.

"It cannot hurt to have a more secure camp entrance," said Sheik. They easily passed through, the guards recognising both Vorpheus and Sheik, even offering the warlock a friendly nod or two. None so for Sheik. "What were they so happy about to see you again?" he asked when they were well away.

"I may have done the soldiers a favour or two," said the warlock innocently. "Turning water into an alcoholic beverage is apparently all that's needed to gain the admiration and respect of one's fellow men these days."

"Booze…of course," said Sheik. He noticed that Vorpehus had stopped walking, and looked at the man quizzically. "Is there a problem?"

"No, no problem. I just think we are a suitable distance away from the camp as to not cause panic and screaming when I open a portal," said Vorpheus.

He closed his eyes and held out a gauntleted hand, muttering under his breath. Slowly, but surely, a tiny point of light appeared just a few inches away from him, gradually expanding into a full-blown sphere and eventually stretched into a doorway of sorts. Inside, Sheik could see thousands of colours mixing and intermingling, just like in the doorway from Twilight to Hyrule. The warlock opened his eyes, smiled and nodded in satisfaction.

"Another perfect doorway, if I do say so myself, and I do," he said haughtily and gestured to it. "The door will collapse the second I enter it myself, so I suggest you go through first."

Sheik went to enter it, but stopped just a step away. "This strikes me as an exceedingly bad idea," he said, remembering the many stories he had read about double-crosses and such and such involving portals. "And I don't believe you when you say it will collapse when you enter it. It would be far too much of a risk for you to collapse the portal while you are still in it."

Vorpheus sighed, a grimace spreading on his face. "Curse you and your logical deduction, boy," he said. "Fine, I'll go through first!" He stopped at the same place Sheik had, fixing the Sheikah with a pointed stare. "But don't you dare not follow."

"Wouldn't dream of it," said Sheik innocently, unable to hide a small grin of triumph.

"And stop grinning!"

"I cannot help myself, but I can do the next best thing." With a quick tug, the cloth mask from the collar, quickly covering the lower half of his face along with his nose. "There, better?" he asked cheekily.

"It's an improvement," said Vorpheus and went through, his form disappearing in an explosion of colours within the portal. Sheik waited a few seconds, unsure of how long it would take for the warlock to reach the other side, and then followed him. The portal remained open for another minute, then fizzed out, a microscopic globule of light hanging in the air before winking out of existence.

* * *

It was even worse than last time, Sheik thought. During his journey back to Hyrule from Twilight, he had been able to stare at the point of light ahead of him (as well as Speil) in order not to feel vertigo and nausea creeping up on him. But this new portal was too chaotic, too unstable and dizzying. He saw shapes, he saw colours, he saw this, and he saw that. It was all too much for his brain to take in at once, and he felt bile rise up to the back of his throat. He held it down, noticing another bright spot that was growing bigger and bigger as it came closer. He held his breath, knowing that he probably wouldn't enjoy what lay on the other side.

* * *

"Careful, careful, don't land on me—oof!" said Vorpheus as Sheik was hurled out of the portal, landing, despite his wishes, right on top of him. The portal winked out of existence as Sheik slowly and unsteadily climbed to his feet, crawling off the groaning warlock.

 _Well, at least I remained conscious this time,_ he thought, standing up. His head swam for a bit, and his stomach definitely did not appreciate the strain, but he was awake. He leaned against a…what was it? Cliff wall? It was, upon further inspection.

"No, no, don't help me," said Vorpheus from his position on the sandy ground. "The armour doesn't weigh me down at _all_." Sheik rolled his eyes and extended a hand to the warlock, helping him up.

"Did this happen when Kaura punched you as well?" asked Sheik.

"Ah, she told you about that, did she?" asked Vorpheus.

"She did," said Sheik and nodded. "And she asked me whether or not she left a shiner on you or not."

"Well, between you and me," said Vorpheus conspiratorially and did a strange hand gesture. Sheik felt the slight tingle of magical energy about the man as a large blue mark appeared around his eye. "She has truly left a mark on me." With another gesture, the mark was gone, replaced by healthy, pink skin.

"She'll be happy to hear that," said Sheik.

"That's it! I am not telling you another secret," declared Vorpheus.

"You will if you wish to study the Delta Force," said Sheik. He looked around. "Where are we, anyway?" he asked.

It was a valid question, he felt. He had a feeling they were somewhere in the mountain regions north of the Gerudo Valley judging by the cooler temperature, though the air remained just as dry. They were standing on a small mesa, which overlooked a series of dipping canyons and crevices, sparkling rivers far below and sharp, jagged cliffs covered in brown patches of dead vegetation. There were two road-like paths that went up to the mesa, one on each end. It was a relief to be out of the oven that was the Gerudo Valley, but he wasn't too sure if he enjoyed this area all that much more. It felt…fatigued, tired. And dead. Even in deserts you can find a solitary plant that has learned to survive in harsh conditions. Here, all the plants were dead. He touched a thin, vein-like growth that had apparently given up on growing halfway out of the ground. It crumpled into dust; much like the vegetation in the northern part of Hyrule had started to do.

"We are in the mountains not far from the Gerudo Fortress," said Vorpheus, standing on the edge of the mesa. Sheik joined him. "If you look that way," he said, pointing in the direction of some rather dark clouds many miles away, "you will find the Evil King's fortress."

"Right," said Sheik. " _Why_ are we here?"

"Because this is the single most inhospitable and impassable area in the whole of Hyrule," said Vorpheus. "There are a couple of natural roads leading up to this mesa, but the rest of the region is just jagged rock and closed passes. What I have planned would, if not for this location, draw every single enemy soldier to us."

"What exactly _are_ you planning?"

"I'm going to draw Dehl here," he said.

"How?"

"Let me show you—"

"Wait!"

"What?"

"Could you please, if it is not too much trouble, fill me in on this plan which, according to you, will involve no fighting on my part? You see, I have this strange little pet peeve when it comes to dealing with highly dangerous sorceresses _without any information!_ " He hadn't meant to scream out that last part, but Sheik found himself quite impatient with the warlock now.

Vorpheus looked at him strangely for a second, as if the words were foreign to him. Then he grinned, slapping Sheik on the shoulder. "Of course! Why didn't you say so?"

"I did," said Sheik sourly.

"Well, then I didn't hear it. And if I didn't hear it, it never happened."

"You _did_ hear i—"

"Anyway!" exclaimed the warlock, interrupting Sheik. "Let me show you what I'm planning to do," he said, reaching inside a pouch hanging on his belt. He withdrew a small, translucent bead, smaller than the nail on Sheik's little finger. "Behold, the Nullifier."

Sheik rolled his eyes. "What's a Nullifier?" he asked.

"Not 'a' Nullifier," said Vorpheus. " _The_ Nullifier. There is only one in existence, and I hold it in my hand at this very moment."

"Great, super, excellent," said Sheik sarcastically. "There's only one, and you have it. That is fine. But what does it _do_?"

"It nullifies," said Vorpheus happily.

Sheik sighed. So this was how it was going to go down. "Nullifies _what_?"

"Magic, of course," said the warlock, scowling. "What else would it nullify? Why would I create something that nullifies something else?"

"I don't know," said Sheik. "Perhaps I thought that you actually had normal, healthy interests outside the field of magic. Just like I have a healthy interest outside the field of killing."

"Such as?"

"Well, giving you a matching shiner on your _other_ eye for example," Sheik replied, cracking his knuckles for emphasis. "Careful, Caspar. Remember what you said about my temper being affected by the Delta Force?"

Vorpheus nodded.

"Well, I cannot say that your presence or conversation help douse that temper," said Sheik. "My hand is itching like a thousand ants has crawled under my skin and are wriggling around under there, and I find myself very tempted to put my sword through your head. So, tell me the plan, and I might reconsider."

"No need to be so angry," said Vorpheus, obviously subduing himself slightly. "I can't help it if I become slightly childish when I am excited. Besides, I saved your life, I deserve some leeway."

Sheik simply stared at him, willing the warlock to not say another word concerning this. A light breeze went by, playing with their hair before quickly moving on, leaving the two figures on the mesa.

"Alright, listen up," said Vorpheus and held out the Nullifier again. "This is old magic, taken from the oldest pages of the oldest journal of the very first of the teachers who walked this land. When cracked, the bead creates a void, or vacuum, if you will, that prevents anyone from using magic inside a perimeter of several miles. I have spent years gathering the necessary supplies and energy required to build it, and I intend to use it today. I plan on luring Dehl here by releasing an impulse of energy so strong that she feels it. She will come here to—she hopes—kill me, and then I will nullify her magic."

"And then?" asked Sheik. "Do you want me to kill her?"

"No, no, no," said Vorpheus, shaking his hands. "I want to talk to her, try to convince her to stop helping Ganondorf and perhaps…just maybe…reconcile with me."

"Reconcile with the girl who killed almost her entire family over something as simple as the fact that she would not age into a woman?" asked Sheik sceptically. "I'm not sure if I can see the logic there…"

"Well, the non-aging bit is not the entire reason for why she killed our family," said Vorpheus, scraping his boot on the sandy ground. "There _might_ have been a few factors that I have kept to myself, as I told you back at the camp…"

 _Lovely, more secrets,_ thought Sheik. "Fine, let's hear it, then."

"No, not yet," said Vorpheus. "How about this: I tell you about it afterwards…if we survive."

"Caspar…"

"Vorpheus!"

"Vorpheus…"

"No, I've made up my mind. Now, are you going to help me or not?"

Sheik sighed. "Fine, I'll help. But what exactly is it that you need me for?"

"Well, my melee skills aren't as up to date as yours, and I'm entirely unsure about Dehl's," said the warlock embarrassed. "I need you to…erm, protect me in case she simply ignores the fact that she cannot use magic and decides to throw me off the mesa. Just stand there and…well, look dangerous, like a Sheikah."

"I suppose I can do that…" said Sheik slowly, contemplating whether or not he should throw Vorpheus from the mesa himself. Then he remembered that he had forgotten to stock up on deku nuts and that his lyre was still in Zelda's care, leaving him with no other way to get out of this place than climbing. "Fine, I'll do it, but I _will_ have my answers afterwards."

"Of course, of course," said Vorpheus happily and put the Nullifier away in his pouch again. "Now, please stand back while I prepare the spell."

 _I have a strong feeling this will only end in tears,_ thought Sheik as he distanced himself well away from the warlock.

* * *

"…and that's how we beat the crap out Bongo-Bongo," finished Link, panting and sweating. He had gotten quite involved with his storytelling, eventually losing himself to theatrics and playing out major events. Of course, he had jumped back and forth a bit in order to keep Tao entertained, but the boy didn't care, only grinning and clapping. Link smiled and sunk into his chair. "And now I get to have a little break, right?" he asked Tao, who nodded.

"Quite entertaining," said Kaura from her desk. She had gotten out her alchemical equipment again and was brewing something that smelled unmistakably like a cross between death and decay, not unlike the smell within the catacombs of the Shadow Temple. "Though I have a feeling Sheik was quite cross with you for losing one of his people's most treasured artefacts."

"Actually, he didn't say very much about it," said Link. "He only shook his head, sighed and glared at me while probably thinking I'm the stupidest and clumsiest guy to ever have lived."

"He wouldn't be too far off," muttered Kaura.

"Eh?"

"Nothing, Hero."

Link furrowed his brow, having heard what Kaura said quite clearly. It didn't get to him, though. He had long ago come to the conclusion that he was not the sharpest knife in the drawer, and he didn't have any problem with that. He had made it through his quest well enough on his own, a long time before Sheik had entered the picture. Of course, Navi had been a great help, but when it came to fighting, he could only trust himself and his instincts.

That was what he had instead of a tactician's mind, he supposed. Instinct. He knew when and where to strike, how hard and how fast, he knew when to duck and when to block. He may have struggled with some puzzles in the temples, but he had figured them out eventually, once he had studied them for long enough. And he usually didn't let his frustration or anger take control…

…as opposed to Sheik lately. He frowned. Sheik had definitely changed these last few days. And he had a good idea of why. But still…Sheik had been raised to be a fighter and assassin, and that would be bound to get to anyone sooner or later. When he had first emerged from the door in the Shadow Temple, covered in Phil's blood, he was—and he could honestly admit this to himself now—frightened. He hadn't been worried about Sheik being injured, but the fact that the Sheikah had looked insane. And when he had giggled when explaining that Phil was…what was that word again? Annihilated? Yes, that was it.

"Hey, Kaura," he said quietly.

"Yeah?" said the physician.

"Have you noticed anything strange about Sheik lately?" he asked. _He_ had noticed it, but perhaps that was only because he was so close to Sheik. Maybe he was the only on who had.

"What do you mean?" asked Kaura.

"You know…short temper, bad moods, all that…"

"I thought he was in a bad mood constantly," said Kaura jokingly. When Link didn't laugh, she frowned as well and stood up. She walked over to where he was sitting, seating herself next to Tao on the bed. The boy was staring at Link with questioning eyes, probably wondering what he was talking about. "Okay, I'm going to be honest with you," she said. "While you must admit that our favourite Sheikah isn't exactly the happiest fellow in the world, I _have_ noticed that he seems rather…impatient these days, even for him."

"I know, right?" said Link, happy that he was not the only one. "It's just…he seems so angry all the time, even when he is smiling. You can see it just behind his eyes, you know? It's like he's just waiting for an excuse to bite your head off."

"I didn't notice any anger when he kissed you yesterday, nor when he is talking to this little guy here," said Kaura, poking Tao in the side playfully, probably in order to make the boy feel included in the conversation. "I am certain that he is not angry _all_ the time," she said, "and he hides it quite well if he is. But it has nothing to do with you, if that's what you are worried abo—"

"No, that's not it!" protested Link. "I just…I don't think he's enjoying himself very much…not anymore."

"We _are_ at war," said Kaura matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean he can't enjoy a joke or two," said Link. "And you should see him when he's _really_ pissed off. He almost killed a man last night. A Hylian!"

"Oh dear," said Kaura. "What had the man done?"

"He didn't let us into Zelda's tent because he didn't believe us when we said we were the Hero of Time and Sheik of the Sheikah," said Link in one breath. "Sheik kicked him in the back of his knee and almost broke his neck."

While Link was saying this, Kaura was making discreet motions toward Tao, trying to make the Hero see that this conversation was quickly turning unsuitable for children, but the Hero only prattled on.

"He didn't let go until Zelda ordered him to," said Link. "I was…well, I have only been afraid of Sheik once before, but I actually shivered when I saw his eyes right then."

"When was the other time you feared him?" asked Kaura, realising that it was pointless in trying to get Link to stop talking about killing. And it was no use in trying to get Tao to go somewhere else while Link talked. At the moment, it appeaered that the little one only trusted his two saviours and—in a pinch—herself.

"When we rescued Tao," said Link. "Sheik remained behind to deal with the last two men, Ime and Phil…"

Kaura felt Tao shudder beside her, and she reached over, drawing him closer to her. The boy leaned against her, shivering.

Link must have noticed too, for he adopted a regretful expression on his face, but continued all the same. "When Sheik came out…he was covered in blood, and his eyes…" now the _Hero_ shuddered. "When I asked him what he had done, he giggled and told me he had…well, annihilated them…"

Kaura blinked. "That _is_ worrying…" she said slowly. "Don't get me wrong when I say this, but that sounds like a developing mental illness…"

"Yeah, but I don't think that's it either," said Link. "Y'see, when we were in the mountains, fighting my shadow—that's where I got my injuries, by the way—we…well, we found something. Sheik was almost killed, but was completely healed when he touched it."

"Pardon my ignorance," said Kaura, "but what is 'it', exactly?"

"A small triangle-shaped crystal," said Link.

"Ah, similar to the tattoo Sheik has on his right hand?" asked Kaura.

"Yeah, exactly," said Link. Then he paused. "How did you know that?"

"I noticed that he was trying to hide his hand whenever I was around," said Kaura. "So I decided to sneak a peek once he was out like a light. What's so special about that tattoo?"

"It's not a tattoo," said Link, unbuckling his gauntlet. Why he had even bothered to put it on when he wasn't going anywhere, Kaura didn't know. He showed her the top of his left hand. "It's a mark, like this one, only upside down."

"Yes, I noticed," said Kaura. "I saw this mark when I reset your thumb. It means that you have a piece of the Triforce, does it not?"

"Yeah."

"Well, perhaps Sheik has gotten something similar," said Kaura. "You say he only started acting like he has _after_ he got it, and, logically, the fact that it is upside down, it must be something negative if an upright one means something good, like yours."

"Maybe," said Link, seeing no fault in that piece of logic. "But we still don't know what it is."

"Didn't you hear me?" asked Kaura. "A piece of the Triforce, perhaps?"

"But there's only three pieces," protested Link. "I have one, Zelda has one and Ganondorf has one. Courage, Wisdom and Power."

"Hm," said Kaura slowly. She pulled out a piece of paper from her coat along with a pen and began to scribble on it. She showed what she had drawn to Link. "This is the united Triforce, correct?" she asked. She had drawn design that was on literally every piece of art in Hyrule, the one anyone could recognise. Link nodded. "Alright, then," she said. "Here's something that's always struck me as kind of strange: you Hylians practically worship these three pieces," she said and pointed to the pieces of Triforce. "But have none of you noticed the conspicuous gap in the middle?"

Link stared at the drawing for a while, then he shook his head. "Not really. I thought it was just a gap, an empty space."

"That it may be," conceded Kaura. "But it may just be something else entirely…like a negatively charged piece. Perhaps what you and your lover found up in those mountains was that missing piece…and when Sheik absorbed it…"

"He got filled with negative energy?" continued Link hesitantly.

"Exactly," said Kaura and gave Link the drawing. "Of course, it's just a theory, and a far-fetched one at that since I know practically nothing of your mythology. I'm just saying that it may be worth looking up the significance of that gap."

"But where?" asked Link.

"Think about it, Hero," said Kaura. "Who knows more about the Triforce and its legends than anyone in this entire camp?"

"Vorpheus?" asked Link.

Words could not describe the expression that passed over Kaura's face that instant. Sighing heavily, she bonked Link on the head with a loose fist. "No, Hero, not that—cover your ears, Tao, there's a good boy—arsehole—yes, you can remove them now. I meant a girl that has been studying these things since she was a little girl to prepare herself for the role as monarch…"

"Zelda?" Link tried again.

"Yes," said Kaura. "That's exactly who I meant. You should ask the princess about it."

"You're right!" exclaimed Link and stood up. "I'll go find her right away." He began to walk, but found Kaura's hand holding him back by his tunic.

"And where do you think you're going?" she asked.

"To the princess?" tried Link.

"I haven't discharged you yet."

"Oh, come _on_ —"

"And now you are," said Kaura, letting go of his tunic. "But take Tao with you."

"Why? Can't he stay here?" asked Link.

"No, I need to take a closer look at that man's head," she said and pointed at the horse kick-victim. "And that's not going to be pretty." She took Tao's hand and put it in Link's. "Besides, he needs some fresh air and sunlight." The boy smiled up at Link, who couldn't resist smiling back. "And if I know Zelda right, his clothes should probably be ready for him."

"I guess you're right," said Link. "Come on, Tao. Let's go see Zelly."

* * *

"Link, I'm a _bit_ busy at the moment," said Zelda. She was currently inspecting the Zora troops at General Myde's request, who wanted to show her that his men—piscine men, at least—were no worse than the Hylians.

They were all standing to attention in what was apparently a parade ground. The Zora had been given the part of the canyon that was mostly shaded by the peaks, which helped somewhat with the problem concerning their sensitivity to the sun and heat. They stood straight, fins rigid, their spears sharp and ready. Altogether, the Zora could field well over six-hundred troops. The Fountain had yet to fully thaw, and she was told by the generals that at least an additional three hundred were going to be marched to the canyon once they were ready.

Tao was currently sitting on Link's shoulders, his legs still too weak to carry him over too many great distances. Not that Link minded, really. Zelda smiled at the boy and waved. Tao waved back.

"I know, Zelda, but it's important," said Link.

"Can't it wait another ten minutes?" asked Zelda. "I'm nearly done with the inspection."

"Fine," said Link sulkily.

"Act your age, Link," said Zelda, shaking her head. She then went back to the last company of troops, where Myde was waiting patiently. He nodded at Link, who nodded back. As Zelda and Myde continued their inspection, Link carefully let Tao down from his shoulders and leaned a cart laden with tanks of water. A deep well had been dug on one of the perimeters of the camp, so there was no shortage of water now, but the Zora still required a vast amount so they would not die of thirst.

"Act my age," said Link, scoffing. "Can you believe her?" he asked Tao. The little one shrugged. The green cap almost slipped from his head, and he pulled firmer down on his head. "I don't even _know_ what my real age is, you know," Link continued. "I mean, I went to sleep for seven years while I was eleven, and I woke up like this," he gestured to the grown state of his body, "but I still felt like I was a kid, y'know?"

Tao shook his head. Link smiled.

"Heh, I guess you don't…hm, that cap might be a bit big for you…maybe we can get Zelda to fix it—"

Tao shook his head furiously, clearly against that idea.

"What, you don't want a cap that fits?" Link asked.

A definite no.

"Fine, but don't complain when the point starts hitting your face. It sure annoyed Sheik when he used my red one."

Another headshake.

* * *

"Right, what is it that's so important?" asked Zelda as she came back to the cart.

"We need to talk about something," said Link. "Well, two things, really."

"And those are?"

"Well, first we were wondering if Tao's clothes are ready," said Link.

Zelda smiled at the young boy. "I'm not sure. I gave the measurements to my tailor and told him to get to work immediately, and he is quite speedy…why don't we go check?"

"Great idea," said Link and crouched down. "Hop on," he told Tao, who practically threw himself back onto his shoulders. "Hang on," he said as he rose to his feet.

"He can't walk?" asked Zelda discreetly as they walked through the camp. Tao was too busy looking at the Hylians, Zora and Gorons who were working together, a slightly frightened expression on his face.

"Of course he can," said Link, "but he gets tired quickly. You okay up there, little guy?"

"He looks frightened," said Zelda bluntly.

"Oh? Well, cheer him up then!"

* * *

"Thank you," said Zelda sweetly as she was handed another wrapped package by the same man who had been with her at the sick tent that same morning. They then went inside the princess' tent, heading toward her room. Link set Tao down, and Zelda gave him the package, which was noticeably smaller than Link's or Sheik's, which was only natural, considering…

"Why don't you go inside my room and put that on?" she said kindly. "We'll wait here."

Tao looked apprehensive, but a smile from Link gave him the confidence, and he quickly darted inside the princess' private chambers. Then Zelda adopted a slightly tired expression and sagged against Link.

"Are you alright?" asked the Hero worriedly.

"Yes, I'm fine, Link, I'm just a bit tired," said Zelda. "Aveil and Ayla's arrival here didn't really happen at the best of times. I don't understand how you can stay so energetic even though you didn't get so much sleep last night either."

"I wouldn't say _that_ ," said Link. "Sheik's told me several times that I could sleep through a storm—and my snoring could scare said storm away, but I usually ignore that—and I had quite a comfortable rest last night."

"Speaking of Sheik, where is he? With Vorpheus?" asked Zelda.

"Yeah, he needed Sheik to intimidate someone…or something."

"Oh…well, he had better not turn up wounded again," said Zelda. "That's the only reason I gave Vorpheus the permission to bring Sheik, that there would be no chance of injuries." She noticed that Link had gone slightly saggy himself at the extended talk about the Sheikah. "What's wrong?"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about," said Link. "I'm worried about Sheik."

"Why?" asked Zelda.

"You haven't noticed?" said Link disbelievingly. "He's been acting…weird."

"Well, I've noticed he's a bit more grouchy and impatient, and perhaps a bit snappy, but that's only to be expected given what's been going through lately," said Zelda, her voice growing more and more uncertain as she went along. It culminated with a sigh. "Fine, you're right, there's something off about him, but other than the impatience and temper, I can't put my finger on it," she admitted.

"Aren't you worried?" asked Link.

"Of course I am," said Zelda, eyes widening. "Why would you think I'm not?"

"I don't think that," said Link. "It's just…well, you're like brother and sister, and I thought you'd be on his case right away once he started acting differently."

"I would, had I not known him as well as I do," said Zelda. "Link, if there is one thing that does not work with Sheik, it's pushing him. Asking question after question will only make him more withdrawn, keep it bottled up even tighter."

"Well, what can we do then?" asked Link.

"The only thing we really can do is wait until he decides to tell us himself," said Zelda, shrugging. "Remember how long he hid your shadow's continued survival from us?"

"Don't remind me," said Link, clenching his jaw. "I don't want to hear about that bastard ever again."

"Well, nevertheless, he will continue to hide it until he is ready to tell us himself—"

"What if I told you I already knew what was making him like that?" said Link suddenly.

"Then I would have to demand that you reveal it to me immediately so I can help Sheik as soon as he comes back, if it within my power," said Zelda steadily. "So? What is it?"

"Remember that temple he told you about, the one in the mountains?" asked Link. Zelda nodded. "Well, my shadow wasn't the only thing we found in there."

"Really?" asked Zelda. "What _did_ you find, then?"

"Er…" said Link, unsure how to follow through with it. "How much do you know about the Triforce?" he finally asked.

"Is that question related to Sheik's problem?" asked Zelda.

"Yeah."

"I don't consider myself a scholar by any means," said Zelda, "but I like to think that I know quite a bit. Why?"

"Have you ever wondered what that little…er, gap…between the pieces is?"

"Not really," said Zelda. "I just assumed it is a gap in the design, which is bound to show up in any images made up of triangles."

"Well," said Link slowly, "I think we found that missing piece."

"What?" asked Zelda.

Link didn't have an opportunity to say anything else, for the curtains that separated Zelda's room from the rest of the world was suddenly pulled aside, and Tao stepped out. Link's jaw dropped. "What the hell have you made for him?" he asked.

"What? I thought it'd be cute," said Zelda innocently. "Besides, those clothes are rather practical. That's probably why _you_ wore them when you were a child. Also, it matches the cap."

Had it not been for Tao's differently coloured eyes and hair, Link would've thought he was staring at himself from seven years ago. The boy looked a bit uncomfortable, but Link supposed that was because he had only been wearing a pair of tattered shorts for a long time. He had to admit though: it _did_ look cute.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 106**

* * *

The mesa shook with the gathered energies Vorpheus was currently harnessing into his body. A foul, cold wind had started to blow in a circular pattern around the warlock as the very ground itself began to crack under his feet. Sheik stared in awe, holding on to the little piece of cliff wall that jutted out of the ground a dozen feet away. His hair was whipped around, and little grains of sand or grit kept finding their way into his eyes. He blinked, feeling tears running from his eyes as his body tried to get rid of the foreign matter. The skies above the mesa began to darken, the clouds becoming a swirling, black mass above them. Lightning struck all over the valleys and canyons below.

Sheik's entire body tingled, and he began to worry about Vorpheus trying to suck the magical energies that was keeping him alive out as well, though the warlock seemed to be showing some sort of restraint. Then Vorpheus' gaze swept across the mesa, falling on Sheik. His eyes were glowing a bright blue, almost white, the light sharper than anything Sheik had ever seen before. His hands were covered in blue fire, arcs jumping about his armour as if he was filled with nothing but electricity. Vorpheus' mouth opened, and a silent scream, unheard but felt, echoed out across the entire mountain range, shaking the earth to its very core. It was a deafening silence that followed, Sheik unsure if his eardrums had ruptured or if the entire world had just fallen silent.

Vorpheus groaned, sinking to his knees, seemingly ready to keel over at any moment. Sheik took a few hesitant steps forward, his legs numb with the tension he hadn't realised he had put in them as he witnessed the spectacle. More lightning struck, yet no thunder followed. Sheik was a few feet away from Vorpheus, had stretched out his hand to help him up when the warlock suddenly looked at him again with those shining eyes, shaking his head while mouthing some words.

"Doooooon…t…" he said. Sheik blinked, wondering if he was injured, if the powerful energy had destroyed him from within. He reached out again, but was once more stopped by a frantic headshake from the warlock. "Dooon't…touch…me…" he said with considerable effort, jaws and tongue working overtime to form the words. "It…will…rip…you…apart…" Sheik stepped back, taking any warning from the warlock seriously, despite how annoying he could be.

"Goooood," said Vorpheus. "Don't…come…near…" As he said this, he very slowly, very shakily, got back to his feet, swaying like a drunkard that had had one too many brandies. Then he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath that could surely have been heard from miles away. "Ah," he said, releasing the breath like a dodongo. He then smiled and turned slowly to face Sheik.

"I had…forgotten how…painful it is to…keep this much energy inside…oneself." He took a shaky step further into the middle of the mesa. "Now…please…notice that…mountaintop, over there," he said, pointing to one of the many peaks that surrounded them.

Sheik looked at it. "What am I supposed to see?" he asked. The swirling clouds were obscuring it slightly, making it hard to make out. Another battery of lightning strikes struck just a hundred feet from the mesa, shaking the ground, yet producing no thunder.

"Nothing…yet," said Vorpheus. He turned to face the mountain, and held out his hands. "Do… _not_ …look at me! Look…at the…mountain!" he said slowly. The blue fire on his hands was increasing in size and intensity. With a mighty roar, Vorpheus released the entire reservoir he had built up inside his body, hurling it at the mountain as a lance of pure light. It reached the mountain in an instant. The beam remained focused for a few seconds as Vorpheus continued screaming, but faded as the energy ran out, leaving the warlock panting and sweating, ready to collapse again. For a second, Sheik considered scoffing and commenting on the fact that Vorpheus had just wasted a whole lot of energy on nothing, but the warlock must have anticipated it, for he exclaimed: "Wait for it!"

Another few seconds passed with nothing happening. Sheik opened his mouth. "I don't see—"

The mountain exploded. Gigantic cracks, visible to the naked eye even at this distance, spread all over it, a white light erupting from within. Then it blew out, showering the surrounding area with giant pieces of rock. A massive, mushroom-shaped cloud filled the horizon where the mountain had once stood. Then the shockwave hit the mesa, shaking it about like a ragdoll, sending both Sheik and Vorpheus sprawling on the ground, both of them holding on for dear life.

The air roared around them, the echo of the fallen mountain reached their position. If their eardrums hadn't burst yet, they could probably do now. Sheik was certain the mesa was going to crack apart as well, or they could possibly be shaken off. But then it stilled, and the world became quiet once again. Perhaps even quieter than it was before they had arrived in the mountains.

Sheik slowly picked himself up from the ground, staring wide-eyed at the cloud in the distance. He pulled down his mask, jaw having dropped long ago, unable to believe what he had just witnessed. "Wh…what…"

He heard Vorpheus approach from behind, breathing heavily and coughing slightly. "I wouldn't breathe in the fumes, if I were you," he said. Sheik looked at him and saw that he had wrapped a long piece of cloth around his face. He quickly pulled up his facemask again.

"What did you just do?" asked Sheik, looking back at the brown and gray wall of smoke and ash, which was filling more and more of the horizon as the seconds passed.

"From what I can see, I just blew up a mountain," said Vorpheus jovially, his eyes crinkling from the smile hidden by his mask. "Can't say it was easy either…gathering the right energies and making sure that—"

"You just blew up a mountain!" exclaimed Sheik, his mouth finally catching up with his brain. "I can't believe you just did that! You blew up that mountain!"

"Yes, I did," said Vorpheus calmly, sweat covering his brow. "And you are obviously in shock."

The sun was being blocked out by the mushroom cloud now, casting the mountain range into darkness. He calmly put a hand on Sheik's shoulder and gently guided the Sheikah away; making sure that he wasn't looking at the explosion site. He had Sheik slowly sit down on the ground, and then crouched down in front of him, taking off his gauntlet. Then he slapped Sheik in the face a few times.

"Now, I need you to calm down," said Vorpheus, "and realise that what I just did…the technique for it…is something that never should have been discovered. But my teacher and his teachers…they were a destructive bunch. And before you emerge from the, you know, the little shell you've currently built around yourself, I will say that I have _never_ done something like this before. And the mountain was uninhabited. No one was harmed, I can assure you."

"I…I…" said Sheik, unable to come to grips with what he had just witnessed. "Why?" he finally managed to say.

"Why the technique was invented, or why I did it?" asked Vorpheus.

"…both…"

"Well, I cannot say for sure why my teacher's teacher's teacher's teacher decided to see how much energy he could gather in his body before unleashing hell upon anyone unfortunate enough to be within his line of sight—be it man or mountain—and basically vaporising them, but I am quite certain that some sort of war was involved. That's the funny thing about war…nothing encourages scientific or magical development like it." Vorpheus sat down next to Sheik, sighing a bit. "As for why I just used it to blow up that innocent little mountain over there…well, I needed to do something that would certainly draw Ganondorf's attention."

"What?" asked Sheik, finally regaining some cognitive power over his own body. "Why would you do that? Have you turned against us?" He weakly reached for the hilt of Kazuya, but Vorpheus batted his hand away with a grin.

"Of course I haven't," said the warlock cheerfully. "I gave my word when I said I abandoned him and his ways. No, the Evil King himself has not set foot outside his fortress or citadel or whatever the bloody hell you want to call that spiffy little thing, for the past seven years. For a time, I was wondering if he had suddenly decided to root himself to the place, but he just enjoys it too much to leave, apparently. Besides, if I wanted to draw his attention to this place and have him come here, then I would have convinced the Hero to come here instead of you. No offence, but I believe that the constant thorn in his side would be a far more efficient reconciliation gift than you."

"So what am I?" asked Sheik, remembering a little saying Link had taught him during their travels in the desert, but had refused to ever utter again because of the sheer ridiculousness of it. "Chopped liver?"

"Compared to the Hero of Time, yes," said Vorpheus. "Anyway, what I am hoping to accomplish here is to draw his attention, and then have him send Dehl here. The shockwave will probably have been felt in Hyrule by now, and the Evil King is most likely trying to find out what it is. It will only be a matter of a short time before someone shows up here. And then," he said and pulled out the Nullifier from his pouch, "I will be ready to neutralise any remaining magical reservoir here."

Sheik raised an eyebrow, relieved to finally be able to feel his face again. "This plan of yours relies rather heavily on circumstance, does it not?"

"Well, I have always considered myself a rather lucky fellow," said Vorpheus. "Besides, I did a thorough check on my…hm, my comrades of the magical persuasion when I was still working for Ganondorf, and none of them are powerful enough to find this place, much less warp all the way over here. Only Dehl is of that strength."

"Well, then I hope for both our sakes that your Nullifier works," said Sheik. He had stopped shaking. He stood up and turned to face the mushroom cloud again. It had reached far above the regular cloud cover now. "How long will that thing mar the horizon?" he asked.

"Hours, days, weeks," said Vorpheus, shrugging. "Depends on factors such as wind speed, rainfall…"

"Do you think it can be seen all the way from Hyrule?"

"Most likely, though from the angle…hm, they'll probably have some sun as well. But have no doubt that everyone within a diameter of…oh, say a thousand miles, will be able to see that cloud."

"Huh," said Sheik. His hand wasn't itching, for once. He wondered why.

* * *

A couple of hours passed by in which neither of the two spoke to each other. They only stared at the still ascending cloud. Dust and ash had begun to fall over the mountain range, which Vorpheus explained was dangerous to breathe in by tapping his scarf-turned-mask. He hadn't asked, but Sheik had a feeling that the remains of the mountain were raining down upon them.

It had made the Sheikah look at Vorpheus in a completely new light. At first, while grateful that he had saved his life, Sheik had not believed that Vorpheus was as powerful as he liked to boast. He had certainly not seen any evidence of it, save for the morphing of his hair and skin, but that was, as Kaura had aptly put, a cheap conjurer's trick. But now…now Sheik saw that the man Caspar Ejil, if he saw fit, could easily decide to destroy anyone he met.

The warlock winced suddenly, and turned around, staring at the flat top of the mesa. Sheik noticed and did so too. "Is there something wrong?" Sheik asked.

"No…everything is right, actually," said Vorpheus. "Someone is establishing a connection to this place."

"Dehl?" asked Sheik.

"Yes," whispered Vorpheus. He was holding the Nullifier in his hand, barely visible between his fingers. "And now for the moment of truth…"

"Speaking of the truth," said Sheik slowly as he stared at the small, glowing white spot that had suddenly popped into life just a few feet above the ground. "What exactly are you planning to do here?"

"A family talk, that's all," said Vorpheus.

With a loud **Fvoom** , the portal erupted into life, a black doorway seemingly tearing a hole in reality appearing in front of them. Something was approaching from within at great speed. Sheik needed only one glimpse of very varied hair colours to identify the form as Dehl's. The sorceress hit the ground running, a great ball of flame already forming in her hands as she charged forward.

Vorpheus did not wait. Without further ado, he threw the Nullifier into the air and let a bolt of lightning strike it. Sheik had to admit that was impressive, even though he had feeling that Vorpheus had been the originator of that lightning rather than mother nature. The effect was instantaneous. Sheik felt another shockwave hit him, almost tearing him off his feet and into the canyon below. His entire body tingled slightly again, but it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

Dehl was just about to hurl the first fireball when it suddenly disappeared in her hand, the other following suit right after. She stopped running, pausing to stare at the two gathered before she brought her hands together with a clap, closing her eyes in concentration. When nothing happened, her eyes opened and an angry expression came over here. She glared at her grandfather.

"What did you _do_?" she asked icily.

Vorpheus only smiled sadly. "Granddaughter, it is good to see you again. And your balance has returned. That is great."

"What did you do?!" Dehl asked again, shouting at him. She had only eyes for Vorpheus it seemed; apparently not even noticing Sheik where he stood just a few feet away from her grandfather.

Vorpheus sighed. "Do you remember the chapter in the journal that spoke of the Nullifier?" he asked.

Dehl's eyes widened. "No…you didn't build one?"

"I'm afraid I did, granddaughter, and only so I could do this."

Dehl didn't answer. Instead, she reached inside her shirt, pulling out a wicked-looking dagger, which seemed to have been made more to appear dangerous and threatening than for practicality. She made to rush forward again, but Vorpheus held out a hand to make her stop, gesturing to Sheik as he spoke:

"That is not something I would recommend, Dehl," he said. "For you see, my friend here is a Sheikah, and one of the most lethal melee fighters in the entire world. The outcome of a battle between you two would not turn out in your favour. I know you are not stupid enough to try."

Sheik, recognising that it was time to play his part, steeled his gaze and glared at Dehl with as much malice and silent hatred as he could. He found that it was surprisingly easy to do so. But then again, this girl had been responsible for many deaths in the Forest Temple camp. Just for added effect, he drew Kazuya and rested it on his shoulder. Had there been any sun, he would have made sure to catch a few rays and reflect them in her eyes, but this pose would have to do, for now. Vorpheus didn't spare him a glance, but Dehl's eyes quickly flitted back and forth between them, her gaze inevitably falling on Sheik's blade. For a brief moment, Sheik saw the fear of that blade reflected in her eyes. Then she scoffed, hiding it behind an angry exterior and looked at Vorpheus.

"What the hell do you want, then?" she asked. "Or did you just want to kill me and brought someone else to do the job for you? You always were a coward, Vorpheus."

"Please, Dehl, I am not here to hurt you, and neither is he," said Vorpheus pleadingly. "I…I just wanted to…talk to you."

"You and I have nothing to discuss," said Dehl, huffing. "Remove the nullifying spell immediately."

"I cannot," said Vorpheus. Sheik saw a small, almost unnoticeable grin slip onto the warlock's face as he said this, probably proud of his plan. "Don't you remember what the journal said? It can only dispel itself after a certain amount of time has passed."

"Then I shall leave here on my own," said Dehl, scoffing. She then turned around and headed straight for one of the roads that led down from the mesa, not even acknowledging that her grandfather had blown up a mountain. Sheik looked at Vorpheus, who nodded to him. He sighed and stepped forward.

"Miss, I am afraid I cannot allow you to leave until you have heard him out," he called to Dehl, who whirled around, glaring at him.

"Hold your tongue, _boy_ , lest you want it removed when we meet again," she said and continued to walk away.

Vorpheus looked pleadingly at Sheik, who sighed again and began to run, quickly catching up to Dehl. She heard his footsteps, turned around again with an angry expression, but found herself face to face with a _very_ shiny sword. "I highly suggest, miss," said Sheik slowly, "that you turn around, walk back and listen to what he has to say. And then you are more than welcome to leave." He was struggling not to simply shove the blade through her throat, knowing that she had helped Speil, had shown him where the Delta Force was.

Dehl grimaced, but nodded. "Fine, but I'm warning you, Sheikah, if I ever see you again after this, I will destroy you."

"You are not the first to say that," said Sheik, allowing her to pass by, slowly walking back to Vorpheus. "And neither will you be the last," he whispered to himself afterwards as he followed her. He took up his position close to Vorpheus again, but sheathed Kazuya this time. Better not add fuel to the fire, as the old saying went.

"Fine, what do you want?" asked Dehl.

"I wish to discuss…alliances," said Vorpheus simply.

"Alliances?"

"Yes. Granddaughter, truly you have seen the way the wind blows these days. The war in Hyrule—"

"Shall soon be over, yes," said Dehl, nodding. "But the victor will not be your side, Vorpheus. You and I both know that the pathetic Hyrulian Remnant and the princess you follow simply cannot stand up to the combined might of Ganondorf the Great's armies. If you do not surrender, you will all be crushed underneath them."

"As a matter of fact," said Vorpheus, "the chances of the Evil King winning now seem exceedingly slim. The Hero of Time has gathered all his strength, has taken back what was his and is now, at last, at full strength. No matter how powerful a sorcerer Ganondorf is, he will not be able to defeat the power of the Hero. It is decreed by the Goddesses that he shall win this fight."

"I thought you were an atheist," said Dehl. "Besides, you and I both know that the Goddesses have left this world once and for all. The only thing they left behind was the Triforce, and the most powerful piece belongs to my lord." She seemed to cleanly ignore the fact that Link had managed to take back his piece of the Triforce from Speil.

"I do not believe in gods who have not left behind evidence of their actions," said Vorpheus. "But the Din, Farore and Nayru did. And there is no piece of the Triforce that is stronger than the others. It depends entirely on the user and their strength of will."

"Either way, old man, Ganondorf is far stronger than the other holders, including your precious Hero of Time. My lord will crush him like an ant," Dehl said, clenching her fist in front of her. "There is just a matter of time."

"A matter of time before the Evil King's plan fails miserably and blows up in his face," said Vorpheus. "The entirety of Hyrule stands united against him now. We will strike at him when he least expects it."

"Is that so?" asked Dehl. "How do you expect to accomplish that with three entire legions bearing down upon you in that pitiful forest you hide in?"

"Always expect the unexpected," said Vorpheus, tapping the side of his nose. "Remember when Teacher said tha—"

"Don't you mention him!" screamed Dehl suddenly. "You have no right!"

"He was my teacher as well as yours," said Vorpheus. "Granted, he and I were not as close as you were, but—"

"Shut up!"

"Granddaughter, listen to me!" shouted Vorpheus. "The war _is_ ending! Ganondorf _will_ lose! And what will you end up with? Unless you manage to escape, you will most likely be put to the sword! Please, stop this folly."

"Why are you telling me this?" asked Dehl. "Did my father put you up to this, before he died, I mean?" She grinned as she spoke, as if the act of patricide was no stranger than, say, weeding out one's garden.

"Milo has nothing to do with this," said Vorpheus carelessly, though Sheik saw him wince when his son's name was brought up. "I am doing this for you, for us…for our family."

"I spit on my so-called 'family'!" exclaimed Dehl. "A bunch of backstabbing, traitorous curs, all of you!"

Vorpheus sighed. "Is there really no more love left in you, Mil—"

"Don't you dare call me by that name!" screamed Dehl.

Vorpheus looked at Sheik, shrugging. "There is no getting through to her, I suppose…"

Dehl was breathing heavily. Her outburst had been rather loud, and was still echoing in the mountain range. "I am done here, Vorpheus. You had better pray that I do not find you again after this, for your punishment for what you have done will be slow and painful." With that, she turned around and headed for the road again. Sheik made to stop her again, but Vorpheus shook his head. Dehl suddenly stopped again, and turned around, looking at Sheik. "And congratulations on obtaining the Delta Force, Sheikah…it will be your death." And then she was gone, her form disappearing over the lip of the mesa.

Vorpheus finally relaxed, his posture sagging. "That was…harder than I thought it would be," he said. He sunk down to the ground, sitting in a somewhat disorganised heap of armour and arms and legs.

"And all for nothing, it seems," said Sheik. "She would not listen to you and abandon the Evil King."

"That was actually never my goal here," said Vorpheus. "I have long given up on convincing my granddaughter of giving up her evil ways. I have resigned myself to the fact that she and I will be mortal enemies for as long as either of us lives."

"Then what was the point?" asked Sheik. "What was the point of removing an entire mountain from existence?"

"It's a wonder how many small details people forget or overlook when they are angry enough," said Vorpheus and tapped his scarf again. He had never removed it during the conversation with Dehl. "This entire place will be covered with the dust and ashes of the mountain…"

"Which is poisonous," said Sheik slowly, the realisation dawning upon him. "You were trying to kill her!"

"Not necessarily kill her," said Vorpheus, "but at least weaken her enough. The interior of that mountain was filled with a…rather dangerous metal, which was vaporised in the blast. It will take some time for the dust and ashes to affect her, but she has inhaled enough of it to…make her considerably sick."

"For what reason?" asked Sheik. "I could easily have struck her down…I still can, in fact. She could not be far away."

"Because _I_ want to be the one who kills her," said Vorpheus. "She is my granddaughter…she is my nemesis…my responsibility."

"So why not kill her now? I am sure that, if you did it quickly, you would be able to throttle her and take her down. You can even borrow my sword, if you want—"

"No, it must be a magical duel," said Vorpheus. "That is the only way…the only way I want it to happen."

"I cannot say I approve of this plan of yours," said Sheik.

"Few would, I suppose," said Vorpheus.

"Abstaining from removing a target of opportunity of great threat to Hyrule is something I find hard to do," said Sheik and sat down. His new armour was truly excellent to move around in, he realised. "And I am not sure if I can control myself lest I was given something to…think about," he said slowly, hinting.

"What is that you want to know?" asked Vorpheus, sighing.

"The entire, true story about you, your family, Dehl and your teacher. I have a feeling you left out many details when you first told me your story back in the Lost Woods," said Sheik. He adjusted his mask, hoping that it was truly keeping out the poisonous fallout.

Vorpheus nodded. "I suppose you have earned your right to know," he said. "Well, first of all, my granddaughter's true name is Millicent, though you will not hear that from her. As for my story, here is how it goes…"

* * *

Link, Zelda and Tao had retreated to the meeting room in Zelda's tent. As Link had begun to tell Zelda of the strange triangle on Sheik's hand, the princess had sent for her books and notes, which were now being piled high on the table as servant after servant came in, carrying more than their weight in paper and bindings. Tao looked on with interest, adjusting his belt every few seconds, as if thoroughly unused to the merits of one.

"So what you are saying is," said Zelda as she began to pick through her notes, "that you think there has been another part of the Triforce all along? That there has been a piece missing for hundreds of years?"

"That's not what I'm saying at all," said Link. "I just…I'm just saying what I think, that's all. The triangle's shape fits in with the rest of the Triforce, and it looks too…real, to be a fake. Who would build an entire temple, carving it out of a mountainside, just to worship a fake piece?"

"Swindlers, for one," said Zelda. "I have never heard of such a piece, Link, and my family is the most well-versed in Hyrule's history. As far as I know, there has never been a fourth piece of the Triforce…even the name _Triforce_ wouldn't make sense if there was a fourth piece."

"Unless the fourth piece was hidden," said Link triumphantly, flashing a grin. Tao imitated him, grinning at Zelda.

Zelda stared at them both. "I think I'm beginning to see a mistake in my taste of clothing here," she said slowly.

Whatever Link was going to say next was swallowed up by a loud rumble. The ground began to shake slightly, toppling the massive pile of notes on the table to the floor, scattering it all over. Link thought quickly and jumped from his chair, grabbing Tao on the way and crouched down. Zelda did the same. The earthquake was relatively weak, and it was over within seconds. Link opened his eyes, not realising he had even closed them, and looked at Tao, who was looking up at him with a confused face.

"What was that?" he asked, standing up.

"An earthquake, I think," said Zelda. "But I have never heard of them occurring here in the valley…"

They became aware of a massive murmur and the sounds of confused shouting from the outside. A servant came running inside the meeting room. Your Highness! Your Highness! Are you alright?" he asked, panicked.

"Yes, I'm fine, Milton," said Zelda. "What about the others?"

"Everyone seems fine, Your Highness," said Milton, breathing a sigh of relief. "But there is something you must see outside," he added.

Zelda and Link exchanged a look before the princess nodded and followed the servant, Link and Tao on her heels.

It was impossible to miss. In the north, a massive cloud had risen, threatening to block out the sun at any moment. Zelda stared at it, jaw falling open. "What is that?" she asked.

A soldier came running up to the guards in front of the tent, gesturing wildly and shouting over. Link couldn't hear what he was saying, but knew that it couldn't be good. The royal guard nodded and came over to them, bowing to Zelda.

"Your Highness," he said, "we have received a report from an eyewitness. He requests to give it to you."

"Yes, yes, send him over," said Zelda absentmindedly as she continued to stare at the cloud. The soldier came over, bowing to Zelda just as her guard had done.

"Your Highness," he said. He was shaking, his armour clattering wherever plates knocked against each other.

"Report," said Zelda.

"The mountain, Your Highness…one of the peaks to the north…it just exploded, Your Highness!"

"Exploded?" asked Zelda, looking at the man. "What do you mean?"

"Some kind of light hit it, Your Highness," said the soldier. "And then…cracks appeared all over. I watched it through my eyeglass. Then…bang. It exploded. It took at least a minute for the sound and shaking to reach us here!"

Zelda nodded to the soldier. "Thank you, private." The soldier bowed again and disappeared among the gathered, all of them staring at the rising cloud. "Goddesses…" she whispered.

Link felt a tug at his tights and looked down, realising that Tao hadn't seen anything and was eagerly trying to jump up and down in order to gain a view. He bent down and picked the boy up, lifting him so that he could see. "What could have caused it?" he asked Zelda.

"I don't know, Link," said Zelda slowly. "But I am starting to think that sending Sheik off with Vorpheus alone was a bad idea…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 107**

* * *

"…and really, I have no idea what set her off at that time, but there she was, throwing her mother around in the air like some ragdoll, the woman shrieking her lungs out and laughing at the same time. And then, gently, just like a flower, Millicent lets her down, and smiles at our teacher." Vorpheus leaned backwards, resting his weight on his elbows. "And he smiles right back, despite having just used magic for…well, perhaps not evil, but I doubt my daughter-in-law appreciated it very much, especially when she vomited over the entire kitchen."

Sheik hadn't really gotten the answers he wanted. When he asked about the background for the entire interfamilial conflict, the warlock had started to spout off stories about Dehl and her rather rebellious, youthful use of magic to annoy, amuse or simply torture those around her. Of course, the girl hadn't really been malevolent, only playful, having just been given access to the greatest powers of the world. He rolled his eyes as Vorpheus began on yet another tale of teenaged tomfoolery, wondering if the old man was aware of just how annoying he was being.

"Is this going somewhere?" he finally asked when the warlock finally stopped talking for a few seconds. "I'm sorry, but your little stories have little to no relevance to my request. I asked for the reason she hates you so much, yet you begin to spout off stories of her mischievous youth?"

Vorpheus looked at him with annoyance, probably wondering why today's youths were so impatient. "Believe me or not, these stories have relevance…but from your arguments, it is obvious that you are not listening."

"I _am_ listening," said Sheik drily, "and all I hear is rubbish."

"Then, if you have been listening, perhaps you can tell me what the single, unifying element of these stories has been?" asked Vorpheus. He brushed a rather large spore of dust off his shoulder. The ash rain was intensifying, and the dark clouds above were starting to look rather threatening. Lightning still struck every few minutes, though in a much smaller scale than before.

Sheik snorted and opened his mouth to answer—but found that he had nothing. Truth be told, he hadn't really been paying attention to the stories as he found them massively boring and uninformative. If he wanted to know about a young girl's first magical exploits, all he needed was to remember the time Zelda had been trained to use magic for the first time. That had been quite…interesting. Of course, Zelda did little of it these days, both because she had fallen out of practice and because of…well, she had not seen active combat in which she would have had the opportunity for years. The Forest Temple battle had been over too quickly, and Sheik doubted Zelda had any spells capable of taking on entire armies at once. He noticed that Vorpheus was looking at him with a triumphant grin, and he sighed, shaking his head.

"Can't think of anything," he muttered. In the distance, there was a rumble as some of the hollowed out husk that remained of the destroyed mountain's base crumbled into more dust. Mother Nature would not be happy about this. But then again, the entire being of Vorpheus the Immortal was basically a crime against nature, and nothing seemed to have taken him down yet. Perhaps she had a soft spot for him. _What the hell am I thinking?_ he wondered seconds after as Vorpheus' grin only widened.

"Hah, I knew it! You weren't paying attention at all!"

"Are you going to gloat about it, or are you going to actually tell me so that we, you know, can actually get somewhere with this conversation?" Sheik adjusted his position. He was sitting cross-legged, in perfect balance, Kazuya sheathed and lying in his lap. He had been _so_ close to putting an end to Dehl once and for all…

"I might as well tell you," said Vorpheus, his voice a bit disappointed. "The unifying element in the stories is a person. Our teacher, to be exact." When Sheik didn't say anything, Vorpheus sighed. "Don't you understand? All those things she did, the beautiful, the good, the bad, the ugly…it was all for him. She did everything to impress him, to catch his attention, to garner his praise…"

Sheik blinked, bits finally clicking into place. "She was in love with him?"

"I am not so sure if it could be called love, Dehl being so young at the time and he…well…"

"How old was he?"

"At the time of his death, our teacher was reaching his forty-fifth year of living," said Vorpheus. "Why he wanted me, a man twice his age, as his apprentice, I do not know, but I was the one who reaped the benefits of it."

"And your teacher…did he feel the same about Milli—Dehl?" Sheik asked, correcting himself. Her name was Dehl, she was the enemy. She had never been a normal fourteen-year-old girl by the name of Millicent.

"I have no idea," said Vorpheus, shaking his head slowly. "I asked him about it, and all he did was grin at me and tell me it was a teenaged infatuation, and that it would soon pass. He talked and talked, eventually confusing me enough to forget about my original question. But now that I think about it…no, I don't think he loved her like that. He loved her as an apprentice, yes, but nothing more. But she was clearly the favourite of our little trio."

"So what happened?" asked Sheik, slowly raising an eyebrow, anxious to finally get the question off his chest. "What made her hate you so?"

"Well, just so we are clear, it was not the frozen aging process," said Vorpheus almost jovially, clearly covering something up. "No, she was never upset about that."

"Then why?" asked Sheik.

"Do you remember what I told you about the prevalent anti-magic sentiment that the population held at the time?" At Sheik's nod, Vorpheus continued: "Well, that sentiment was shared by quite a number of my family members. While I, as the patriarch, was able to quell any rebellion that started in my own home, I began to fear for my teacher's life. As a desperate measure to bring him to safety, I leaked the information that he was a sorcerer to the authorities."

 _I knew it,_ thought Sheik, his face remaining neutral. _He betrayed him…_

"Please, do not think badly of me," said Vorpheus, holding up a hand in defence. "I did because I thought our teacher would be safer behind bars in a prison than out in the open where most of the villagers knew what he was, yet dared not let the authorities know lest there be reprisals. They came for him while we were looking at the markets one dreary Wednesday afternoon. He saw them come before I, and he quickly handed me his journal, unseen by the soldiers.

"'Take care of this until I return,' he said," said Vorpheus, mimicking a much younger voice. "I nodded and took the journal, and the soldiers took the teacher away. I expected him to receive a long prison sentence, but no…they executed him the same day, and he didn't even try to get away."

"And you had his journal," said Sheik, wondering if there was something Vorpheus was trying to slip by him yet again. "Which I am sure you had wanted for yourself."

Vorpheus grinned and tapped the side of nose knowingly. "You are sharper than I took you for, Master Sheikah. Yes, I wanted that journal; I wanted all the knowledge, not just what he taught us. But I never wished for his death. He was my friend."

He turned his head to look at the mushroom cloud. It had ceased ascending and was now gently cascading down, covering the valleys below in an ugly, grey-brown-coloured mist. _That_ was probably poisonous as well, and Sheik wondered if it would be a good idea to start moving before they were overtaken by it.

"And then what?" asked Sheik.

"Millicent was devastated, of course. For days, she refused to interact with any family members, including her father and me. Someone in the family, I am still not sure exactly who, found out that I had leaked the information, and I was…well, I was almost celebrated. Millicent must have found out, for she avoided me even more following that. At this point, I was getting rather desperate with repairing our relationship as grandfather and granddaughter, so I searched through the journal and found—"

"The resurrection spell," said Sheik, seeing where this was going.

"Exactly," said Vorpheus, giving him a thumbs-up sign. "I showed it to Millicent—would you like me to call her Dehl? You wince every time I say Millicent—okay, I showed it to Dehl, who immediately began to prepare for the ritual. And that would have been it, really. We would have resurrected our teacher, and our learning would continue."

"But then you found something else in the journal, right?" asked Sheik.

"Yes," said Vorpheus, looking at the ground. "I found the secret to immortality. All it required was a botched resurrection ritual, and the energies of the deceased would flow into everyone that had gathered, strengthening them and stopping their biological clocks. Neither Milo nor Dehl knew of this, and I…well, I am ashamed to say that I, wilfully and with intent, sabotaged the ritual."

Sheik shook his head slowly. "You're a monster," he said slowly. "You deliberately destroyed your teacher's soul so that you and your son and granddaughter could gain immortality…without them even knowing."

"Guilty as charged," said Vorpheus. "And do you know what? I would do it again. My teacher, despite our friendship, was a horrible man. Sure, he was kind and gentle to his apprentices, but to everyone else, he was a cold, emotionless prick. Before he came into my life, he had killed many people indiscriminately with his own teacher, who he had then—yup, you guessed it—murdered to gain his journal and the secrets of the many masters before him. I _needed_ to get that journal. I _needed_ to destroy him."

"Why?" asked Sheik. "So that you could train someone else and have the exact same thing happen to you?"

"No," said Vorpheus, shaking his head. "History is, as they say, doomed to repeat itself, but I was ready to take this particular page and rip it out of the book forever. The journal, I intend to use it until the day I die…and then I will destroy it, wiping out the knowledge of this terrible magic once and for all." As he said this, he pointed to the destroyed mountain. "I may be a hypocrite and a coward for not destroying it at once, but as long as there is someone like Dehl, someone trained and knowledgeable of these terrible arts, running around and causing trouble, I must stop them. And that I cannot do without this journal."

Sheik blinked, his head spinning slightly. "So you killed your teacher and stole his magical journal in order to stop a never-ending cycle of students killing their teachers in order to steal their magical journals…and now you won't end it until you have killed your own granddaughter?" He untangled from his position and stood up, stretching. "I am sorry to say it, but it sounds ridiculous."

"And perhaps it is," said Vorpheus. "But that is the way it is. Dehl must die, and she is already on her way, given that she has breathed in the fumes here. And one can only hope that she slipped and fell on her way down from here…"

"Speaking of slipping and falling," said Sheik, looking down at the valleys from the mesa. "How exactly are you planning on getting _us_ out of here? I am not confident in my ability to traverse and climb this terrain."

"You won't have to, dear boy," said Vorpheus, also standing up. "The Nullifier's effect should be wearing out quite soon."

"Tell me how the Nullifier works," said Sheik suddenly. If Vorpheus could build more of those, then the Remnant would have a significant advantage against Ganondorf's forces.

"I can see what you are thinking, and I am afraid I must disappoint you," said Vorpheus. "It took me years to build the one I used here, and I doubt I would be able to gather the necessary materials for another one in such a short time. We will have to make do without it in the upcoming battle."

"Fine," said Sheik, his spirits sunk slightly. "Then, how does it work? How can such a little thing neutralise all use of magic in such a large area?"

"Basically, it acts like a net," said Vorpheus. "You see, when the sphere is broken, a shockwave of interwoven magical energies is released. What happens then is that all natural ambient magical energy—the energy all magicians draw upon in order to use their craft—is pushed away by the expanding sphere. As long as the sphere is in place, magical energy cannot enter the area."

"So this area is, for all intents and purposes, completely dead at this moment?" asked Sheik. The thought made him shudder. A region can be as arid, deserted, dry and sandy as possible, and yet life will find a way to work there, mostly thanks to the ambient energy that is always working in the background. But the Nullifier basically killed an entire area, leaving nothing that could grow, generate life or anything else. It was…unnatural.

"Well, it is only a temporary state of…hm, dead," said Vorpheus. "As soon as the sphere breaks, the energy will flow back."

"And when does that happen?" asked Sheik.

"Should be just about any minute now, actually," said Vorpheus and closed his eyes.

It was impossible to hear, but Sheik could _feel_ the energy returning, filling the very air around him, making his body tingle in that strange and not completely unpleasant way. He felt his knees give way and fell to the ground, Vorpheus not far after him, both their breaths knocked out of them.

"I naturally…forgot…to say that…the…returning energies…are powerful…when in force," said Vorpheus, breathing heavily. Surprisingly though, he was the first on his feet, and Sheik took the offered hand and was pulled up.

"Want to know a secret?" asked Sheik as he felt Vorpheus begin opening a portal.

"What is it?" asked the warlock, an intense look of concentration on his face.

"I think I hate you."

"Welcome to the club," said Vorpheus.

* * *

"Careful, careful, _careful_!" shouted a man as a heavily laden cart was being pulled up a bumpy road in the camp. The men were hard at work making room for the large amount of Gerudo that would be showing up soon, and while some were quite against the idea of sharing their campsite with the thieves, others were…quite into it, really. The cart tipped over, spilling weapons, tents, food, armour and other objects onto the road. The man who had been supervising exploded. "What soddin' part of 'careful' don't you bloody oafs understand?!" he shrieked to the sheepish-looking boys who had been pushing the cart. "You're all useless!"

Link, Tao and Zelda were watching the spectacle, trying to put the massive cloud of smoke to the north out of their heads. Well, at least Link and Zelda were trying to. No one knew what Tao was thinking as he silently laughed at the angry man. Link was chuckling, and even Zelda found it hard not to grin at the sheer ridiculousness of such a tiny little man easily shaming six young, big and strong men into submission. It was better than the street theatres he had seen in Castle Town, Link decided.

Zelda suddenly clicked her tongue. "So, about this hidden Triforce piece…"

"Hm?" asked Link. "What about it?"

"You tell me," said Zelda. "You're the one who came up with the theory. And you too, of course, sweetie," she added when Tao looked up at her with a slightly insulted expression.

"Well, that's all I really can come up with," said Link sheepishly. "I have no idea what it does."

Zelda tried her best, she really did, but she was unable to hold in the words. "Well, then that is a rather…bad theory, Link."

"Let's just ask Sheik when he gets back, then," said Link, ignoring the possibility that the Sheikah had been involved in the mountain explosion. "Enough of this hiding nonsense."

"Speak of the devil," said Zelda and pointed further down the street, where a pair of familiar figures were walking down, both covered from head to toe in dust and wearing masks. Link was relieved to see no injuries on Sheik, but there was also something slightly…suspicious about it. Either way, he wordlessly picked up Tao and jogged over to them, Zelda following closely behind flanked by her guards.

Vorpheus waved widely as they approached, Sheik acknowledging them with a nod. In a single movement, they both pulled their masks down, revealing faces red with flush and sweat, the masks allowing little heat to escape over such a long time. Link stopped a few paces away, smiling. "'Bout time you came back," he said. He set Tao down, who immediately ran for Sheik, apparently hell-bent on barrelling the Sheikah to the ground. Sheik was quicker and stronger, however, and picked the boy up before he could do any damage.

"Okay," he said slowly, studying Tao closely, "who is responsible for this little chameleon?"

"That would be our princess here," said Link and jerked a thumb to Zelda, who slapped said digit away. Sheik would have cut it off had it not been for who Link was. Sheik smiled and put Tao down.

"Well, they fit him better than they did Link," he said. "And he doesn't look like he is wearing a little dress with a skirt on top."

"Hey!" said Link.

Zelda looked them up and down, noting the dust and generally dishevelled look about them. She then looked back at the cloud. The sun was beginning to be obscured by it, its rays barely being allowed through the filter. "I assume that you two have something to do with that?" she asked and pointed.

Vorpheus had the decency go grin embarrassedly. "Yeah, I suppose _I_ can take the blame for that one."

"What did you _do_?" asked Link.

"I would say it's quite obvious from the looks of it," said Vorpheus, "but since you obviously need it fed to you with a teaspoon: I blew up the mountain."

What followed were a series of unbelieving statements from the Hero and a series of confirming statements from the warlock. Sheik tuned them out and studied Tao a bit closer. It really was like looking at a seven years younger Link, only with the obvious differences in hair and skin colour. And, of course, the lack of weapons strapped to his back, though the boy had found a stick he was digging in the sand with, for reasons known only to children. There was something odd here…the boy was not even reacting to Vorpheus' presence, barely acknowledging that he was there with an uninterested shrug. This was the same boy who seemed to be nervous about everyone _else_ in the camp excluding himself, Link, Zelda and Kaura. He looked up and noticed that Zelda was staring at him with unusually hard eyes, as if expecting him to fess up with something.

 _So, Link told you, did he?_ Sheik thought. _Well, I do not know enough about this Delta Force to tell you just yet…_

The seemingly infinite repeat of "Nuh-uh!" and "Oh, yes I did!" finally ceased after a few minutes, at which point Link and Vorpheus were glaring at each other.

"It's true, Link, he did blow up that mountain," Sheik finally said.

Zelda sighed. "This is going to be one interesting day, isn't it?" she asked herself. "First we get a notice that Gerudo are going to arrive ahead of schedule, and then the mountain explodes, and now I have a megalomaniac warlock under my command…" She turned and headed for her tent, waving for them to follow. "I suppose you have a report for me?" she asked.

"Not a report per se," said Vorpheus, "but a pair of eyewitness accounts to an incredible happening…as well as an update on my granddaughter."

* * *

"So you basically left your granddaughter, your own flesh and blood, wandering that mountain range in poisonous fallout from a vaporised metal that lay inside the mountain you made explode to draw her to you…and yet you did not have Sheik kill her when she was powerless thanks to this…Nullifier, was it?" asked Zelda. She rubbed her temples, wondering why she kept accepting so many strange people into her army.

"That would be the gist of it, Your Highness," said Vorpheus from his side of the table.

"May I ask _why_?"

"If I say 'for fun', will you laugh?" asked the warlock.

"No."

"Then I wont' say that. No, the truth of the matter is that I have a rather personal score to settle with that girl, and I wanted to make sure that, in our next and final battle, I will be the one to emerge victorious."

"So it was all basically…a dishonourable poisoning disguised as an honourable wish for peace talk?" asked Zelda. "Goddesses…I swear, my hair will turn grey before this war is over."

"And mine black…" Sheik muttered to himself.

"But, as I said, Your Highness, it was a success. There is no way Dehl could have gotten away from that mountain range—even after the use of magic became available again—without slowly poisoning herself by breathing in the fallout. I can assure you that the next time she and I meet will be the last."

"I should hope so," said Zelda. "So, besides permanently scarring the world and polluting an entire mountain region, what else have you done?"

"Nothing, really," said Vorpheus. "We talked, shot the breeze, killed some time…"

"Talked about what?" asked Link.

"Everything and nothing, life and death, the universe and emptiness…" As Vorpheus prattled on, the princess and the Hero looked to Sheik for confirmation, who nodded.

"We really did just talk," said Sheik.

"I didn't know you were capable of small talk, Sheik," said Zelda, grinning at the annoyed look that spread on her friend's face. "I'm surprised you haven't cut out his tongue for annoying you with it."

* * *

"Right, so what happens now?" asked Link. Vorpheus had excused himself, disappearing into the camp somewhere, leaving the four others sitting in Zelda's tent. They were sharing a large pitcher of water at the moment, all of them realising how thirsty they were. Tao kept looking at Sheik and smiling. Sheik found himself suddenly embarrassed whenever he caught the youngster's eyes with his own. Really, the resemblance between the boy and the Hero was _uncanny_.

"Well, the Gerudo should be here in a matter of hours according to our scouts," said Zelda. "And I assume Aveil and Ayla will arrive some time ahead to give us a heads-up…"

"And after that?" asked Link.

"Apparently, the Gerudo want to arrange some sort of celebration using their meagre remains of food and such…at least, that's what Aveil's message says."

"A party?" asked Link hopefully, giving Sheik a look that immediately made unpleasant memories resurface in the Sheikah's mind.

"I suppose you could call it that, yes," said Zelda. She noticed the looks her two friends were giving each other. "What's this about?" she asked.

"Well, you remember what I told you happened the last time we partied with the Ge—"

Link wasn't able to finish his sentence, for Sheik had stood up, slapped his hand over Link's mouth and dragged him out of the tent, leaving a confused Zelda and an amused Tao. The princess looked at the boy, who looked right back at her. "I don't think I will ever understand those two," she said. Tao nodded solemnly.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 108**

* * *

There was quite an uproar when Aveil and Ayla returned to the camp, this time flanked by an additional dozen soldiers. The idiots—as Link liked to refer to them as—who had been on guard had seen the approaching riders and rung the alarm once again. The result was a large number of Hylian soldiers rushing for their weapons and armour—for the second time, no less—and running to the gate, only to find friendly, but confused, Gerudo staring at them from their horses. Naturally, the resulting embarrassment was one of such epic proportions that rumours went around the camp that two soldiers had died right then and there. But then again, soldiers have always enjoyed a good joke or two, especially if it's on a comrade's expense.

Zelda smiled as she approached the riders. Aveil smiled at the sight of her as well, and the two princesses shared a friendly hug in front of the soldiery in order to show everyone that the desert folk were not a threat. As they parted, Zelda looked around. "It's good to see you again, Princess Aveil," she said. "I assume your trip has gone well?"

"It has," said Aveil. "Though upon my return to my people, I was informed that the Wyrms have once again returned, and our fortress is infested to such a degree that we cannot even get inside. I am afraid to say that we are a people in exile, for now."

Zelda frowned. "I am saddened to hear that," she said. "But fear not, for you are more than welcome in this camp. We have made room for you, quite close to the field hospital for your injured."

"Your Highness, I am stunned and utterly thankful for your hospitality," said Aveil. She turned to Ayla. "Let the others know they can approach."

"Yes, Exalted Leader," said Ayla and jumped into her saddle, tearing off into the valley, closely followed by two other Gerudo. Aveil noticed Zelda's slightly confused look, and smiled again.

"First rule of the desert, Princess Zelda," she said and held up a finger. "Never go alone. Always have someone with you should you run into problems."

"I shall remember that," said Zelda thankfully. "I have also made arrangements for the celebration you wish to hold, even though I must once again insist that you use our more than plentiful food supply—"

Aveil silenced her with a brisk shake of her head. "No, I cannot accept that," she said. "You have already shown us such kindness by offering us shelter. The very least we can do is share our food with you, as well as our…entertainment."

By this point, had Sheik been present, warning lights would have gone off in his head. However, as he was currently more than preoccupied with giving a certain Hero an earful of his displeasure concerning _previous_ Gerudo celebrations, this was not so, and Zelda could only nod hesitantly and smile, wondering what Aveil meant. "Well, at least let us provide the wine," she said after a second. "My servants, bless their hearts, thought that a substantial part of the castle's wine cellar was worth saving before abandoning it, and, as a result, we have more wine than this army could drink in a century."

Aveil seemed to be in the mind of refusing the wine as well, but her eyes suddenly lit up, and she nodded thankfully. "Very well, we shall be more than honoured to partake in Hyrule's famous wine…if we are allowed to share with you our spices."

Zelda grinned. "Thank you. One of the things I have missed since the start of this war has been the spices from these lands."

"Ironically enough, the spices were one of the few things we were able to get out of the fortress before it became too dangerous to go inside," said Aveil. "I believe we are carrying at least a couple of tons, perhaps more."

"Then everyone has something to look forward to," said Zelda. "When were you thinking of holding the celebration? Operations against Ganondorf will start soon, and we must be quick about it as his legions will not stay in the Lost Woods regions for long."

"In fact, we were thinking about tonight," said Aveil.

"Tonight? I thought you would want to settle in and get used to life here for a bit before jumping into…well, jubilations," said Zelda.

"Believe me, Your Highness," said Aveil, chuckling. "If there is one thing we Gerudo are good it, it is adjusting to new accommodations. It will not take many hours before we are settled in, and we have already been making preparations."

Zelda nodded. "I see. I have taken the liberty of setting up one of our largest tarpaulins in the parade grounds, courtesy of the Zora, and I was thinking of that would be a fitting place for the celebration?"

"How many people does it fit?" asked Aveil.

"A couple hundred, I suppose," said Zelda. "If that is not sufficient, then I shall send for—"

"No, it will do, I think," said Aveil. "But I certainly hope you are not planning for us to stay underneath it all night. These jubilations are to honour our hosts, and the entire camp is invited." She swept an arm across the view of the camp from where they stood. "Never before has Hyrule seen such a grand and awesome opportunity to strengthen the relations between us all. Goron, Hylian, Zora, Gerudo, it does not matter what you are, for we are all united against our common enemy."

"That was beautiful," said Zelda. The words had been few and quite simple, but the Gerudo princess had put such heart, such passion in them that she could not help but feel that everything would be alright between the races after this. And the soldiers _would_ be quite happy for an opportunity to get roaring drunk after months upon months of dry spells…

"Thank you," said Aveil. "Will you please show me the tarpaulin? Hati has some ideas for seating and such."

"Who is Hati?" asked Zelda. One of the Gerudo had dismounted and was removing her hood and face mask, revealing a youthful, if slightly plump face, smiling broadly at the princess of Hyrule.

"I am, Your Highness," she said, bowing her head low. "I make sure that all official celebrations, festivals and gatherings go off without a hitch."

"A party planner of sorts, then?" asked Zelda. Her eyes widened when she realised what she had just said, slapping a hand in front of her mouth in horror.

Hati only bowed again, still smiling. "That would be an apt description, Your Highness. May I please see the designated area?"

Zelda nodded and pointed at one of her guards. "He will show you the way."

Hati bowed for a third time and turned to the other riders. "Come on, girls!" she exclaimed and quickly followed the royal guard. Two more Gerudo dismounted and followed her. The entire way, until they disappeared from earshot, Zelda could hear Hati ask the guard a million questions, most of them pertaining to the availability of silk.

"She has a lot of energy, that one," said Aveil, shaking her head.

"So it would seem," agreed Zelda.

* * *

Link sighed, sitting down on a crate, looking at Sheik with a confused expression. "I just don't see why it's such a big deal. It wasn't even your fault, and—"

"I singlehandedly embarrassed not only myself, but my people and heritage, repeatedly I might add, that night," said Sheik, remembering the aphrodisiac with a shudder, and not to mention the so-called _clothes_ he had been given to wear for the night. "I have never felt such shame!"

He paced back and forth behind the sick tent. Tao was inside, most likely playing havoc with Kaura's innate, heavily suppressed motherly instincts. And here were they—standing in the middle of the area designated for tightly packed and sealed medical supplies, arguing. Well, _he_ was arguing, he realised. Link was only speaking his mind, as he usually did.

"I thought the clothes were nice," said Link, smiling. "Especially the little skirt. It looked good on you."

"It wasn't the clothes," said Sheik, trying to hide a blush. "It was the…things I said to you that night."

"What, the stuff about being insi—"

"Shhhh."

"Oh, come on, Sheik! It's perfectly natural," said Link happily. "I mean, even _I_ know the…well, mechanics of it…it's nothing to be ashamed about."

 _Easy for you to say,_ thought Sheik. _Though I am not sure if I want to know_ where _you learned said…mechanics._

When Link realised he was getting nowhere with this, he lifted his hands in resignation. "Alright, alright, I won't mention the party ever again. Happy?"

Sheik nodded. "Very." He sat down on a crate as well, brushing more dust off himself. "Don't breathe that in, it's dangerous," he said to Link. The inside of his gloves felt encrusted with the stuff, having most likely gotten in through the finger holes. He pulled them off, rubbing his hands together to get the sensation of the filth off them.

"If that's dangerous," said Link, "why are you dumping it in here?" He gestured to the crates and jugs around them. "Seems kinda…careless."

"I believe it is only dangerous if inhaled," said Sheik. His hand gave a twinge, and he rubbed the wrist joint gently, wondering what he had done to strain it. When Link fell silent, he looked up and noticed that the Hero was staring at his hand. Or, more specifically, the Delta Force. "What?"

"Did you ask Vorpheus about that thing?" asked Link. "That's what you said you would."

"I was going to," lied Sheik, "but I was…distracted by the exploding mountain and Dehl's appearance. Didn't really have a chance afterwards. And who knows where he is now?"

Link narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Are you seriously telling me that you, the most detail-obsessed boy I have ever met, _forgot_ to ask the warlock about something that's clearly been bothering you ever since you got it?" he asked. "You know what, Sheik? I don't believe you. I think you know _exactly_ what that thing is, but you won't tell me. Or Zelda, for that matter."

Right on time, the Delta Force began to throb with a gentle itch. Sheik scratched it, already gritting his teeth in annoyance. Who was Link to claim he was a liar? The Hero had lied about _many_ things. Such as the…well, there was that one time that…not to mention the incident with the… Sheik sighed. "Well, what you believe and don't believe does not matter, Link, because I am telling the truth."

Link stared at him, jaw falling open in disbelief. "What? That's complete horseshit, and you know it!"

Trying to stay calm, Sheik only shrugged. "Again, what you believe and don't believe—"

"Shut up!" shouted Link, standing up so fast that the crate he had been sitting on tipped over. "You're lying! I can definitely tell you're lying!" He kicked the crate for good measure, his temper getting the best of him. "Damnit, Sheik! This is the second time you're lying to me! First the shadow and now this! When is it going to end? When are you actually going to start being honest with me? I thought you loved me!"

Sheik's head snapped up, eyes glaring at the Hero. "Don't you dare question my feelings for you," he said slowly and stood up, matching Link's indignant pose. "I harbour nothing but love for you!"

"Then why are you always lying to me?" asked Link. "Why all this secrecy? We're a team, we can't keep secrets from each other. Not like this. Why won't you tell me?"

"I'm trying to protect you," said Sheik quietly. "I don't want to—"

"Protect me? Sheik, I'm the godsdamned Hero of godsdamned Time! If anyone needs protection, it's you! You've nearly died twice—hell, you've already died once! If what Vorpheus told you about that thing is vital, then I need to know it!"

" _I_ need protection?" asked Sheik slowly as he pulled on his gloves again. The itching had turned into a dull ache, and he felt his internal temperature rising like a volcano. "I, who have been fighting, killing and risking my life for _seven_ bloody years while you slept in the temple?"

"And what a fine job you've done of killing! Hell, you've turned it into an art! Gee, I wonder what your latest work looked like. Oh, wait; I know _exactly_ what it looks like! You were covered in it!" shouted Link. "I can ignore a lot of things, Sheik, but you clearly liked killing that man!"

"He got much less than he deserved," growled Sheik. "I would have killed him again and again if it was within my power!"

"See? That's what I'm talking about!" exclaimed Link, pointing at his hand. "That thing is turning you into a mindless killer!"

"Shut up!" shouted Sheik, not believing his own ears. He wasn't the only one who had killed people here. Link had done away with few himself. And this _boy_ was trying to give him a moral lesson as well as trying to draw answers out of him? Answers which he did not really deserve to know?

"Why? Because it's true? Because you enjoy kill—Oof!"

Sheik had stepped forward, grabbed the front of Link's tunic and slammed him into a crate, lifting the older teen slightly off the ground with previously unseen strength. His crimson eyes bore into Link's, focusing into the iciest glare he had ever given. "Don't. You. Dare," he said slowly. "Don't you fucking dare!"

The next word Link uttered had not been planned. Sheik saw that. Link just opened his mouth, and it was there, forever tainting the argument. "Murderer."

Sheik's eyes widened and his grip on Link's tunic slackened, the Hero's feet hitting the ground. Link looked just as shocked as Sheik did, and his mouth moved silently, desperately trying to take back what he had said.

"Sheik…I—"

"Save it," said Sheik, turning around. There was a small space between the crates he could easily slip out of and into the adjacent street. "I'm done," he said, moving toward it. Link stayed rooted to the spot, staring at his retreating back.

"Done? With what?"

"With you."

Without another word, Sheik was gone, disappearing into the crowds on the other side of the crates. Link raised a hand, holding it out as if to grip his shoulder, even though he was long gone. Then he let it drop, his jaw quivering. He heard footsteps behind him, the sound of a tent flap being pushed aside.

"Hey, we heard screaming. What's up?" asked Kaura's voice. When Link didn't answer, she made a hum-noise and walked around to face him. She was carrying Tao under her arm like a parcel, the boy enjoying every moment of it, apparently. Even his smile faded when he saw Link's expression. Kaura gently let him down, raising an eyebrow. "Lover's quarrel?" she asked.

"No…" said Link quietly.

"Warrior's disagreement?"

"No…"

"Hero, what did you do?"

Link turned his head to look at her, his eyes slowly filling with tears. "I called him a murderer…"

Kaura stared at him for a few seconds, blinking. Then she sighed and rubbed her eyes, her face seemingly growing a few years older. "Where is he?" she asked.

Link didn't answer, only pointed at the gap where Sheik had slipped out. Kaura bent down to Tao's level. "Do me a favour, kid. Go find Sheik and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, okay? There's another chocolate bar in it for you." Even though the physician doubted that Tao would need a bribe to help a friend, she had always found it sweetened the deal with any child. Nodding, Tao quickly followed Sheik through the gap. Kaura stood up and took Link by the arm, guiding him inside the tent. "Tao needs to get used to strangers again," she said as she made Link sit on a chair. "It may seem harsh of me to send him off like that, but with Sheik in trouble, his focus will be on _him_ instead of the strangers."

Link only stared at her, tears slowly starting to streak down his cheeks. Kaura sighed again and wiped them away. "I called him a murderer…" Link repeated, his voice a mere whisper now.

"Let me guess, this had something to do with the triangle-thing on his hand," said Kaura. "And you mentioned this to him, and he clammed up. You pushed him, he got angry, you got angry, tempers clashed and…things were said." She adjusted her spectacles. "Such arguments rarely end well."

"He said he was done with me," said Link, a miserable sniffle coming from him. Kaura handed him a handkerchief.

"He did not mean it," said she said. "No one ever says anything they mean in arguments like those. I am quite sure you do not think of him as a murderer, correct?" At Link's nod, she continued: "And I am sure he did not mean that he was done with you. Don't cry, please. What you two managed to do was turn an argument into an insult match…which you clearly won."

"I didn't mean to!" said Link.

"We rarely do," said Kaura. "I am sure you meant something different altogether, but your brain latched on to the first insulting noun you could find… If Sheik is a murderer, than so am I. I long ago lost count of how many people I have accidentally or deliberately killed while performing my duties as a physician."

Link looked at her in confusion. "Wha—?"

"No, I don't stalk the tents at night and slit people's throats," she said jokingly, hoping to add a little humour into the conversation, but realised too late that slitting people's throats in the night was exactly what Sheik had been ordered to do a number of times over the years. Realising her mistake, she persevered.

"Most of my accidental killings happened when I was a student, overmedicating or giving the wrong diagnoses. The deliberate…well, sometimes you encounter a person who is in so much pain and misery that all they want is for it to end. I…have granted them that wish."

She adjusted her spectacles again. "It may seem like a digression, but the point is that I have killed performing my duties because they _are_ my duties. If I see a person suffering who wants it to end, and if it is within my power, there are certain moral and ethical codes I am willing to ignore. And Sheik has killed because it _is_ his duty, acting on the orders of the princess and on the behalf of Hyrule. He is an assassin, Link, and I doubt he enjoys it very much. And what happened in the Shadow Temple, from what you have told me, that triangle is affecting him and turning him into something he is not. He could not have meant what he said."

"You think so?" asked Link, eyes still shining with unshed tears waiting for their turn.

"I know so, Hero. And don't worry. Tao will bring him back," said Kaura. "In the short time he was alone with me, he managed to find my secret stash of—you guessed it—chocolate, the little runt. And believe me, that stash was _well_ hidden."

* * *

On the edge of a cliff ledge overlooking the camp yet unseen by most of the inhabitants, Sheik sat, staring at nothing. His stomach felt like someone had dropped a large boulder inside, and his throat was closing up. He was crying again, and he hated himself for it. He hated Link for it. He had been called a great many things in his still relatively short life, murderer one of the most frequent of insults showing up on people's repertoire. But he had always managed to rise above all that and just ignore them.

…but hearing them from Link's mouth, from the Hero of Time, the one he had fallen in love with…it hurt so much. Link might as well have stabbed him in the heart with the Master Sword. He unhooked Kazuya from his back and let the sheathed weapon fall on the ground with a thump.

He felt the tears falling, tried to wipe them away angrily to no avail. How _did_ Link dare to call him that? How _could_ he? He gripped the edge of the cliff angrily, biting his lip until he felt the familiar taste of blood in his mouth. As if Link had any right to start insulting left and right!

But then what _he_ had said struck Sheik like a meteor. Had he actually said that?

_I'm done with you…_

By the time he realised that Link had frozen when he said it, he was already long gone.

_How could I?_

He glared at his right hand, ripping off the glove, the Delta Force red and angry on his skin, as if mocking him. _This is all your fault,_ he thought. _I hate you!_

But he couldn't blame Link for getting angry. He knew he couldn't. It was bad enough, lying about Speil when Link didn't even know of his continued survival, but lying now about the Delta Force, which Link _knew_ was right there… He knew the Hero would ask about it sooner or later, but it had happened sooner than he had anticipated. And he had overreacted. Both of them, really. But Sheik was to blame for the argument. Had he come clean right away…

He wiped away another group of tears, focusing his anger on the thing that was making him like this: the triangle. He wanted to bite into that skin, tear it off and rid himself of it forever…but he knew it would not work. Perhaps slicing it off would be better…Kazuya was sharp and light enough to be used as a precision tool…

He was interrupted when he suddenly heard a small rockslide behind him. He turned to look and saw that Tao had found his hiding place, the boy proving surprisingly agile given the difficulty Sheik had had climbing up here. Tao was looking at him nervously; as if afraid he was going to snap at him, or something. Sheik tried to wipe away his tears again, realised the futility and looked back at the camp.

"I suppose you found me," he said, his voice trembling. "What a pathetic sight, eh? Big bad Sheik of the Sheikah…reduced to tears because of an argument I started…" his voice cracked at the end, and he heard Tao slowly come closer. He felt the boy tug at his shoulder, and he looked at him again.

Tao was holding a piece of chocolate, offering it to him with a gentle smile, with a look in his eyes that no boy of that age should ever have. At first, Sheik intended to shake his head and say no thanks, but then he changed his mind. He took the chocolate, doing his best to smile. "Thank you," he said. He broke the piece in half and gave one of the pieces to Tao, who grinned and took it, dumping himself on the cliff edge next to Sheik. They ate the chocolate in silence.

"Ridiculous, isn't it?" Sheik said after realising that his tears simply wouldn't stop. "Link and I had something…special, and I ruin it all." He looked at Tao, who looked to be on the verge of crying himself. "There's a lesson in life for you…be honest with your closest…or else you will just screw it all up." He buried his face in his hands, sobbing. He felt Tao embrace him and leaned into the boy's hug.

He lost track of time as he sat there and cried into Tao's shoulder, an image he was sure some sort of satirist would have a field day with, but for now…it was just what he needed. He choked, sobbed and sniffled until all he was able to do was to make a strangled moan. Then something happened that shocked him to the very core. He felt Tao's fingers run through his hair, and then:

"Shh, Sheik, don't cry…don't cry…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 109**

* * *

Sheik stared at the young boy, eyes wide, and jaw slack with disbelief. "You…you spoke," he said.

Tao stared back, a huge smile on his face. "Yeah!"

"Since when have you been able to do so?" asked Sheik slowly.

"I never stopped," replied Tao.

"'Never stopped'?"

"Never stopped," confirmed Tao.

"I think you lost me somewhere," said Sheik, wiping away the stray tears. At least this new revelation had taken his mind off Link. "What do you mean, 'never stopped'? You haven't spoken since we found you in the Shadow Temple."

"Just 'cause I don't talk doesn't mean I can't," said Tao, still grinning.

"How come you don't talk, then?" asked Sheik.

"'Cause I didn't want to," said Tao. "I don't like it."

"Why not?"

"Dunno. Just don't."

"Well, why did you choose to talk now, then?" asked Sheik.

"Because you were sad. I don't want you to be sad," said Tao, his face the very definition of honesty. He was drumming his fingers on his thigh to a rhythm that seemed to be all over the place according to any normal ear. "I want you to be happy."

Sheik blinked. "You want me to be happy? Pardon me, but for someone who has been through…those things, you are rather fixated on other people's happiness." He adjusted his seating and dangled his legs over the edge, his problems with Link effectively forgotten.

Tao frowned and mirrored him, staring out at the camp. "I don't wanna talk about that stuff," he said slowly. "You came and saved me…that's all I care about."

"Tao…what you've been through isn't something I would wish upon my worst enemy," said Sheik. _Though I_ would _make some exceptions in certain cases,_ he added mentally. "I…don't like that you bottle it up."

"It's not different from the way _you_ bottle up when you're asked 'bout that thing," said Tao and pointed at the Delta Force, covered by his gloves. "That's what you and Link argued about, right?"

"I…I..." stammered Sheik. Tao had just run the conversation into a circle, not an easy feat when Sheik was involved. "Fine," he said, "but sooner or later, things will come into the light."

Tao didn't answer, staring at the entrance to the camp, where a large procession of horses, carts and people were coming through. "Who're they?" he asked.

"The Gerudo," said Sheik. "They've come to help us."

"What's a Gerudo?" asked Tao.

"You don't know?" said Sheik surprised. The boy was practically one excepting his eyes, which had gone from a dull green to a brilliant emerald-like shade. Otherwise, he had the same facial structure, albeit somewhat more masculine as was only proper given his gender, the same skin, the same characteristic eyefolds… He sighed and tried to draw up a description of them that Tao would understand. "They're the people who live in the desert. They're thieves, really. But what's strange about them is that they are all women. A male is only born every hundred years or so."

"How can they keep their people…alive if they don't have any boys?" asked Tao.

"They go into Hyrule and…erm…" Sheik hit a wall, realising he had made a huge mistake.

"Sheik, I _know_ how that stuff works. They fuck every man in Hyrule, right?" Sheik stared at him. "What?"

"That's not really an…an appropriate word for someone your age," said Sheik weakly.

"I haven't really had an app…approrpi…appropriate childhood, have I?" asked Tao slyly, appearing quite smug despite having to start the word 'appropriate' over twice.

"Fair enough," said Sheik, knowing when not to argue. He was right, though. "You don't really talk like someone your age either, so I suppose it adds up…somehow."

"So, _do_ they fuck every man in—"

"Yes, yes, they _do_ that," said Sheik. "Though perhaps not as…openly as you make it out to be. Usually they kidnap some men, take them back to their fortress, do the…er, deed, and then take them back to their homes."

"Sounds like it takes a long time," said Tao.

"Perhaps. It is not the least time-consuming way of doing it, no," said Sheik. Then he blinked again. What was he _doing_? "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Fine, what do you wanna talk about?" asked Tao.

"…I'm not sure," replied Sheik. He really wasn't sure what he wanted to talk about. It was so strange hearing the mute boy's voice. It sounded exactly like any other child of his age, though perhaps a bit…older. Not in the sense of a deeper voice, just…older, more tired and worn, like the one found in the world-weary elderly.

"Can we talk about you and Link?" asked Tao innocently. He adjusted Link's hat, pulling it back a bit, revealing a few locks of his jet-black hair. "I really think you two should fu—"

"Enough with that word," interrupted Sheik, holding up a hand. He was already feeling a blush coming on. He pretended to rub some non-existent sleep out of his eyes to cover it up until he felt the heat in his cheeks disappear.

"Aw, are you embarrassed?" asked Tao.

"So what if I am?" asked Sheik annoyed.

"Link wasn't kidding when he said you were uptight," muttered Tao.

"Pardon?"

"Nothing."

* * *

"Where _is_ he?" asked Link for the billionth time. Kaura's eye twitched. After half an hour of waiting, they had both assumed that Tao had joined Sheik in brooding on whatever it was he was brooding abou—oh, right.

"Why do you keep asking me that when you know fully well that I am just as much in the dark as you?" she asked.

They were standing at one of the intersections, where a large number of soldiers were currently marching through for a reason none of them knew. Link and Kaura could hear snippets of their conversations, and gathered that the Gerudo had arrived in full.

"Because I want to get to Sheik and apologise as quickly as possible!" exclaimed Link. "I don't want him to be sad any longer!"

"Okay, okay, don't bite my head off," said Kaura defensively, waving her hands. "Listen, knowing Sheik, he'll have gone to a place he knows you won't be able to reach, right?"

"Uh…" said Link.

"Just nod and agree with me, Hero," said Kaura helpfully.

"Right," said Link, nodding.

"And where is it you can't reach, Hero?"

"Uh…"

"Are you good at rock-climbing, for example?"

"Eh, better than average, I think," said Link.

"Okay, then he is most likely way above us somewhere, probably sitting on a clichéd rock that overlooks the camp, or something," she said. At Link's stare, she only shrugged. "What? People have a tendency to gravitate toward clichés they've read in books. It's only natural, really."

"Good thing I've never read a book, then," said Link grinning.

"Yeah, probably," said Kaura slowly.

* * *

"So how come you're so angry at Link?" asked Tao. "I mean, if he just wanted to know about the triangle-thingy…"

"That's not why I'm upset with him," said Sheik. "I just…he called me something…and I saw red. I don't know why it made me so angry, because it's somewhat true, but still…"

"What was it?"

"He called me a murderer," said Sheik. The word was like poison in his mouth. He was an assassin. A murderer is simply a madman who kills without reason, for no purpose. Murderers were messy, had no style, and did not know how to properly execute someone with the minimum of pain. Morbid as it was, Sheik knew he was better than that. He had style. He only killed those he had been ordered to by Zelda, who knew the difference between killing at random and striking at vulnerable points in Ganondorf's chain of command. He knew how to kill someone with little to no pain. In essence, Link had accused Sheik of being the very opposite of what he was, a grave insult.

Tao looked around nervously. "Sheik…you kill people," he said slowly.

"Only those who I have been ordered to, or those who deserve it," said Sheik. "The men who abused you, for example, deserved everything they got…" He stopped talking when he noticed Tao shudder. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," said Tao. "They're dead…I know they can't hurt me anymore…" Even as he said this, Sheik saw that a couple of tears found their way down the boy's cheeks, and he pulled wrapped his arm around Tao's shoulder, pulling him into a hug, reversing the situation they had been in just before.

"Keep telling yourself that," said Sheik slowly. "They're gone forever."

"What did you say to Link after he called you…that?" asked Tao.

"I told him…Goddesses…"

"Hm?"

"I told him…that I was done with him…I can't believe I said that…"

"That's it?" asked Tao. "He looked like someone dropped the moon on him…"

"Given his real age, it doesn't surprise me," said Sheik. "But still…it obviously hit him pretty hard…"

"Real age?" asked Tao. "What do you mean?"

"You haven't noticed?" asked Sheik. "I thought it would be quite obvious…he's really eleven years old. Mentally, at least."

"Eleven?" asked Tao. "He's younger'n me?"

"How old are you, exactly? Kaura is probably dying to know."

"Lost count at twelve," said Tao.

* * *

Zelda and Aveil stared at the seemingly endless procession of Gerudo as they entered the valley. At first there had been a slow trickle, but now they were walking at least seven abreast. All of them, from the youngest child to the oldest crone, gave Aveil and Zelda the respective salutes of the Hylians and Gerudo. Ayla was standing a few paces behind them, keeping a watchful eye on her princess.

"How many are there?" asked Zelda. "I've tried counting them, but I think I lost count somewhere around two thousand."

"I believe this is the rearguard," said Aveil as the Gerudo warriors finally began their procession into the valley. "We put some warriors in the front as a vanguard, but left most of them at the back in case of an ambush."

"I see," said Zelda. "There's something I've been meaning to ask you…"

"What is it?"

"The bridge over the river, did you rebuild it?" Zelda looked questioningly at Aveil.

"Yes, that was us," said Aveil. "We rebuilt the bridge soon after the Hero of Time went back to Hyrule, though I am ashamed to say that we were scared away by the sudden appearance of one of Ganondorf's legions at the entrance to the valley. We were not even able to gather our tools and had to leave them there."

"What was one of Ganondorf's legions doing there?" asked Zelda. "And which one?"

"I did not get a good look at their banner, but I believe it was the Third Legion. I suppose this was just before your presence in the Lost Woods was revealed to him," replied Aveil. She adjusted her ponytail. "I believe the Evil King has grown tired of his own people."

"He was going to attack you?" asked Zelda, horrified.

"Perhaps, or maybe he was trying to scare us into his servitude again," said Aveil. "Either way, he apparently abandoned the plan when your position was discovered. I suppose my people and I owe you our thanks for that as well."

"I do not think a fluke would be necessary to thank me for," said Zelda.

"We do not believe in luck," Aveil said and smiled. "Our actions and their outcomes all come down to how well we have prepared for any eventuality. Though you may see it as luck, we see it as an especially well-prepared ruse."

"I still don't think—"Zelda began.

"Your Highness, with all due respect," said Ayla from behind them, "once the Exalted Leader is determined to thank you, it is best to just let it happen."

"Very well, then you are more than welcome for the help I am not sure I gave advertently," said Zelda. Then she paused. "Did that sentence even make sense?"

"It did to me," said Aveil.

"Me too," said Ayla.

"Oh, good," said Zelda, finally releasing the yawn she had been unable to stifle. "I'm sorry for being so rude," she said after finishing. "It has been a tiring couple of days."

"Please, there is no need to apologise for yawning," said Aveil and smiled. "If we thought of yawning as rude, then every guard and sentry that has ever been deployed at our fortress should be apologising right now."

There was a commotion not a hundred yards away from them. A young Gerudo was desperately trying to get past Zelda's soldiers, waving to Aveil and Ayla. Aveil looked at Zelda, nodding at the young girl.

"I believe a runner of mine is trying to get through," she said.

"Oh for pity's sake," muttered Zelda and marched over to the soldiers, pushing them aside. "Let her through!"

"Your Highness, we don't know if it's safe to—"began a soldier.

"Yes, the day a thirteen-year-old makes an attempt on my life is the day I become cautious around them," said Zelda, glaring at the last soldier who was holding the girl back. "Until then, you will abstain from terrorising them!" She waved for the girl to pass, and she quickly made her way up to Aveil, whispering into her ear. Aveil smiled and nodded, and the girl was quickly gone among the crowds again. Zelda came up to her. "May I enquire what that was about?" she asked.

"Oh, she just informed me that Hati is done with the preparations for the celebration," said Aveil.

"Really?" asked Zelda. "That was quick."

"Well, we _did_ bring our supplies in first, so it was just a matter of arranging them, I suppose," said Aveil. The soldiers were now marching in, their spears held high. Aveil smiled at them as they all saluted when they passed the small outcrop they were standing on. "I believe this is the last of them," she said.

"I hope you will find our accommodations satisfying," said Zelda. "There was a shortage of tents, and—"

"We have our own, do not worry," said Aveil, turning around to face her. "Princess, everything you have given us so far has been so much more than we expected. Anyway, it is time for us to repay some of that kindness. The celebrations will start within the hour. I suggest you inform your men and allies, and then change into something a bit more…stylish, is the word, I suppose. As practical as your leather armour may be, it is not really suitable party wear."

Zelda looked around nervously. "I don't actually have anything that could be construed as…eh, party wear," she said. "I have a few dresses, but they are really more of the kind you wear at balls…"

"No party wear?" asked Aveil, shocked. She looked at Ayla, who was already starting to grin, knowing what was coming now. "Ayla, please fetch my servants!"

"Yes, Exalted Leader," said Ayla and went away, quickly gone among the throng of Gerudo soldiers.

"You can have some of my clothes, Princess Zelda," said Aveil.

"Oh, really, I can't—"Zelda tried.

"I'm afraid I must insist," said Aveil. "Otherwise I might take offense." As she said this, a rather strange smile came to her face. "Code of honour, and all that…"

"But I…" Zelda realised it was no use and sighed. "Very well. Thank you."

"Also, I have some clothes for the Hero and Sheik-sama," added Aveil. "Do you know where they are? I believe they would be rather happy to see the garments again."

"Link and Sheik? I'm not sure. Maybe back at the sick tent."

"Excellent. I know that Sheik-sama will be _especially_ glad."

* * *

"I think I see someone up there," said Link as he stared up at the cliff above him. "Not sure who, though."

"Well, judging by these footprints, it's probably them," said Kaura and pointed at two sets of footprints. One set was noticeably smaller than the other. "But how the hell did they get up there?" she asked. "The wall is practically ninety degrees!"

"Sheik probably climbed," said Link. "Don't know about Tao, though."

"He seemed rather…energetic today," said Kaura. "I suppose he did as well…or maybe found another route."

"I don't see any," said Link, looking around. There was nothing but cliffs here, at the very edge of the camp. "Maybe I should just yell…" he said slowly and cupped his hands to his mouth. He was interrupted by Kaura, however.

"Don't do that!" she hissed. "Do you want Sheik to run away again? If you want to talk to him now, you need to catch him by surprise. Preferably from somewhere unexpected."

"How?" asked Link exasperatedly. "The only way up is to climb. They'll definitely see me before I'm even halfway up there."

"What about that hook-chain-contraption you've got?" asked Kaura. "Can't you use that?"

"The Longshot only hooks into wood," said Link. "Not rock."

"Well, then I'm out of ideas," said Kaura, huffing as she sat down on a small rock. "You know, I'm getting really sick of having to bail you two out of your love problems. And injuries, I might add."

"You've helped us before?" asked Link. "When?"

"Eh, a few weeks ago, I guess. Your loverboy up there had some…hm, association issues, I suppse you could call them. I just gave him a bump on the way so he could move on."

Link stared at her. "Do I even want to know?" he asked finally.

"Probably not," admitted Kaura. She rested her chin on a hand, staring into the air, trying to come up with some way to either lure Sheik down or get Link up. The answer came within seconds, and she groaned. "Oh no," she said, groaning.

"What?" asked Link.

"I know how to get you up there," said Kaura.

"Really?"

"Yeah…and I wish I hadn't thought of it."

"Why not?" asked Link confused.

"Because it involves the warlock."

"Oh."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 110**

* * *

The noise was unbelievable as they walked through the masses. Link and Kaura weaved their way through curious Hylians, Gorons and Zora who were watching the Gerudo. Every now and then, one of the thieves recognised Link and gave him a holler or snapped off a salute, which he did his best to return, even though he felt slightly awkward as he did so. Kaura only rolled her eyes, especially when one of the bronze-skinned women gave her evil looks for being so close to Link.

"It seems you have a lot of fans among the Gerudo," Kaura said loudly, almost shouting in order to be heard. "I can _feel_ the killing intent from them if I stand close to you."

"Really?" asked Link. "I thought I made it clear last time that I'm not interested."

"Your opinion or lack of interest mean nothing to them," said Kaura. "You're the Hero of Time, and they are…well, for the lack of a better word, in heat, and a finer male specimen than you does not exist."

"Except Sheik," mumbled Link.

"Oh please, he's practically a girl anyway," said Kaura, pushing through a rather persistent crowd, elbowing people who did not move out of the way in time in their stomachs. "Out of my way, doctor coming through! Accompanied by the Hero of Time, no less!" she shouted. Link could only smile apologetically to the offended parties as he passed by them.

"Where exactly are we going?" he asked.

"To the warlock, unfortunately," replied Kaura. She spat the word like a poison almost as vehemently as Zelda did when she spoke of Ganondorf. "He's the one who can get you up on that cliff without risking life and limb and…other unmentionables."

"Right," said Link, nodding. They entered a smaller street which was almost empty. "Why do you hate him so much?" he asked, having pondered on the question for a while. "He hasn't done anything, has he?"

Kaura stopped, looking down at her feet, sighing. She took of her spectacles and rubbed her eyes before replacing them. "I don't _hate_ him," she said. "I hate what he's done."

"What _has_ he done?" asked Link. "I mean, sure, he caused me some trouble by the lake, but no one got killed, and—"

"Do you really think what he did at the lake is the _only_ thing he's done, Hero?" Kaura asked. "He worked for Ganondorf for at least two years before he encountered you. For those two years he rained hell upon the Hylian armies. I can't even begin to _count_ how many people's deaths he is responsible for, not to mention all the injuries."

"But…I…thought," began Link.

"I know, Hero, you thought the best of him," said Kaura. "As you do with everyone else. But some people have dark pasts, and the warlock especially. Do you really think the ability to blow up a mountain, as he did, is one possessed by people of pure morality and personality?" She pointed at the mountains. The skies were darkening, but the pure-black stain among the peaks still spoke volumes of what had transpired there. " _That_ is not the power of a good person."

Link stared at her. He was not stupid. He knew that Vorpheus had not been the nicest of people in the world, their first meeting was more than enough proof of that, but still…the fact that he had helped both Link and Sheik at so many times had to count for something, right? He was even trying to finish off Dehl, who seemed to be the biggest threat to the Hyrulian Remnant besides Ganondorf himself.

Kaura sighed again. "Listen, I am more than prepared to work with him as allies, I've seen the good he can do. He resurrected your lover, after all, but as a person…I've yet to see him be anything but a despicable bastard. And no, before you ask, confessions of infatuation are not an exception. He's after one thing, like most men, but he's not getting it from me. Maybe he'll get lucky with one of the Gerudo."

"Maybe you should give him a chance," said Link. "Get to know him a little. I haven't seen you two have a real conversation before."

"I hate him," said Kaura flatly. Then she turned around and continued walking. Link rolled his eyes and followed her. "And that ain't gonna change!" she added when he tried to convince her again.

"Where exactly _is_ he?" asked Link. "I feel like we've been going around in circles."

"He's quartered in with some of the other medical personnel," said Kaura as they rounded a corner. "Can't really say they're happy about it."

"There are other medics?" asked Link. "I haven't seen 'em."

"I've been giving them some days off since we haven't been in combat yet. The guy who was kicked by a horse is done for anyway, and I don't need their help. But when we head into battle again…" said Kaura. She stopped, seemingly trying to remember the way to the medics' tent. "Ah, this way."

It was easy to see which tent that belonged to the medics. A large, blue caduceus had been stitched into the cloth roof, and the white clothing they wore was a dead giveaway. Small puffs of smoke escaped from a small hole in the roof. A tall, lanky medic lounged outside the entrance, leaning against a pole. He noticed Kaura approaching and immediately straightened up, an almost fearful look in his eyes.

"D-Doctor!" he exclaimed. "H-how can I h-h-help you?" he stuttered.

Kaura grinned and slapped him on the shoulder. "Relax, Verg, I'm not here for you. The warlock, where is he?"

"I-inside," said the medic. As Link passed him by, Verg sighed with obvious relief.

"I run a tight ship," explained Kaura. "Put the fear of a random deity in someone, and they only fear that deity. Put the fear of physicians in them…"

The inside of the tent was incredibly warm and damp, most likely because of the large amount of alchemical equipment and burners that were happily bubbling and burning on a bunch of tables in the middle of the tent. Behind a desk, Link could spot the familiar form of the warlock, who was bent over his journal. In front of him, a beaker filled with a vicious, green liquid stood.

"This is where we distil the water from Lake Hylia and create red potions," said Kaura quietly, pointing at various bottles filled with the finished potion. "The production is going a bit slow at the moment, but at moment's notice we can make several barrels of the stuff."

"Wow," said Link. "I thought it took weeks to make it."

"If one is inexperienced, yes, but my staff and I have been making it for years," said Kaura. "Plus, a certain arsehole has contributed by shortening the time it takes for it to mature."

"Is that you, Kaura?" asked Vorpheus suddenly, springing from his seat with a grin on his face. "I knew you would come back and—"

"Ah, ah, ah," said the physician, waggling a finger in his face as he came close. "I'm not here for your sake, but for his," she said and pointed at Link.

Disappointment was evident on his face, but Vorpheus nodded. "I suppose I can be of service. What is it about?"

Link took a deep breath. "Well…"

* * *

Zelda took a nervous step into the enclosed space. The Gerudo had not yet finished putting up their tents, but a number of poles had been set up, and some sort of silk-like material had been stretched from pole to pole, creating a maze of sorts. The small corridors were lined with pillows and chairs. Aveil was holding Zelda's hand and leading her further inwards.

"There is no need to be afraid, Your Highness," said Aveil. "This is just what we use as a changing room. And there's no one else here."

"Call me Zelda, please," said Zelda. "We are friends, are we not?"

Aveil stopped and looked at her, a brilliant smile coming to her mouth. "Of course we are, Zelda," she said, stepping closer. "I am honoured to be able to consider the princess of Hyrule my friend."

"I feel likewise about the Exalted Leader of the Gerudo being mine," said Zelda, smiling in return. There was a strange moment of silence in which Zelda found herself staring into Aveil's golden eyes. The Gerudo's hand found its way to her shoulder. Someone outside shouted. Aveil froze, and looked away. She let go of Zelda's hand and walked further into the labyrinth, leaving the Hylian princess blinking, wondering what had just happened. And why she was feeling strangely warm in her chest.

"Are you coming?" asked Aveil's voice.

Zelda cleared her throat. "Certainly," she said and followed Aveil into the inner chamber, and gasped.

The floor had been covered in some sort of carpet, and more pillows littered it, so many that it was almost impossible not to trip over them. A chest stood in a corner, its lid open. Aveil was rummaging around in it, throwing its contents haphazardly around. Exotic clothing, Zelda realised when she caught a silky piece of fabric out of the air. It was a shawl.

"Aha!" exclaimed Aveil and turned around, holding what seemed to be a pair of the same baggy trousers she herself was wearing. Without a word, she held it up against Zelda, who blushed at the sudden intrusion of her personal space. Then Aveil frowned. "No, no good," she said and threw the trousers away, practically diving into the clothing chest again.

"Can I ask what you are doing?" said Zelda nervously.

"I am trying to find something fitting for you to wear tonight," said Aveil. "A princess must look and dress like one on an occasion such as this."

"What's wrong with my armour?" asked Zelda.

"Far too conservative and unappealing," replied Aveil. "I know that we are at war, but at some point or another you must allow yourself to be a woman." She made a triumphant hoot and pulled out another long, silky article of clothing. A skirt. "This would look perfect on you!" she exclaimed and held it out for Zelda. "Come on, strip!"

"Strip?" asked Zelda, blushing even worse now. "Here?"

"Where else?" asked Aveil, staring at her like she had spouted two heads. "This _is_ our changing room. No one else can see what happens in here, and Ayla will make sure no one else enters while you and I are here. Get to it."

"I…I am not used to undressing in front of others," said Zelda, feeling foolish for even saying it.

"You are just too cute for words," said Aveil, grinning. At Zelda's pleading look, she sighed and turned around. "Fine, I won't look."

Zelda supposed it was the next best things and slowly began to remove her leather armour, glad to finally be out of it. It was a practical outfit, but not exactly comfortable wear at length. She picked up the skirt. Wearing light clothes like these, if only for one night, would be a welcome change and—she froze. It was practically transparent, the fabric so thin that it was little more than air. "Ehm…" she said slowly.

"Is something wrong?" asked Aveil, the amusement obvious on her voice.

"This skirt doesn't exactly leave much…well, anything to the imagination, does it?" asked Zelda.

"Well, it is meant to worn along with one of these," said Aveil and held out a pair of shorts to Zelda, all without turning her head. Zelda took it. At least the shorts hid the most…critical of her features, but little else. As she slipped them on, she realised they barely went down to the middle of her thighs. As she put on the skirt, she also realised that it was open in the front, leaving _nothing_ between interested eyes and the shorts beneath. She felt the heat rise to her cheeks, the blush so fierce this time that she felt like she was on fire.

"Oh, and put this on, and this," said Aveil and handed her an absolutely minimal brassiere along with a gold-coloured vest. "It will look stunning, I can assure you." She listened to the sounds of Zelda putting on the clothes, smiling all the while. "There is a mirror behind you," she added.

Zelda finished adjusting certain anatomical features and turned around, and gasped. She was…stunning. That was really the only word she could describe herself with. She felt a bit uncertain about exposing her midriff like this, not to mention the rest of her body. She had seen prostitutes wear more than this. But then again…she loved it. She heard Aveil rummage through the chest again, and another hoot.

"May I turn around?" the Gerudo princess asked. Zelda allowed her, and she came up behind her, she too gawping. "Goddesses…you _do_ look stunning," she said, practically draping herself over Zelda's shoulders. "I was worried about your skin tone not matching the clothes but…my-my…" She pulled at the thong that held Zelda's hair in place and let the golden locks cascade down the Hylian's back, running her fingers through it. "Ah, your hair must definitely be let loose…I have always envied you Hylians for your hair colours…"

"I have always found _your_ red hair beautiful," said Zelda. The feeling of Aveil gently brushing her hair was…indescribable.

"Hm, I suppose we both find each other exciting," said Aveil slowly. Slowly, she attached a veil to Zelda's hair. The light from the lanterns caught in the fabric, making the air around her head shimmer. Aveil rested her hands on the younger princess' shoulders, slowly massaging them. "You're tense…"

"I have been fighting a losing war for the past seven years," said Zelda slowly. "It has left little time for unwinding…"

"Well, then tonight's festivities will be a welcome change of pace," said Aveil, smiling. She took her hands off Zelda's shoulders and stepped away, leaving the Hylian feeling slightly…disappointed, for some reason. "Now, Zelda, will you help _me_ pick an outfit?"

Zelda turned around, smiling. "Of course."

* * *

"Up there?" asked Vorpheus, pointing at the cliff. "How the hell did they get up there?"

"They climbed, I assume," said Kaura sarcastically. "Sheik _is_ a Sheikah, after all. They have a reputation for being limber and spry. As for Tao…well, he has made a remarkable recovery. Also, he was being driven by the promise of chocolate."

"Ah, that explains it," said Vorpheus. "Well, it should be a small matter making a small portal leading up there…but how will they react?"

"Well, they have few options than slowly climbing down, during which the Hero here will be able to talk to them," said Kaura, nudging Link forward. "I highly doubt they will want to risk the jump. Sheik might be able to take the impact, but not Tao."

"And Sheik won't put Tao in danger," said Link, confidence growing. "Hopefully he'll stay and talk to me."

"And if not," said Kaura, "then I will personally make sure he will." She cracked her knuckles. "I have put the fear of physicians in that one."

"And me," Link whispered to himself, feeling slightly nervous next to her. The sound of her knuckles had sounded eerily similar to a stalfos moving around.

"Not me," said Vorpheus and grinned. He rubbed his palms together. "Right, let's see if I can't work a little magic here." He closed his eyes and began to mutter the strange language in which all his spells were written.

"Oh, great, here we go, isn't this magical?" said Kaura and leaned against a cart. She winked at Link. "No fear of physicians my ass…"

They could hear someone shout from the cliff, the voice unknown. In the same moment, the portal burst into life in front of Vorpheus as well as up at the cliff, the light shining clearly. Link noticed a lot of people turning their heads, wondering what the light was, but shrugged and went on with their activities when they saw who was doing it.

"Right, just step on through, sir," said Vorpheus, gesturing to the portal.

"Alright, wish me luck," said Link, breathing deeply as he stepped forward.

Sheik came through first, closely followed by Tao, who was holding the Sheikah's hand. Link's eyes widened, and he froze. Sheik froze as well, both of them staring at each other. Then Sheik turned and looked at Tao, who nodded and smiled. He let go of the boy's hand, grabbed Link's and began to pull the Hero after him. "We need to talk, Hero," he said.

Kaura, Vorpheus and Tao stared after them, wondering what had just happened. Wordlessly, Vorpheus closed the portal. Kaura stared at Tao.

"Did you do that?" she asked.

Tao shrugged, staring pointedly at the pouch hanging on her belt. Kaura noticed and sighed, untying the knot.

"I suppose you'll be wanting this, then," she said and held out a bar of chocolate. Tao nodded, grinning. She tossed it to him. "Enjoy."

"What now?" asked Vorpheus.

"There's a party on, I suppose," said Kaura.

"How about a drink, then?" asked the warlock, winking.

Kaura briefly contemplated smacking him upside the head with a convenient rock, but decided not to. Shrugging, she adjusted her spectacles. "Eh, why not?"

Vorpheus started. "Huh? Are you serious?" he asked.

"It's been a long day," said the physician. "And I've finished my own supply of booze."

Vorpheus grinned. Then he noticed Tao staring up at him. "Eh…can I help you?" he asked. When Tao only continued to stare, he shifted uncomfortably. "What do we do about the kid?" he asked.

"Hm?" asked Kaura. "Tao, go bug Sheik and Link, and make sure they get to the party. They need to unwind."

Tao nodded and followed in the general direction that Sheik had pulled Link in.

"Who is that boy anyway?" asked Vorpheus as he and Kaura began to trudge toward the festivities.

"Hell if I know," said Kaura. "But he's something special, that's for sure."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 111**

* * *

Link wordlessly followed Sheik (not that he had much choice considering the Sheikah's iron grip on his arm) through the camp. It was obvious where he was planning to go, and Link could already feel his nerves starting to bunch up. But he supposed that going back to the place where the argument had originated would put them in…a talkative mood. He supposed. By no measure was he sure. Or maybe Sheik just wanted to throw down and settle it with a fight. He gulped. For some reason, he was pretty certain he'd be lost in a fight against Sheik.

The Hero, while physically strong, had observed little of Sheik's fighting style, usually being too busy to get a good look. The only thing he could really say about it was that it was "fast, faster and complicated", and even that could only give someone a vague _idea_ of what Sheik's fighting was all about. But then, he was pretty sure that Sheik wouldn't want to fight him. At least…he _wouldn't_ have wanted if it hadn't been for the stupid friggin' triangle on his hand. He felt his stomach plunge as the familiar tent came into view. Subconsciously, he let out a small groan. Sheik craned his head to look at him for a second before returning to stare straight ahead.

The flaps were thrown aside, and then they were inside. It was dark, the lamps and lanterns all extinguished. The man who had been kicked in the head, whom Sheik remembered Kaura distinctly referring to as "done for" lay still in his bed, gone from the world, it seemed. When Sheik didn't pause, Link's suspicions were confirmed, and he gulped. The Sheikah silently snatched a lantern from the desk—barely visible in the dark, Link probably would have stubbed his toe on it or something equally ridiculous—and continued toward the back exit.

The storage area was even darker, and Sheik finally let go of Link's arm and began to fiddle with lighting the lantern. There was a small flare, and then the oil inside ignited. Sheik opened the vent until the flame was large enough to light up most of the storage area and set the lantern on a crate. He stared at it for a while, his back to Link. Every now and then, Link heard him take a deep breath, as if attempting to start a sentence, only to abandon it seconds later, apparently losing his nerve. After five failed attempts from his partner, Link decided to just get the ball rolling and opened his mouth.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry."

They both froze, staring at each other in a ridiculous stand-still. Mouths opened and closed, feet shuffled and kicked up dust from the ground, hands nervously scratched chins and necks as both minds raced to come up with something to say that did not end with another embarrassing two-voiced chorus. Link tweaked at his earring. Sheik adjusted his gloves. Link pulled at his belt. Sheik played with the mask in his collar. Finally, one of them took charge.

"I distinctly remember us starting a conversation like this once before," said Sheik slowly, his voice thick with effort and nervousness.

"Yeah, I'm getting a weird feeling of déjà vu," replied Link, trying to grin, but failing miserably. It was impossible to summon an actual smile now, it was too awkward. "But we've had a lot to apologise for over the months, eh?"

"Yes, we have," agreed Sheik, nodding. "But this time is different…"

"Yeah," said Link. "We both…said things, didn't we?"

"Things we did not mean," said Sheik. "Things that…have caused us far more trouble than we should have allowed them to."

This was obviously, to Link anyway, going nowhere. So instead of beating around the bush, as Saria had often said, he stepped forward and gave Sheik the tightest hug he had ever given. He linked his fingers behind Sheik's back and pressed the (physically) younger teen to him, resting his chin on top of Sheik's head. At first, he felt Sheik struggle, but he quickly relaxed against Link, burying his face in the crook of his neck.

"I'm sorry for calling you a murderer," whispered Link, over and over. "I didn't mean to…I'm sorry…"

"I'm sorry for hiding this from you," whispered Sheik. "I'm sorry for saying I was done with you…"

They lost track of time as they stood there, just giving each other support and trying to amend their mistakes. As they continued speaking over each other, their words intermingling and turning into what an outsider would have called gibberish, every other mistake they had ever made while in each other's company suddenly became something they needed to apologise for as well, and by the time they both ceased speaking at the same time, Link was sure that they had pretty much summed up their entire tenure as partners, perhaps even from the very moment they met for the first time. They had not been together for a long time, but to Link it felt like an eternity—an eternity he wouldn't have traded for anything.

As they unclenched their hands and released the iron-like hold they had on the other, Link leaned in close. Sheik did the same, and their lips met in a kiss—a kiss so sincere that it felt like it was their first all over again. Link cupped Sheik's face in his hands and continued kissing his lover, gently caressing his bottom lip with his tongue. Complying, Sheik opened his mouth slightly and let Link in, his own tongue meeting the Hero in a brief—but playful—power struggle. The Sheikah surrendered and let himself be overwhelmed by Link's tender assault, leaning against the stack of crates, almost toppling the lamp that stood on the top one.

Suddenly, Link removed his hands from Sheik's face and grabbed his thighs, lifting him slightly. Automatically, and with a highly undignified and un-Sheikah-like squeak, Sheik wrapped his legs around Link's body. He ran his hands through the Hero's blond tresses, realising that Link's hair was just as soft and delicate as his own. He smiled against Link's lips, and he felt the Hero return the smile. They had both closed their eyes, letting their actions speak louder than words or eyes.

Even under his armour, the sudden rush of blood to a certain area was not to be ignored, and Sheik felt himself blush, cheeks burning with embarrassment and…something else. He also felt that Link's body was going through a similar reaction, which only made things…worse and better at the same time. It was impossible to describe. Slowly, carefully, he allowed a hand to trail downward…

Someone coughed loudly from the entrance. In sheer panic, it seemed, Link dropped Sheik, who fell painfully to the ground with another squeak, this time in confusion and frustration. He had been _so_ close…

"Ah, geez, I'm sorry, Sheik," said Link, carefully hauling Sheik to his feet. "I'm sorry!"

"It's okay, really, it's okay," said Sheik, trying to hide his blush and the…other area where blood had gathered. At least Link had a tunic to hide most of his lower body, but Sheik's tight clothing left little to the imagination as it was.

He turned to look at the rear exit, his eye falling upon the grinning face of Tao, who was waggling a finger in the air, as if to say "Naughty, naughty." He glared at the boy, momentarily regretting ever having saved him. But then the Sheikah realised what he had been doing, and to whom. The still-mentally-a-child-but-physically-an-adult-Hero-of-Time…and his cheeks burned even brighter. He heard shuffling from his right and saw Link do an odd little dance as he apparently tried to pull his tunic further down. It was hard not to grin—both from amusement and embarrassment.

"Uh, hey, little guy," said Link slowly. "We were just…er…um…Sheik, help me out."

"You know exactly what we were doing," Sheik said to Tao, who just nodded and grinned even more. "And you decided to interrupt just for the heck of it, right?"

Tao only nodded more, and waggled his finger again. Sheik raised an eyebrow. So, the boy would speak to him, but not Link? This was…awkward.

 _Should I tell Link that we've spoken together?_ he wondered. Tao must have known what he was thinking about, for the bronze-skinned boy shook his head almost unnoticeably. Why he wanted to keep that fact that he could talk a secret puzzled Sheik, but he put it aside for now.

"Huh?" said Link. "How would he know—?"

Sheik now raised an eyebrow at _Link_ instead, a silent question being transmitted. _"Are you serious?"_

Link wisely closed his mouth.

"So, it was Kaura, right?" asked Sheik. "She put you up to this?"

Tao nodded.

"That bitch," Sheik muttered under his breath. "Right," he said and looked at them both. "I suppose this…interruption had something to do with the party outside, yes?" It was getting rather embarrassing to have the boy's eyes obviously straying toward what he was trying to hide. Tao nodded again, jerking his head toward the tent's exit and heading outside.

"What was that all about?" asked Link after he left. He too was blushing, Sheik noticed. He bit his lip. It was all he could do to prevent himself from assaulting the Hero right then and there, it was so adorable and downright—he dreaded the word— _erotic_.

"He was sent here to stop us from arguing and make us attend the party, obviously," said Sheik, sighing. There was finally a reprieve from down below, and he could stand normally again at last. Link gave him a longing glance, and another wave of desire for self-indulgence had to be fought down. Sheik shrugged. "Doctor's orders, I suppose."

"Oh, man," said Link disappointed. "And it was getting good, too…"

 _I do wonder if you even know what to do in a situation like that,_ Sheik thought. He carefully leaned up and gave Link a peck on the lips. "Come on, let's go before he comes back with a bucket of water, or something."

Link looked like he wanted to protest, but he gave up before he started, apparently, sighing and nodding. "Fine…"

Sheik grabbed the lantern from the crate and led the way back inside the tent. He could see the silhouette of Tao standing in the doorway, lit up by undoubtedly thousands of torches and other light sources that were burning outside. He went to extinguish the lantern, seeing no need for it, but noticed something lying on both his and Link's beds. Parcels. The two gave each other confused looks as they both picked up their respective packets. The contents were soft, so it was probably clothes of some kind. Sheik pulled at the string holding the parcel together and saw a note that had been stuck in between the folds. The handwriting was surprisingly elegant, but the tone was unmistakable.

_**Hey, rookies!** _

_**Get the rags on and drag your asses over to the tent by the Zora camp. I'm gonna drink you both under the table!** _

_**PS: There's no escaping the clothes this time either, Sheik-sama, tee-hee!** _

_**-Ayla** _

Sheik shook his head at the note. _The most powerful Gerudo warrior she may be, but she's just as childish as the Hero_ , he thought, tearing the wrapping. The foreboding hit him a few seconds too late as he stared at the clothes.

"You have got to be fucking kidding," he said.

Link's head shot up, unused to hearing such a word from his lover. "What?" he asked as he came over. A huge smile came to his face when he saw the familiar threads. "Heh, didn't think I'd see that again so soon."

Sheik stared at him, eyes narrowing. "I am _not_ wearing this," he said firmly. "Not again."

"Oh, come on, Sheik, it's just cute on you," said Link. "I think you're the only boy I know who would look good in a skirt."

"That is not funny," said Sheik. "I have worn this humiliating outfit once, and that was enough!"

"Okay, okay," said Link carefully. "How about we switch outfits, then? I can wear the skirt and…shirt or whatever it is, and you can wear mine. What do you say?"

Sheik almost said yes, had it not been for his mind's eye suddenly conjuring up the image of Link prancing around in a minimal skirt, the eyes of every Gerudo, female Hylian (and certain male Hylians, for that matter) practically undressing him mentally—including Sheik. Groaning, he picked up the skirt, which he decided to call a _mini_ -skirt and eyed it with distaste.

"I'll wear it," he said with a tired resignation. "But don't you dare laugh!" he said, pointing threateningly at Tao.

The boy only grinned.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 112**

* * *

The noise level was almost unbearable. It seemed that the Zora district of the camp had been designated the "party zone", as some of the soldiers had called it. A never-ending stream of men and women were flooding into the square-like area that had been covered in tables where drinks from innumerable barrels of beer and wine were handed out by jolly Gerudo or Hylians. People were rapidly getting drunk, and it was almost impossible to see someone who was alone—most of them having at least one or two Gerudo hanging off their arms, giggling at their every word. Promiscuous was only the beginning of what the Gerudo could be described as. Somewhere, someone was playing music. It sounded like an entire band, most likely the army music corps, the drum and trumpet players that sounded the companies into battle.

The tarpaulin where the "important" people were celebrating had apparently been replaced by a circus-like tent solution. There were guards at the entrance, but they seemed to be just as drunk as the rest of the general population of the camp, making the whole point of guarding said tent an effort in futility. Everyone seemed to be in on the celebration, making Sheik wonder if _anyone_ was guarding the camp at all. If not, then all Ganondorf would have to do was to march in a legion and begin the slaughter. But Zelda had probably remembered posting guards—probably considered the unluckiest bastards on the face of the planet by their comrades.

Sheik shook his head. He was doing it again. This was a time for relaxation, for resting and recuperating, to settle his fraying nerves. And what was he doing? Worrying about security. But then, it was hard to relax knowing that he was exposing himself to every damn person in the camp thanks to the Goddesses-damned bloody _skirt_! Right, so it couldn't rightfully be _called_ a skirt given the fact that it had actual legs, but he found no other word for them. Either way, they left little to the imagination, and he felt his cheeks burn red with embarrassment every time he noticed someone turning their head to look at him closely.

Even _Tao_ had laughed—or given the impression of laughing, anyway. He could only hope that people were too drunk to recognise who he was. He was also beginning to wish he had changed shirts with Link. Sheik's lack of real, tangible or—let's face it—impressive muscles was starting to annoy him, the shirt doing little to alleviate it. Link, on the other hand, who had more than enough muscle to impress anyone, got to cover it all up. It was unfair, both to him and Sheik, who wanted to…see a little bit more.

He felt Tao tug at his arm and looked down. The boy was grinning, his eyes never staying in one place for more than a few seconds, trying to take in everything at the party, all the while dragging Sheik and Link toward the circus tent. They navigated through the men and women, weaving in and out between them in manoeuvres that would have put any graceful swallow to shame. What exactly Tao was doing at this—quite frankly—hedonistic and lustful even was something Sheik had to ask himself multiple times. But then, Tao had probably been more than desensitized to this sort of thing, although it still wasn't _right_ , somehow…

But he also knew that saying no to the mute-only-when-it-fits-him boy would only spur him on. It seemed that despite being bound to a gang of rapists in servitude only fuelled his defiant and rampant behaviour. Still, it was an interesting sight to see him push aside men almost twice his size in order to create a path for his two rescuers. Speaking of rescuers…

Link was enjoying himself immensely, it seemed. He was just one big smile, greeting, hugging and—to Sheik's chagrin—kissing every person that came forward, recognising who he was and wanting to greet the legendary Hero. Of course—and luckily—the kisses were limited to ones on the cheeks or hands, or else Sheik would have made a certain…claim. By way of the fist, most likely. But he knew Link meant nothing with them, though, especially by the way the Hero's hand came to grope at his buttocks every now and then, which—had it been in any other place—would have been more than welcome. Sheik wondered how many times he had tried to remind Link that no one could know that they were together lest they lose any respect for him, but the Hero seemed content to ignore this advice. No one had seen it yet, though…

 _But seeing us in this outfit might give them ideas,_ he thought. _Do the Gerudo even_ know _that we're trying to keep our relationship a secret?_

"What're you thinking about?" Link shouted over the loud talking and singing from the exceedingly drunker partygoers. "You look so serious! It's a party! Enjoy yourself!"

"I'm trying to," replied Sheik. "But there's a certain hand that keeps ruining it!"

"Oh, it's just trying to have fun too!" said Link, grinning. From out of nowhere, he was holding a goblet filled with a red liquid. Wine. So, Link was already drinking. He offered the goblet to Sheik, who shook his head. He wasn't going to drink anything he was offered by a Gerudo anymore. There was just…too much of a risk, he decided.

"Trying to have fun or not, it is still quite annoying that I have to defend myself from it every five seconds!" said Sheik. "Keep it to yourself! No one can know about us!"

"Aw, but you have such a perfect butt!" said Link, taking a deep draught from the goblet, emptying it in seconds. Someone took the empty one from him and handed him another full one. Before he had time to drink any more, Sheik took it from him and handed it to the next waiting hand. "What was that for?" asked the Hero.

"You need to pace yourself!" said Sheik. "Drink too much in too little time and you will spend the rest of the evening vomiting. If you want me to enjoy the party, then please refrain from expelling the content of your stomach!"

"You really _can_ suck the fun out of anything, can't you?" asked Link, though his face clearly told Sheik he was joking. He wrapped his arm around the Sheikah's shoulder and whooped loudly when they passed by a slogan-shouting group of female Hylian soldiers, who all gave him adoring looks in return. Sheik shook his head in dismay.

 _Whoever said the Hero of Time was graceful?_ he wondered. He felt Tao stop tugging at his arm and looked down. The boy was giving him a questioning glance, though for what reason he did not know. He raised an eyebrow and shrugged. Tao sighed and pointed at the entrance to the tent. Apparently, people were being turned away now, a large group of dejected-looking Gerudo and Hylians walking away slowly.

The guards were no longer drunk, it seemed…or replaced by someone who knew enough to actually not drink on the job. Sheik nodded and extracted himself from Link's arm. The Hero gave him the same look Tao had given him, and once again Sheik felt like he was actually surrounded by two Links, one young and one adult. It was…mindboggling.

Sheik jerked his head toward the entrance. "It seems there is a crowd limit!"

"Yeah, so?" asked Link. "We're welcome, aren't we? Hero of Time, Sheikah and…kid?" Tao kicked Link in the shin, not hard but enough to be felt, and the Hero scratched his neck embarrassedly. "Heh, sorry! How 'bout…Mini-Hero of Time?"

Tao smiled and nodded.

 _Young or old, the Heroes of Time are both idiots,_ Sheik thought as he pulled them both toward the entrance. The guards recognised them immediately, it seemed, and merely nodded to them and stepped aside. As they went in, though, Sheik noticed the guards giving each other amused looks. He even saw one of them pointing at his skir—garment! He glared at them.

* * *

Had he been given a choice, Sheik would definitely have taken the heat and noise from outside the tent rather than inside. Many lanterns and torches had been lit, and a couple hundred people had been squeezed into an enclosed space clearly meant for at least half that number. A small, raised dais had been set up at the opposite end of the tent, on which a large table had been placed. Behind it, the collected military leaders of the Remnant—all races representend, Hylian, Gerudo, Zora, Goron—were sitting, chatting with each other, drinking heavily. Sheik noticed Myde sitting in the middle of two other Zora generals, who were trying—and failing miserably—to engage him in conversation. He just stared into the open air, sipping at his cup.

Two chairs—placed square in the middle of the leadership—were conspicuously empty. It was not difficult to figure out who the chairs were reserved for, but Sheik found the pair of princesses' absence rather…unexpected. At least Zelda's.

Someone whistled as the three stepped further into the tent, and Sheik just _knew_ who it was. He looked to the left and saw her. Ayla was waving her hands at them from her seat at a long table set up along the wall. She waved at some empty seats next to her. Sheik caught Tao and Link's attention and pointed toward Ayla. They nodded and they tried to navigate themselves to it. Sheik felt someone grab at his buttocks again, and he slapped the hand away, almost glaring at Link again, but the Hero wasn't even looking at him—and his hands were both busy shaking others. He looked around and saw a Gerudo grinning playfully at him. He tried to grin back. He couldn't. There was just something about someone other than Link touching him like that.

They were finally able to seat themselves at the table with Ayla, who only stared at them.

"What?" asked Link.

"Nothing, I'm just having a bit of a flashback involving those outfits," she said, grinning. She then seemed to notice Tao, and she spent a minute looking back and forth between him and Link. "Am I the only one who sees an eerie likeness here?" she asked.

"No."

"No."

"Ah, good," she said. "I thought I was seeing double there for a moment. Means I can keep drinking." She emptied her cup and filled it up with another pitcher that stood on the table. She also filled up Link and Sheik's. She almost filled up Tao's, but Sheik's glare stopped her. "How old is he, anyway?" asked Ayla, smiling at the boy. "He's adorable."

"We're not entirely sure," said Sheik. He opened his mouth to say that Tao had lost count at twelve, but slammed it shut when he realised that it would reveal that the youngster had spoken and another argument was sure to follow. "Probably somewhere around twelve, thirteen," he said.

"Heh, well, he's still cute," said Ayla and shook hands with Tao. "Hi, my name's Ayla."

"His name is Tao," said Link helpfully. He was over halfway to emptying his cup.

"And he can't speak," said Sheik.

"Aw, that's too bad," said Ayla. "He looks like he'd have the voice of an angel."

 _Not really…or, perhaps an angel, but an old and tired one, anyway,_ thought Sheik. He eyed his cup warily. He had seen it be filled by a pitcher from which both Ayla and Link had drunk. Perhaps…perhaps just this once he wouldn't be poisoned?

"Relax, I didn't do anything with it," said Ayla, apparently knowing exactly what he was thinking. "I told you, I was going to drink you under the table tonight!"

"Drink!" ordered Link.

Tao didn't say anything, but poignant stare the boy was giving the cup got the message clearly across. Shrugging, Sheik took the cup and sipped. The wine was quite fruity—obviously hadn't had enough time to ripen—but still quite delicious. He took another, deeper sip and smiled. At least _something_ could go right for once.

* * *

An hour or so had passed, and they continued drinking all the while. Link and Ayla both seemed to have iron stomachs, neither of them showing any signs of inebriation other than a heightened—or lowered, depending on who you ask—sense of humour, both of them laughing at everything and nothing. Sheik had been rather careful, though. He had no intention of getting drunk this evening. There was having a cup or two for unwinding, and then there was drinking just for the heck of it and making stupid mistakes all the while. While Ayla and Link seemed dead-set on heading for the latter category, Sheik made it a point to stay in the first.

While Ayla and Link were entertaining each other with silly jokes and whatnot, Sheik was studying the people in the tent. Most of the high brass and the officers were here, as well as mentioned brass and officers' dates or whatever it was called. He wasn't sure, but Sheik could have sworn he had seen two men dance together a little while ago, and he was trying to find them again. It had given him some hope that perhaps Link's reputation wouldn't suffer if it somehow came out that he was in a relationship with another male.

However, he couldn't see them anymore. Instead, his eyes made contact with Myde's. The Zora raised a hand in greeting, and Sheik returned the gesture. The general looked desperate, as if he'd rather be anywhere but there. Sheik gave him an apologetic smile, which the Zora returned, albeit somewhat strained. One of the other Zora suddenly slapped him on the back in a joking gesture, apparently quite drunk. The dejected look Myde's face assumed was simply too funny not to laugh at.

"Hey, why aren't you drunk yet?" asked Ayla suddenly, drawing his attention back to the table. "I told you, this is a competition!"

"And I never told you that I would participate," replied Sheik. He drank from his cup just to make a point. "The Hero is your opponent, not I."

"Bah, spoilsport," said Ayla.

"Yeah, you're no fun," said Link in agreement.

Sheik sighed and looked at Tao. He had expected the green-eyed lad to be bored to tears since he was not allowed to drink, but he seemed content just to sit and look at the strange mishmash of drunken people. He looked at Sheik and shook his head, apparently sharing Sheik's disbelief in the mind's state when alcohol was involved.

"Don't get too drunk," Sheik whispered to Link. "You've an image to uphold, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah," said Link.

"Also, I have something for you later. Something you will need to be…fully aware in order to enjoy," Sheik added. He blinked after he said it. _Where did that come from?_ It had been completely spontaneous.

Link choked on his wine, coughing heavily. Sheik slapped him on the back helpfully, realising that yet another blush had found its way to his cheeks. Ayla only laughed.

* * *

A strange sort of silence fell upon the tent as something happened at the entrance. Four pairs of eyes turned towards it, and this is what they saw:

Four Gerudo dressed in dark purple robes had entered. They were standing around another two, these dressed in fully white robes with the hoods drawn over their faces. The four wearing purple continued to surround them as they slowly walked into the middle of the tent, the crowds clearing the way. At the middle, the four in purple expanded the semi-circle, creating a wide, open area, at the cost of some of the partygoers being pushed into the walls. Then, as one, the four dropped their robes, revealing their dancer's outfits. Short skirts decorated with jingling gold coins, trailing veils and hundreds of other things designed to shine, dazzle and make noise as the four Gerudo began their routine. A sensual music had begun to play from somewhere inside the tent, most likely from the back, and the girls slowly and delicately danced around the two unmoving, white-clad Gerudo.

Slowly, the four began to close in on the other two, the open circle remaining as the partygoers stayed in their place, not daring to move. Then the music began to play faster and faster, the sensual melody turning into a frenzied tune as the four girls moved faster and faster, eventually falling to their knees around the white-clad ones.

Once again simultaneously, the two remaining girls ripped off their robes, revealing their faces. The crowd gasped, Sheik, Link and Ayla included. Aveil and Zelda did not skip a beat as they joined the other four in their complicated and graceful movements. Their bare feet hardly seemed to touch the ground as they weaved in and out between each other.

Zelda was… Sheik could not even begin to describe it. Her outfit barely covered her at all! It was…it could not even be _described_ as clothing! She was practically exposing herself to her entire chain of command! But at the same time…she was amazing. He had never seen Zelda look as beautiful as she did now, dancing with her new allies. Aveil wore the exact same outfit save for a colour inversion, but she looked no less stunning. The two princesses seemed to be particularly close for this dance, their hands never leaving each other's bodies, always trailing along an arm, a leg or a midriff.

Link's jaw had dropped along with Ayla's, and, upon further inspection, so had his. Sheik closed it, almost unable to take his eyes off the dancing girls. The entire tent was silent as the beautiful princesses continued their dance. The music slowed down again, and Aveil and Zelda moved close. In a single motion, Aveil gently took Zelda and dipped her, leaning in close and placing a light kiss on the Hylian's forehead. The dancers froze, and the music faded out.

Tao was the first to clap. The rest of the tent joined him milliseconds later, a thundering applause erupting. The dancers relaxed, and Aveil brought Zelda back to her feet, the princesses sharing a smile and a hug. Then they bowed to the crowd along with the other dancers.

* * *

"That was amazing!" said Link as they slowly made their way to the raised dais. "Did you see those moves? I didn't even know that was possible!"

"It was quite…breathtaking," agreed Sheik. He had never imagined anyone being able to move like that, much less his sister—there really was no other thing he could refer to her as—and especially not with that _outfit_.

Aveil and Zelda were sitting next to each other at the table, sharing a drink and taking turns in greeting and talking to admirers—and suitors, it seemed. They spotted Link and Sheik coming and smiled. The others seemed to take the hint as they recognised who the two were and backed off, allowing the Hero and the Sheikah to approach.

"Sheik, what are you wearing?" Zelda asked immediately once they came within earshot. "Is that a skirt?"

Sheik blushed, nodding slightly. "I did not pick the outfit, and—"

"It's cute!" exclaimed the Hylian princess.

"It is, isn't it?" asked Aveil. "I picked it out the first time they came through the valley, after our first…hm, encounter."

"Yeah, it is!" agreed Link.

"Did you see our dance?" asked Zelda.

"Yes, we did. It was…amazing," said Sheik, trying to ignore that he could see parts of Zelda's body he had _never_ seen before. She was a beautiful woman, of that there was no doubt, but it felt wrong, somehow…

"I've never seen anything like it," said Link admiringly. "I wished it wouldn't stop."

"Oh, you boys," said Zelda, blushing. "I was so worried about making a fool of myself…I had so little time to practice."

"You have an unparalleled natural grace," said Aveil. "You took to the dance like no other. It has taken some of our dancers _years_ to master those moves."

"Thank you," said Zelda. "Oh, there was something I've been meaning to tell you two," she added, looking at Link and Sheik. "I've prepared your old room in my tent if you want it. I figured you would want some privacy rather than stay at the sick tent all the time."

The two partners thanked Zelda and headed back for their table, though Sheik kept looking back.

Maybe there was something about the way the princesses kept looking at each other or the way Aveil's voice and eyes seemed to soften whenever she looked at Zelda, but Sheik had the distinct feeling that there was something going on here. When Zelda only continued to blush and softly return the looks, there was only a certain confirmation. He smiled.

_Thank the Goddesses…_

* * *

"Ah, I needed some fresh air," said Link as they stepped out into the cold evening. The main party seemed to be moving away from the Zora district and more toward the central Hylian one. Just as well, perhaps. Sheik was getting tired from the constant noise around him, and the square was starting to quiet down.

"No wonder considering the amount of wine you have chugged down," said Sheik. "I was wondering whether or not you were going to die from alcohol poisoning before you actually started feeling anything."

"I don't know," said Link. "I don't feel very…different. A lot of stuff is funny now, I guess, but I feel ready to take on an entire army."

To the Hero's credit, it seemed that Link handled alcohol extremely well. Sheik had lost count of how much wine he and Ayla had collectively had, but it was _a lot_. He wasn't even swaying or slurring.

"Which is exactly why you shouldn't," said Sheik. "The second someone feels like they can singlehandedly take on an army is the second they should be considered insane."

Link ignored the statement and took a deep breath of cold air. "Do you think Ayla found the way back to the sick tent okay?" he asked.

Tao had started to nod off after another few hours, and the Gerudo had taken it upon herself to graciously offer to take the boy back to bed, to which Sheik and Link had agreed—though in retrospect, it seemed like a bad idea given the woman's alcohol intake. But Ayla seemed responsible enough. Hopefully.

"Probably. Hopefully," said Sheik. He was wondering what to do now. Should he go through with the promise he had given Link? He was feeling insecure now. The wine did little to alleviate the problem.

"Heh, probably," said Link. "I want some more wine," he said and headed back into the tent before Sheik could stop him. The Sheikah sighed, debating with himself on whether or not to head in after the Hero. He decided not to, hoping that Link wouldn't forget about him. Link emerged seconds later, his face white and hands shaking.

"What's wrong?" asked Sheik.

"I…I…" said Link.

Sheik gently led Link toward a free table and made him sit. Sheik crouched in front of Link, ignoring the fresh breeze that suddenly decided to grace his unmentionables. "Link, what's wrong?" he asked. He was getting worried now.

"I…I saw…Zelda and…Aveil…" stuttered the Hero.

"What?" asked Sheik, hoping.

"I saw them…kissing," said Link.

Sheik smiled, relief flooding from within. "And? What's wrong with that?" he asked. "You kiss me all the time, after all." He was glad the party was moving away. Had anyone heard him, the results could be catastrophic.

"Yeah…but…I didn't think Zelda…I didn't think she kissed _anyone_!" exclaimed Link.

"Well, obviously she does," said Sheik, glad that Zelda had found someone to lock lips with, although he didn't know if it was the wine that had prompted the action. _She needs it,_ he thought. _To hell with consequences, Zelda needs to be_ happy _!_ He looked around, and his eyes fastened on something that probably made _him_ white in the face, for Link was suddenly the one to ask him if he was okay.

"What?" asked Link. "What is it?"

Sheik opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before he was able to summon the strength to speak, the horror of what he was seeing being _far_ too horrible to even contemplate.

"If…if you think seeing Aveil and Zelda kissing was bad…" he said slowly. Link turned his head, and his face turned to stone.

"Oh, no, not them," the Hero said.

"I'm afraid so," said Sheik.

"But she _hates_ him!"

"Not anymore, apparently."

"Can we go now?"

"Yes, we can."

* * *

"So, where are we heading again?" asked Link. The shock had settled, apparently, and he was now talking Sheik's ears off.

"To Zelda's tent," said Sheik simply.

"Why? The party is still going on," said Link.

"I'm tired," lied Sheik.

"But I'm not," said Link.

Sheik didn't answer, only continued to lead Link toward the tent. The guards stood aside, knowing who they were now, even though they gave the two strange looks. Sheik could _feel_ their gazes sweep across his skirt-thing-clad lower body.

Their room hadn't changed. The same two beds and tables. More than ample for a pair of travellers' needs.

Before Link had a chance to say something, Sheik pulled the door flap closed and kissed him. The Hero responded immediately by wrapping his arms around the Sheikah, warming him after being outside in the cold night. Sheik let his hands glide through Link's hair, feeling a wave of pleasure hitting him from such a simple gesture. He opened his mouth for Link's probing tongue.

His heart was beating fast; his mind felt like it was in a haze. Slowly, carefully, he led Link toward one of the beds, intentionally made the Hero trip so he fell backwards. Link let out a surprised yelp when his back hit the mattress with the Sheikah on top of him, but quickly continued the kissing.

Slowly, Sheik became more aggressive, being the one to start the fight for dominance this time. He felt Link smile as the Hero quickly beat him down. His hands were roaming across Sheik's back underneath his shirt, feeling and touching like never before.

 _Now or never,_ Sheik thought as he broke contact with Link's mouth suddenly, sitting up, straddling him. Slowly, he pulled off his shirt, revealing his upper body to the Hero, whose eyes suddenly widened, and entire body tensed. Sheik gave Link a confused look.

"Is something wrong?" he asked quietly, wondering if he had gone too far. _Surely not?_

"No," said Link hurriedly, placing a hand on Sheik's hip, making the Sheikah shiver. "I'm just…are you sure?" He looked so nervous.

Sheik smiled and leaned down, kissing Link on the lips. "I'm sure," he whispered.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 113**

* * *

The first thing Sheik became aware of when he woke up was Link's arm slung across his stomach, keeping him possessively tight against the Hero. The second was a noticeable ache in a certain place. His head wasn't too happy about the previous night's events either, despite the fact that he had only had two cups of wine—which probably wasn't very strong given Link and Ayla's still coherent speech patterns at the end of the evening. And Link had definitely not been drunk while he pulled some of those…moves, as Sheik had dubbed them. He smiled, remembering how awkward it had been at first, but they had been found some sort of rhythm, he supposed. Link had been so gentle, as if afraid he would break the younger boy if he did something wrong. But both of them had gotten…quite into it in the end, and the memories made Sheik blush. He hoped no one had heard them.

He snuggled closer to Link, hearing the slight snore coming from the Hero's mouth. At least he didn't sound like he was trying to move a mountain this time. He had been wondering how Link had been able to sound like a tectonic plate colliding with another, and had come to the conclusion that Link—while sweet and innocent and so and so forth—snored like that out of spite, just like Kaura had refused to discharge them. Link had apparently been picking all the wrong things from the very scary woman.

He was thirsty. More than thirsty, in fact. He was as thirsty as he had been during their trek through the desert toward the Spirit Temple—and that was something he had vowed never to experience again. He looked around—as far as he could, at least, since Link's rather tight hold on him made it difficult to move—but could spot no pitcher of water on either of their bedside tables. Typical, especially now that he was so comfortable—despite the soreness. Well, it was either that or thirst to death. Careful not to wake the slumbering—or hibernating, depending on who you ask—Hero, Sheik gently lifted his arm and extracted himself from beneath the covers. It was cold. The protective cocoon Link had formed with the blanket had seemed quite sweltering, but that was much preferred to the ice cavern that had developed around them.

Judging from the light coming in from beneath the tent cloth, it was sometime during early morning. Sheik went for his clothes, felt a pang of annoyance when he spotted the skir— _garment_ lying on the floor along with his…undergarments. He slipped them on quickly, ignoring the skir— _garment_ and opted for Link's pants instead. They were quite baggy and obviously meant for someone of a bigger stature than Sheik as they almost slipped off the second he let go of the hem. Huffing, he threw on Link's shirt; made sure the blanket was covering the Hero and opened the flap. He peered into the hallway, spotted no one and headed for what he assumed was the bathroom—or washing room, at least.

He spotted the pitcher first and went inside. A small opening in the roof let in some light. The skies were overcast, which explained the lack of heat. A fresh—but icy cold—breeze was blowing in through it. He took a crudely cut cup and filled it with water and knocked it back. It was like liquid heaven, flowing down his throat and into his stomach. He shuddered slightly. Finally having something to drink now was pretty much as amazing as what he and Link had done last ni—well, not really comparable, but still…

He was filling the cup again when someone cleared their throat behind him. He slowly turned around, worried that any sudden movement would drop his trousers. Zelda was standing in the doorway, smiling at him. She looked quite tired, but still refreshed, somehow. She was wearing the same outfit from last night, minus the veil in her hair, the vest and the transparent skirt. Sheik felt almost ashamed for looking at her, considering she was practically naked except for the _very_ short shorts and minimal brassiere. She was holding a morning robe under her arm.

"Good morning, Sheik," she said quietly. She looked pointedly at the pitcher and cup in his hands. "Thirsty, are you?"

"Good morning, princess," said Sheik, setting the items down on the table he had taken them from. "Yes, quite so. What time is it?"

"About seven o'clock," replied the princess, still smiling. "I was going to have some breakfast. Care to join me?"

"Certainly," said Sheik. "Should I wake the Hero, or—"

"No, let him sleep," said Zelda. "I want some time alone…with you. I don't think we've had any privacy since…well, just before you left to help Link at the Water Temple." She held out a hand. "Come on, Sheiky."

Sheik smiled and took it. "Alright, Zelly."

* * *

"I didn't know you could find these out here," said Sheik, gesturing toward the bowl of strawberries that stood on the table.

"We can't. We got these from the Gerudo," said Zelda as she took one and popped it in her mouth. It was easier to talk to her now that she had covered herself up. Looking at someone you considered a sister wearing such a tiny amount of clothing was…disturbing.

They were sitting in the meeting room, but one of the walls had been rolled up, revealing the cliff wall that was situated right behind Zelda's tent. Not much of a view, perhaps, but better than the monotonous tent cloth. Even though Zelda was a princess, she rarely opted for a large or fancy breakfast. There was some bread with accompanying cold cuts of unidentifiable meat, some warm water for tea, oatmeal and the aforementioned strawberries, which were ripe and quite sweet and juicy. Sheik hadn't had them for…well; he hadn't had any since the day he left to help Link on his journey. He carefully took one and bit into it, savouring the taste. That was another weakness that both annoyed and overjoyed him at the same time: the love for strawberries.

"I wonder how they grow them," mumbled Zelda as she sipped at her tea.

"They are quite technologically advanced," said Sheik. "I wouldn't be surprised if they've developed some sort of cultivation techniques." He too sipped some tea. It was quite bitter. There was a distinct lack of sugar in the camp.

"Mhm," said Zelda, agreeing. She set her cup down on the table and leaned on her elbows, staring at Sheik. "So…what happened last night?" she asked, a devious smile coming to her face.

Sheik managed not to embarrass himself by choking on his tea, but his surprise was still apparent as his eyes widened far beyond their normal scope. Calmly, he set the cup down and wiped away the small drop that had escaped his lips. "I am quite sure, judging by your rather lecherous smile, that you know exactly what happened last night."

"Hee," said Zelda. "The limp doesn't lie…neither does the smell. You and Link finally…did it, then?" she asked.

 _I have a limp?_ wondered Sheik, doing his best not to make a grimace. He grabbed a loaf of bread and bit into it. "If you must know, yes, Link and I have finally done what is expected of a couple. Happy now?" He could have said it in a thousand different ways, he realised, but trying to avoid Zelda's questioning was like trying to avoid a stampede of bulls at times—try as you might, you will _never_ be fast enough.

"Hee," said Zelda again, grinning. "I'm so happy for you! How was it? Did it hurt?"

"Are you under the impression that this is appropriate breakfast conversation, Zelly?" asked Sheik calmly, realising that he was blushing _yet again_.

"Most likely not," admitted Zelda. "But I'm princess, so I don't really care. Now, answer me."

Sheik scratched his jaw. Was this really the girl Impa had tried to raise? All that effort—all for naught, it seemed. He sighed. "Yes, it hurt at first, but then it got better. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

"Exactly," said Zelda, grinning. "So, who was on top—wait, why am I asking? The limp doesn't lie, after all." It was difficult to imagine that this was the same little girl that had once burst into tears upon learning how procreation _really_ worked from a tired and annoyed Impa that had just come back from an exhausting training session with Mugen and his men.

"You may be a princess, but you are certainly no lady," said Sheik.

"Meh, if being a lady means I have to wear large dresses, be all fluttery and—"she shuddered at this point—" _curtsy_ to every man I encounter, then I refuse to be one," said Zelda. She popped another strawberry into her mouth. "Being a princess really didn't turn out to be like I expected it to, to be honest."

"Life in general didn't, I find," said Sheik.

"But at least we've gotten _some_ good out of the bad though, right?" asked Zelda. "You and Link…heh, I remember when you told me you liked him…"

"An embarrassing moment for all involved, surely," said Sheik.

"Just for you, I think," said Zelda. "I thought it was cute. A big, strong Sheikah like you, pining for the Hero of Time like a love-stricken waif." She giggled.

"I believe you just managed to insult me four times in that one sentence," said Sheik. "Well played."

"Oh, come on, Sheiky, you know I'm just joking. Really, I think it's great that you and Link found each other amidst all the hideousness that the world has turned into," said Zelda, reaching over the table and patting him on the shoulder. "The fact that people can find love during a seven-year-war just proves that we are just as strong as we were before Ganondorf arrived."

"Speaking of love," said Sheik, deciding to launch an offensive. "It seems you and the Gerudo princess found a…common middle ground last night, at least according to what Link told me." He leaned forward. "He looked quite shocked."

Zelda looked stricken for a second, but then she relaxed and leaned back in her chair. "Well, I am not going to deny the fact that Aveil and I have…grown quite close, even though we've only known each other for a couple of days."

"And the…snogging, as I've come to understand it was?" asked Sheik, raising an eyebrow.

Zelda smiled. "I suppose we can say that there was some…truth behind General Crass' accusations concerning my bed partners," she said slowly, looking at Sheik expectantly.

Sheik froze. "Is this the point where you're expecting me to ask you about what happened?" he asked disbelievingly. Was there no point at which this girl would stop and realise how inappropriate she was being?

Zelda grinned widely and banged her fist gently on the table. "Of course!" she exclaimed. "Sheiky, we're practically brother and sister. We can talk about these things…especially since we're both…well, not really like everyone else concerning our choice in…relationships."

"Even brothers and sisters have limits," muttered Sheik. He wanted to break it off there, but knowing Zelda, the stampede of bulls might be more tempting. So he decided to go for a more…neutral route. "If I were to…oh, I don't know, look into your bedroom," he said slowly, "would I find a sleeping Gerudo princess tangled in your sheets?"

The princess' head was bobbing up and down before he even finished the sentence. And not a hint of a blush anywhere on her face. She really was a minx…

"I wonder what kind of political implications this will have," said Sheik musingly.

"Eugh, don't remind me," said Zelda, her smile suddenly gone. "I just…I just wanted to have fun for once, you know? And Aveil…she's so nice, and beautiful, and—"

"Zelly, I wasn't berating you," said Sheik, smiling at her. "I'm glad that you have found someone who can give you the love you deserve, but…I'm just worried about how the people will react if you go public with it. There are certain…expectations, you know."

"I know, Sheik, I know," said Zelda, shaking her head. "I must produce heirs and all that…what I wouldn't give for introducing democracy in the kingdom—I'm just kidding, Sheik!" She gave him a small glare for widening his eyes like he had. "But yes, I am quite aware of what is expected of me…but how do you think _I_ feel about you and Link? How do you think people will react to your relationship? The Hero of Time is known by all and to think that he was to take another man as his lover…"

"That will not be a problem, for our relationship does not officially exist," said Sheik. "And we have managed to keep it hidden so far…although I am quite worried about what people thought when they saw us last night in our…outfits."

"They were all too drunk or…amorous to care, I'm sure," said Zelda. "Besides, the people in the immediate vicinity of the tarpaulin have all been…hee, officially silenced and forbidden to talk about what they saw me or you doing last night."

"And you believe that will hinder them from talking?" asked Sheik.

"Well, not entirely, but the punishment awaiting those who do…well, any man will fear it, and any woman will find it quite interesting," said Zelda deviously, rubbing her hands together.

"And I believe I will refrain from asking any further questions about that," said sheik, feeling slightly worried as he took another sip of tea. He finished the loaf of bread he had been working on and took another strawberry, once again just enjoying the taste as he slowly chewed and swallowed it.

"You're quite interesting to watch while you eat," said Zelda. At his questioning look, she elaborated: "It's so easy to see if you enjoy the meal or not. If you eat something you like, like strawberries for example, you get this distant, faraway look in your eyes. But when you eat something you hate, like mushrooms—"

"Mushrooms are abominations and should be wiped out," muttered Sheik.

"You get that—yeah, exactly that—annoyed look. And just the slightest bit of hatred…like the one I can feel directed at me now. Brrrr." Zelda winked at him.

They were silent for a few minutes, both quite content to sit and enjoy each other's company alone for once. But Sheik noticed that Zelda's eyes were quickly drawn to his hand whenever he moved. He had been keeping it hidden under the table this whole time, but he was quite sure she had spotted the Delta Force the night before, even if she didn't make any mention of it. Just to clear the air, he lifted the hand and placed it palm-down on the table and look pointedly at Zelda.

"I'm sure you've been meaning to ask about this," he said. "And I suppose I owe you an explanation for it."

"Yes, I have," said Zelda. "But I've also come to the conclusion that pushing and prodding you for answers you do not wish to reveal is just an effort in futility and, ultimately, a lost cause."

"This time I _am_ willing to reveal them, however," said Sheik and leaned forward, giving Zelda a good look at the upside-down triangle. "This is known as the—"

"I was wondering where you went, not to mention my clothes," said Link, standing in the doorway. "And you started breakfast without me. That's nice." The words sounded hurt, but the look gave away his acting.

Sheik couldn't help but smile at Link—but not because of what he said. "And I see you found _my_ clothes quite acceptable," he said. To be honest, Link looked _rather_ good in the skir— _garment_ and his sleeveless shirt. Of course, in Link's case, his strong bi- and triceps were revealed by said shirt, making it a more appropriate article for the Hero to wear rather than the spindly-armed Sheikah.

"Hey, I _did_ offer to wear the skirt last night, but you wouldn't listen," said Link as he came over and made himself comfortable in the chair next to Sheik, leaning and nuzzling his lover's neck. "Good morning, by the way," he whispered and kissed the Sheikah's neck.

"Hey, hey, no snuggling in the war room," said Zelda, grimacing playfully. "Only princesses can do that."

"So, does that mean you and Aveil—"began Link.

"Yes, Link, we did," said Zelda. "Just like you and Sheik fu—"

"And I'm going to stop you right there before you completely ruin your image as royalty," said Sheik, his cheeks burning yet again. "I don't want to hear that word."

"What?" asked Zelda. "Fu—"

" _Yes_! _That_ word," said Sheik.

Link looked back and forth. "What word are we talking about?"

"Not a word you want to know," said Sheik hurriedly.

Zelda giggled and shoved the slab which the bread stood on toward Link. "Here, Link, have some breakfast. Sheik was just about to tell me about the triangle on his hand."

"Great," said Link and began to pile his bread high with the cold cuts. "I'm starving."

"I can see that," said Sheik, rolling his eyes. He put his hand on the table again and tried to start over. "Anyway, this is known as the—"

"Ah, good morning, everyone!" exclaimed Aveil as she marched into the room. She too was wearing a robe like Zelda, but left it deliberately open, revealing the identical outfit to Zelda's beneath. She stopped, looking at the gathered three. "Am I interrupting something?"

Sheik had a good mind to snarl "Yes!", but a look from Zelda told him that doing so would result in the famous stampede, and so kept his mouth shut, only smiling at Aveil as she seated herself next to Zelda, though keeping her distance. Zelda smiled at the Gerudo.

"It's okay, they know," she said.

"Oh, okay then," said Aveil and leaned closer, close enough to place a kiss on the Hylian princess' cheek. "Good morning, Your Highness."

"Good morning, Your Highness," replied Zelda.

This resulted in both women giggling, and both men sighing.

"Oh, shush, you two," said Zelda. "I remember rolling my eyes at the sounds you two were making last night."

The men blushed.

* * *

"So, at the same time that it gives you strength, it also gives you weakness?" asked Zelda slowly as Sheik ended his retelling of the information he had gained from Vorpheus.

"Apparently," said Sheik. "But the only effect I have noticed so far is…eh…a tendency to lose my temper easily." He glanced sheepishly over at Link, who only smiled encouragingly at him as he laid his arm across his shoulders. "I have…also noticed a certain…bloodlust whenever I am in combat."

"Or encountering people like Phil," said Link.

"Phil?" asked Zelda.

"The man who apparently was the brains behind kidnapping and enslaving Tao," said Sheik. "I went rather…overboard when I eliminated him."

Aveil raised her hand. "May I ask a question? Who is this Tao-person you keep mentioning?"

"He is a boy we rescued from a group of Ganonodorf's deserters in the Shadow Temple," said Sheik. "He was their…relief, I suppose one could say."

"He's only ten years or so old," said Link.

"Goddesses…" said Aveil, eyes wide.

"More like twelve or thirteen," said Sheik. When Link looked at him with a strange look, he only shrugged. "Kaura told me that his malnutrition has stunted his growth," he lied.

"Oh," said Link, buying it as well as the farm.

"I hope you punished these men severely," said Aveil.

"They are dead," said Sheik simply.

"Good," replied the Gerudo. "Such beasts do not deserve to live." She smiled when Zelda locked hands with her.

"Anyway," continued Sheik, "I am not entirely sure what else the Delta Force can do, but for now, it is the only thing that is keeping me alive. And the warlock said that I will most likely have it until the day it decides that I am no longer fit as its vessel."

"It'll be hard coming across a more fitting vessel than you, though," said Link. "I've never met a stronger person." The Hero leaned.

"Thank you," said Sheik and met Link halfway, giving him a small peck on the lips.

Aveil looked at Zelda. "Ah, young love. Isn't it wonderful?"

"Indeed it is," said Zelda. "But are we any worse?" she asked hopefully.

"Hardly," said Aveil and mirrored the action taking place across the table.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 114**

* * *

The thick layer of clouds that obscured the skies did not let up as the day stretched on. In the distance, from the area where Vorpheus had displayed his rather ridiculous level of power, darker, more vicious clouds were forming, and Sheik knew somehow that if the water contained within those clouds were to fall upon anything living, catastrophic consequences would follow. As luck would have it, however, the wind clearly blew in northern direction, shoving the dark clouds away from the camp. In fact, with another spot of luck, the wind would be blowing in a more eastern direction up there, blowing all the toxins toward Ganondorf's fortress instead. Oh, what an unexpected twist: The Evil King murdered by way of toxic, liquid metal in the form of rain.

Sheik shivered as he started to dry himself and quickly slipped into his leather armour again. He and Link had been given permission to use Zelda's private bath—provided they did it quickly—and they were now taking turns. Link had been the first, and he was waiting behind a curtain. Every now and then, Sheik could feel a pair of eyes looking at him, but allowed it with a huff. He was Link's, after all, and who was he to deny the Hero a glimpse? Sheik had gotten his own fill when Link had been bathing, after all. He slipped on one of the gloves—the right one, covering the Delta Force—and stepped out from the curtain. Link gave him a lecherous smile as they exited the bath, emerging into the small square in front of the princess' tent.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Link. They were getting some strange looks from the guards, probably surprised to see two males emerging from a bath designated for a single person—who happened to be their princess—but made no move to intercept them as they left the square.

"The princess said she wanted to hold an extraordinary meeting with the best scouts in the army in two hours," said Sheik. The Delta Force had hardly made any annoying twinges or such since his talk with Tao, which he supposed was a good thing—but for how long? Every time he seemed to gain something positive, something so absolutely and diabolically shitty would happen to drag him right down again. "Until then," he continued, "I suppose we're free to do whatever we want."

Link's eyebrows went up immediately as he winked at Sheik in a way so obvious that it was painful to watch. Sheik rolled his eyes and sighed.

"No," he said. "Not that." Upon seeing Link's deflated look, he patted the Hero gently on the arm and smiled. "It's not that…it's not that I don't want to, but I'm quite…er…sore in a certain area."

Link stopped, grabbed Sheik by the arm and pulled him into a small gap between a pair of tents, placing both hands on the Sheikah's shoulder carefully; as if afraid he would break. "I didn't hurt you, did I?" the Hero asked worriedly. "I mean, I got a bit carried away, but—"

"No, no, it's okay, you didn't hurt me," said Sheik, smiling. "It's just…it was my first time, and so on. I'm not used to it. I'm sure it'll get even better with time, but now…I need some time off."

"Oh," said Link with relief. "I was getting worried when I saw you limping."

 _I_ still _have a limp? Curses!_ Sheik thought.

They both went back into the street smiling, though there was something niggling at Sheik that he just couldn't place his finger on. What was it? He shrugged to himself. Something was grabbing at his hand, and he looked down. Link was trying to interlock his fingers with Sheik's. The Sheikah pulled his hand out of the Hero's grip.

"What?" asked Link.

"You know what," said Sheik. "We can't."

"Why not?"

"People will see. And talk."

"And what if I _want_ people to see?" asked Link, sounding hurt. The pout on his face didn't help either.

Sheik briefly toyed with the idea of announcing their relationship to the camp at large in his head, but knew the possible negative repercussions outweighed the positive ones by far. Link could risk losing every bit of respect he had with the people. Hell, they could even be run out of the camp.

"Even if you want people to see, Link, doesn't mean that _I_ want them to," he finally said. "Don't you understand? Not everyone is as open-minded as Zelda and the Gerudo. Hylians have been rather hostile to these kinds of relationships in the past, and I doubt it has improved now." He looked around, making sure that no one could hear them. "Even talking about it in this place could prove to be fatal." He gave Link a sad smile. "You know how I feel, but I just don't want to risk your reputation." _And our lives,_ he added silently.

"Fine," said the Hero, clearly miffed. However, he gave Sheik the same sad smile in return, indicating that he understood, even though he hated it with the entirety of his heart. "But the next time we have the night alone…" He left the sentence hanging, meaning for Sheik to fill in the rest with his imagination.

The Sheikah didn't answer, only continued smiling as they swung into the street containing the sick tent. Someone was shouting from within, the voice upset, angry and…feminine. Sheik and Link looked at each other.

"Kaura," they both said at the same time. At the very same moment, Vorpheus came tumbling out, his clothes and hair askew, covering his head as a beaker flew over his head and crashed into the ground.

"What did you do to piss her off _this_ time?" asked Link as he gave the warlock a hand, pulling him to his feet.

Vorpheus brushed himself off, a cheery grin on his face. "Well, let's just say that she was not too keen on the face that she woke up to." He turned to the tent entrance, cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted: "I know you're just hung-over, Kaura dearest. Shall I bring you some lunch?"

"Fuck off and die!" came the physician's shout from within, followed by another beaker, which bounced off the warlock's chest. He caught it, still grinning.

"I'll take that as a no, then," he shouted back. "Anyway, _I'm_ going to grab something to eat. I'll bring you something back, yeah?" Without waiting for an answer he strode off, saluting the boys with two fingers.

Kaura didn't answer, but Sheik and Link could hear someone sigh in annoyance. Carefully, they inched inside the tent. The man who had been kicked in the head lay absolutely still in his bed, still lost to the world. Sheik could see that he was passing on. Why was no one there to say goodbye? He shook his head and continued looking around. Tao was waving at them from his bed, a large book splayed out in front of him. From the illustrations, Sheik guessed that it was a book on anatomy. He had studied many of them himself. To their surprise, they saw Ayla sleeping in the bed next to Tao's, arms and legs spread as wide as possible, like she was trying to make a snow angel.

"Hey kid, where's Kaura?" Link asked Tao quietly, looking around nervously, worried that the next thing that would be thrown would be something a bit sharper. Like a scalpel.

Tao pointed to the backroom, and Link nodded. He turned to look at Sheik. "Should I go talk to her, or you?" he asked.

"How good are you at defusing angry women?" asked Sheik sarcastically.

"Not very," said Link earnestly.

"Better leave her to me, then," said Sheik, sighing. As if _he_ was any better. Link grinned nervously and plopped himself down on Tao's bed, trying to make sense of the drawings he was seeing. The fake mute's face lit up in joy. Sheik shook his head and carefully made his way toward the backroom. He pushed the flap aside and almost yelped when he found himself staring into Kaura's angry eyes, faces barely inches apart. "Er…good day?" he tried.

"What's so good about it?" asked Kaura. Her hair and clothes were just as dishevelled as Vorpheus' had been. Her "bed" had been hastily covered up with a tarp. She was trying to gather her hair into the usual tight bun, but was having trouble with it. "I don't know what's worse, waking up to that bastard or finding you in a disgustingly good mood for once," she said with a huff.

"In all honesty, I'd say the first," said Sheik as he stepped inside the backroom. "Dare I ask what happened?"

"The same thing that happened to you, judging by your limp," said Kaura. She was opening crates at random, sighing when they apparently did not contain what she wanted. "We both god fu—"

"There's no need to use that word," said Sheik hurriedly. He _hated_ that word. It was a term that was far below anything else, and, in his opinion, saying it brought the user down to that very same level. He had used it a few times himself, of course, but always deeply regretted it.

"What are you, a girl?" asked Kaura. "Wait, don't answer that. Silly me, of course you are. The limp doesn't lie." She slammed another crate down on the table and opened it, sighing in relief. She pulled out a bottle of a vicious, green liquid. She uncorked it and downed the entire thing in a single gulp.

Sheik ignored the massive insult to his manhood and settled for staring at her with the same bored look he knew annoyed the hell out of Link, Zelda, Impa and everyone else he stared at with it.

The physician shuddered as she corked the bottle again and almost crushed it back into the crate. A look of relief passed over her face seconds after. "Ah, best hangover cure there is, but tastes like raw sewage filtered with rotting corpses."

"Charming," said Sheik.

"Hey, it's true," said Kaura and took the bottle back out, offering it to him. "Here, have a whiff."

"No, your…visceral description will suffice," said Sheik, eyeing the bottle with distaste. "I thought you hated the warlock. How come you two…er…"

"Fu—"

"Don't say it!"

"Fine, fine, I won't say it," said Kaura, rolling her eyes. She sat on one of the chairs. "Truth be told, I'm not entirely sure what happened. I was tired, I wanted something to drink, and he was there to take my drunken abuse." She massaged her temples slowly, trying to scare away the small remnants of the galaxy-sized headache that had been occupying her head. "And at some point or another…he just turned into this charming little gentleman, knew exactly what to say, even had me blushing at one point…disgusting, ain't it?"

Sheik didn't make a comment. It was hard imagining Kaura to be anything but caustic, sarcastic and generally mean, and it was a nightmare trying to imagine her _blushing_ or generally being…a woman, really.

"And then…well, he backed off, as if he knew he was going too far," continued Kaura. "But by then I was too deep into it, and I dragged him back here. At least he knew what to do…some of those moves…heh…almost had me screaming like a virg—"

"Thank you, I do not need any more details," said Sheik quickly.

"What, does the heterosexual side of life scare you, little boy?" asked Kaura, grinning.

"Not usually, but when it involves people I know— _yes_ ," said Sheik.

"Heh, good thing you didn't know me in my teens, then," said the physician.

"Oh, Godesses…"

"So, I can see by your generally relaxed posture that you and the Hero finally went the distance. Congratulations are in order, I suppose," she said and extended a hand, which Sheik did not even give the dignity of being looked at it.

"Why is it that everyone feels it necessary to talk about it?" asked Sheik.

"'cause it's fun," said Kaura, grinning even wider. "So, how was he? Clumsy? I bet he was clumsy, the big oaf."

* * *

It was a strange situation. Upon narrowly escaping Kaura's interrogation, Sheik had come back to find Tao and Link deeply engrossed in trying to identify the anatomical drawing's epidermis, which was apparently a brain teaser like no other. Sheik had felt a certain urge to loudly point out the obvious answer, but they were having too much fun. However, Ayla had woken up from all the loud guessing (from Link, of course) and started to ask questions. Sheik had, of course, tried to point out that a child was present and did not need to hear any graphic descriptions of last night's events, and stubbornly—and literally—clung to him as he tried to tell her with as few words as possible.

So there he was, sitting on the bed next to Tao's with Ayla's arms around him, her cheek pressed firmly against his, being given the tightest and longest hug he had ever gotten.

"Are you _ever_ going to let go?" he asked finally.

"I'm not letting go until the world stops spinning," said Ayla. "And I've got a headache the size of a mountain. What the hell did we drink last night?"

"Unless you continued drinking after dropping Tao off here, then you had only wine, but ungodly amounts of it," said Sheik.

"Oh, right," said Ayla. "What the hell was in that wine?"

"Nothing but wine, I think," said Sheik.

"Then how come you two aren't hurting?" she asked, pointing at the two partners annoyed. "You drank just as much as I did."

"I only had a few cups," said Sheik.

"Actually, I _have_ a headache, but only a small one," said Link, not even raising his head to look at them. He pointed down at the illustration. "That's the epidermis. That's got to be it."

Sheik looked over to see what he pointing at, and sighed. "That's his pancreas, Link."

"Really? Where the hell is the epidermis, then?" The Hero asked.

"The skin, you idiot," said Kaura as she emerged from the backroom, carrying a pair of clear glasses filled with the same liquid she had used to clear away her hangover. "The epidermis is one's skin. Here, drink this," she said to Ayla and Link as she handed them the glasses. "It'll clear your heads right away. The only good thing my mother ever taught me."

Ayla downed the glass in one gulp and went green in the face. She finally let go of Sheik and held her hands in front of her mouth, cheeks bulging as she readied herself for hurling.

"You keep that down, young lady," said Kaura warningly. "That potion doesn't come by cheap, and the ingredients are hard to find in this kingdom." She glared at Ayla until the Gerudo finally stopped dry heaving. She then looked at Link, who was staring at the glass apprehensively. "Well? What are you waiting for?"

"My headache's not that big of a deal," Link said hesitantly, holding the glass at a distance.

"Hero of Time, you will drink that potion unless you wish to find yourself missing a few key anatomical components," said Kaura firmly.

"Yes'm," said Link, looking ready to cry as he did his best to force the hideous-looking potion down his throat. Tao was looking at both Ayla and Link, laughing silently. Sheik tried to catch his eyes with his own, but the boy seemed to be actively avoiding him.

* * *

"Sheik-sama, can I talk to you for a bit?" asked Ayla after an hour or so of socialising. The sick tent seemed to have become some sort of base of operations for Link and Sheik, though for what reason, none of them knew, considering the terrifying woman who ran it. Sheik nodded and went into the storage area with her. She was still a bit green around the gills, but otherwise fine, it seemed .She jumped up and sat down on the same crate that Sheik and Link had…gotten carried away against. Sheik almost blushed when he thought back to that moment, but it also filled his stomach with a warm feeling.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I've been thinking about that Tao kid," she said, looking around conspiratorially, waving him closer. "An idea came to me while we were drinking last night," she said, dropping her voice down to a whisper.

"Really?" Sheik asked. "What idea?"

"I think Tao might be a Gerudo," said Ayla.

"I thought only a single male Gerudo was born every hundred years," said Sheik. "And Ganondorf is clearly not a hundred years old. Also, Tao has green eyes. Gerudo have gold eyes, do they not?" he asked and pointed at Ayla's own golden pupils. "Not to mention his hair colour. His hair is black, and not red."

"The eye and hair part is not always true," said Ayla. "Sometimes, the child inherits their father's colours rather their mother's." She looked around again, worried that someone would hear them. "The truth about the male children, however…well, it's not entirely true. Sometimes, more than one male child is born during a century."

Sheik blinked. This all sounded a bit too far-fetched. It was completely contrary to what he had been told of the Gerudo. "And…what happens to the other male children?" he asked slowly.

Ayla bit her lip, looking uncomfortable. "They are either…sent away to families who can raise them far away from the valley, or murdered."

Sheik's eyes widened. "What? You murder children?"

"No, no, no Gerudo that is alive today has ever laid a deadly hand on a child," said Ayla, waving her hands wildly. "It was our ancestors who did so. We only send them away!"

"Why would you do that?" asked Sheik. "Surely they can be raised and—"

"Sheik-sama, our entire balance of power within the clan lies in the fact that only one male is born every century," said Ayla. "And that child is to be king. If more than one male was there…there would be claims to the throne, and civil war would undoubtedly erupt as different factions would support different claimants."

Sheik shook his head in disbelief. Where was all this coming from? And why was Ayla telling him this? "What _evidence_ do you have to back up your belief that Tao is a Gerudo, then?" he asked, wanting to get away from the subject of child killing.

"Come on, Sheik, can't you see it?" she asked. "He has the exact same appearance as most Gerudo barring his eye and hair colour. The same skin, the same facial structure, the same eye shape…"

"And why are you telling me all this?" asked Sheik slowly, the pieces starting to fall into place as he said it. "No…" he said.

Ayla nodded. "Yes."

"You want him to be your king?"

"He is the right age," said Ayla. "Once the Hero of Time defeats Ganondorf, we will need a king. The people trust Aveil and love her with all their hearts, but many of the older girls believe that having a king is the only proper way."

"You don't even know if Tao really _is_ a Gerudo," said Sheik.

"No, but I am quite certain, and I am sure Aveil will agree with me," said Ayla.

Sheik stepped away from Ayla, unsure what to make of this. He didn't like it, that was for certain. The boy had been through so much, and now he was going to have this hanging over him as well? Shaking his head, Sheik left the backroom wordlessly, leaving Ayla behind. Still as silent, he grabbed both Tao and Link by their tunics and dragged them out of the tent. Kaura stared questioningly after them, shrugging.

To their credit, neither of them struggled or protested when they noticed the look Sheik had on his face as he dragged them through the camp, stopping at the cliff where Vorpheus had opened the portal to bring Sheik and Tao down.

"Uh, what was that about?" asked Link, staring at Sheik. Tao was clearly conveying the same question through his eyes.

"I have been given some rather disturbing news," said Sheik slowly. "But first: I am sick and tired of lying." He crouched down in front of Tao, staring into the boy's eyes. "Speak." It was not a request, not a beckon, but a demand.

"Sheik, what are you do—"began Link.

"Speak!" repeated Sheik, louder this time.

Tao stared back at him, his face going through a range of emotions, most of them pertaining to the fearful, annoyed or angry side of the spectrum, the boy probably angry with the Sheikah for giving away his secret.

"Tao, I will not ask you again," said Sheik firmly. "Speak!"


	8. Chapter 8

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 115**

* * *

"You two finally did it, then?"

Those were as far from the words Sheik had expected Tao to say as possible. His thoughts derailed, he found himself gaping at the boy, who was only grinning at him, any trace of previous anger or annoyance gone. No matter how many times he tried, the Sheikah simply couldn't find anything to respond with. Instead, he turned his head to look at Link, who was doing pretty much the same thing, gaping at the bronze-skinned boy. Tao looked back and forth between them for a couple of minutes before waving a hand in front of Sheik's face.

"Hello? Is anyone home?" he asked.

"He…he spoke," said Link finally. "The kid spoke."

"I have a name, you know," said Tao. "I've heard you say it before, so it can't be _that_ hard to remember." He rolled his eyes and looked at Sheik. "Not too bright, is he?" he asked.

Sheik finally managed to unlock his jaw, and couldn't help but grin when he saw the indignant look on Link's face. "Well, perhaps a bit slow on the uptake, but give him some time and he generally figures things out."

Link stared at them in disbelief. "Why am I even listening to this? Listen, it's great that Tao can talk, but if all you're gonna do with that ability is to insult me then you can both shut up." He made to walk away, but Sheik stopped him by grabbing one of his boots, holding him in place.

"Link, we're just joking," said Sheik. "Relax."

"I wasn't," said Tao. He shuffled his feet on the ground, kicking up small puffs of sand. "Why did you tell him about my secret?" he asked Sheik accusingly. "You know I don't like—"

"To talk, yes, I'm quite aware, but I find it ridiculous," said Sheik sharply. "Especially since I've just been given some information that…well, I'd like to investigate it further, and I need you to talk to me in order to confirm some things."

"Then why bring him?" asked Tao, pointing at Link. At the same time, he readjusted the green cap on his head, and Sheik noticed Link eyeing it with certain…envy? Jealousy?

"That hat was a gift, but I can easily take it back," said Link.

"Finder's keepers, loser's weepers," said Tao, blowing a raspberry.

Sheik groaned, wondering why he was even bothering. "Okay, stop it you two," he said. He stood up and looked around, noticing that this particular part of the camp was noticeably empty. Many of the inhabitants seemed to be magnetically drawn toward the Gerudo part of the camp, to no great surprise, but the rest seemed to be congregating around the training fields. "Listen, Tao, I was just speaking to Ayla, and she told me a couple of things that I think you should know."

"Alright, let's hear it, then," said Tao shortly, staring expectantly at Sheik.

"But first, there's something I want to ask you," said Sheik. "Did you…did you ever know your mother?"

Tao raised an eyebrow at him in a perfect mimic of the action he was so used to, which made Sheik start to wonder if he was becoming repetitive. "Why d'you wanna know that?" he asked.

"Just answer the question, please," said Sheik.

"Fine, I didn't, okay?" said Tao. "I never knew my mother. I was raised by my dad, who was then killed by…by…"

"Phil and his gang?" said Link helpfully.

"Yeah," said Tao. His voice was starting to sound tired again, much more so than when he last spoke, and an overwhelming look of sadness came to his face. "They killed him and…and my grandparents. And then they took me…"

 _Goddesses, why did I even start this?_ wondered Sheik, the guilt striking him directly in the chest like an arrow. _Once again, Sheiky, you've managed to rush headlong into a situation without ever thinking about the consequences. What would Impa have said?_ He felt like kicking himself. "I'm sorry, Tao, I didn't—"

"No, it's okay, it's okay," said Tao. Even as he said this, he wiped away the moisture that had started to gather in his eyes with his knuckles and seemingly banished the sad thoughts from his mind as his face hardened. "It's time I got over it, right? Just forget, and move on. Just like all those heroes in those stories..."

Sheik stared at him. What on earth could possess a child to speak like this? Sure, perhaps getting over one's family's deaths is the only way to go, but surely not at such an age? Shaking his head, he realised that he had just started a conversation that would probably hurt more than it would do good, but it was not like he could stop either. He looked pleadingly at Link, who shrugged.

"I don't know, Tao," the Hero said, drawing the boy's attention to him. "Seems to me like you've confused getting over stuff with just…forgetting, really."

"I don't really care," said Tao, looking back at Sheik. "Why do you want to know about my mom so much?"

"Because…well, Ayla told me something that surprised me. Did your father ever speak of your mother?" Sheik said.

Link gave him a look that clearly conveyed the unspoken question "What the hell? Are you _trying_ to make him sad?" which Sheik promptly ignored.

"No, he didn't," answered Tao.

"Nothing at all?"

"Never."

 _Well, that would make sense given the Gerudo's rather…aggressive approach to mating rituals. No man would ever speak highly of being essentially raped by a woman, would he?_ Sheik thought. _But…is it really true?_

"Sheik," said Link suddenly. "Where are you going with all this?" He gave his lover—for real, now—a sharp look. "What did Ayla tell you?"

 _Well, no hiding it now, I suppose,_ Sheik thought and took a breath. "Ayla told me that she believes that Tao is actually a Gerudo," he said. "And before you ask, she confirmed to me that other males _are_ actually born within a century, but most of them are sent away since the presence of other males supposedly brings their entire civilisation down." He said the last part with a sarcastic tone, hoping to convey how ridiculous he thought it was.

"Okay, I can understand the more than one boy being born every century," said Link slowly, the gears in his head probably working overtime, "but Tao doesn't really have the…well, his hair isn't red, for one thing—"

"That is not entirely necessary for someone to be a Gerudo, apparently," said Sheik. "Boys sometimes inherit their father's features, it seems."

"But not girls?" asked Link.

"No."

"That's stupid. How is that even possible?"

"I am no expert in genetics, Hero, and I—"

"So…I'm a Gerudo?" asked Tao quietly, effectively ending the back-and-forth argument that had slowly—and unnoticeably to either party involved—started to develop between the Sheikah and the Hero.

Sheik smiled and crouched down to Tao's level again. The boy really was too short for his apparent real age. Just how long had those men been keeping him? "It does seem so, though the proof that Ayla has come forward with is sketchy at best. For all we know, she could be making it up."

"But why?" asked Link.

"Isn't it obvious?" asked Sheik. "The Gerudo will need a new king after Ganondorf is defeated."

"Yeah, and?" asked Link. Sheik felt like slapping him upside the head.

"Wait, they want _me_ to be their king?" asked Tao, eyes wide.

 _At least_ someone _has a mental capacity above eleven here,_ thought Sheik. "That's what she told me, yes," he answered.

"But why? I don't know anything about being a king, and if they're not even sure I'm a Gerudo, then why…?" he trailed off, his voice getting more and more distraught as he talked. "Why?" he asked again.

Sheik wanted so badly to give him an answer that actually made sense, but he knew absolutely nothing about the reasoning other than the fact that the political climate among the desert thieves would be chaotic after the war. "I have a feeling that there is a lot that Aveil has left out," he said finally. He looked at the Hero. "Link, you said that there had been a sort of uprising after we left the fortress for the temple, correct?"

"Yeah," said Link. "A lot of people died."

"Well, perhaps those rebellious elements are still there, waiting for an opportunity to spring up yet again," said Sheik slowly, pondering. "Perhaps Ayla—and by proxy, Aveil—wants to quieten them down with a new king to take Ganondorf's place. But why? Those rebels originally wanted to fight _for_ Ganondorf, did they not?"

"I don't know, Sheik," said Link.

Sheik was about to answer, but was suddenly assaulted by an armful of sniffling boy. Tao quickly linked his arms around Sheik's neck, clinging tightly to him. "Tao?" Sheik asked hesitantly. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want to be king," the boy whispered. "I don't want to."

Sheik looked helplessly at Link as he hugged the boy gently back. The Hero's expression told him clearly what he thought of the situation, though, and he agreed wholeheartedly. "You don't have to," he said. "I'll make sure of that."

* * *

The atmosphere and tension inside the meeting room was so thick that you could cut it with a knife, Link was sure of it. As he sat next to Sheik at his left, who again sat to Zelda's left, he surveyed the other occupants inside the room; an odd collection of every race apart from the Gorons, who had declined to take part in whatever Zelda had been planning. The princess had been oddly tight-lipped about the whole thing, and she seemed to be bursting with anticipation.

Ayla and Aveil sat directly opposite of them, Aveil and Zelda clearly giving each other looks that were wholly inappropriate for two princesses, but no one but Sheik seemed to notice. Either that or they simply ignored it. Three other Gerudo sat with them, all with hard and vicious faces. They were clearly warriors given their general posture and demeanour. General Myde and two other Zora also sat at the table, their blue tunics providing a welcome relief from all the purple and red the Gerudo were wearing. And taking up the rest of the seats at the table were Hylian scouts of both sexes, most of whom Sheik had seen on multiple occasions before, though he did not remember any of their names.

Zelda decided it was time to start and leaned forward in her seat, clearing her throat. "Ladies and gentlemen, I thank you for coming to this top-secret meeting. First of all, you will notice the absence of any Gorons at the table today. This is not because they are not valuable allies, but rather that they are not…how shall I say this, 'suitable' for the plan I wish to discuss with you." She cleared he throat again and looked around the table, making sure she had the attention of everyone gathered.

"The reason you are here," she continued, "is that I requested of your leaders, General Myde and Princess Aveil, to bring me the very best warriors, scouts and infiltrators they had." She nodded to the gathered as she unfolded a map of Hyrule and spread it out on the table, giving everyone a good look of it.

The entire southern part of Hyrule, including the Lake Hylia area, had been coloured a deep red with ink. The part that Castle Town occupied had also been given the red treatment, though landmarks and names were distinguishable through the ink. The numbers "I" and "II" had been painted onto the town, while "III", "IV" and "V" had been marked in the southern part.

"As you know, thanks to a ruse provided unknowingly to us by the Evil King himself, the Third, Fourth and Fifth mercenary legions are now fumbling about in the Lost Woods, looking for our old camp," said Zelda. "Ganondorf has no idea that we are currently hiding here, thank the Goddesses.

"But we cannot hide here forever," she said in a serious tone. "Sooner or later, he will find out that we are no longer even remotely close to where he is searching for us. I have discussed this thoroughly with tacticians from all the armies, and we have all come to the conclusion that now is the time to act. If we do not make a move on Ganondorf now, we will never have another chance again."

One of the Hylians carefully raised a hand, and Zelda nodded to her. "With all due respect, you majesty," she said hesitantly, "even though three entire legions are busy elsewhere, we still do not have enough men and women to fight the first two. We don't even have proper siege equipment. What can we possibly do against those massive walls?"

"I am glad you asked that," said Zelda. "While rebuilding the bridge over the river that separates the valley from the rest of Hyrule, Princess Aveil's women discovered something rather startling—and useful." She motioned for Aveil to take over, and the Gerudo cleared her throat.

"We have long suspected that it existed, but it was not until I saw it with my own eyes that it was confirmed," she said. "Undoubtedly you have noticed that the water level in the river has decreased significantly. This has exposed a rather suspicious opening in the cliff face directly below the bridge, previously covered by the river itself. I sent some of my warriors in there to do reconnaissance, and they discovered that beyond it lies a tunnel."

Link thought about this. How many times had he dived off that bridge in his youth? Too many times to count, he figured, but he had never noticed an opening like that, despite the many times he had dived to the bottom of the river.

"And?" asked Sheik. "Where does it lead?"

"I'm getting to that," said Aveil, glaring playfully at him. "The tunnel, it turns out, is actually a drainage pipe. Does anyone wish to make a guess as to where it leads?"

"Somewhere hugely convenient?" asked Link.

"Exactly," said Aveil. "The tunnel leads all the way into Castle Town, in fact. There's a destroyed fountain in the middle of a large square where this tunnel ends up in. Of course, the entrance from that side is concealed by the rubble, and it seems no one in Ganondorf's camp is aware of its existence."

"Wait, an entire drainage pipe for a single fountain?" asked Sheik. "That seems oddly costly and…complicated, to be honest."

"You didn't let me finish," said Aveil. "The pipe apparently runs through the entire town after the fountain, and it seems to have been where the water in the castle's moat once went. And before you ask: no, we were unable to scout any further as the tunnel has collapsed further on."

"Exactly where are you going with this information?" asked Myde suddenly. "I can understand that you are suggesting a sneak attack inside the town itself, but this pipe cannot be more than a meter or so wide and not much taller. How exactly are you going to march an army through it and emerge from a broken fountain?"

"Obviously, it is impossible to march an army through the pipe," said Zelda. "But a skilled agent can easily sneak in and cause some damage."

"So, the reason you have asked for our most skilled infiltrators is this, a sabotage mission deep behind enemy lines?" asked Myde.

"Essentially, yes," said Zelda. "But before you make another comment; please note that this is an entirely voluntary mission. If you do not wish to participate, then that is quite alright."

"It is a highly dangerous mission," said Aveil, "and we need only one agent. Any more than that and it will be quite difficult to sneak into the occupied town. You will be doing it under the cover of darkness, of course, and will be given several objectives to complete."

"What will these objectives entail?" asked one of the unknown Gerudo.

"Sabotage, reconnaissance and assassination," said Zelda. "As we have very little information on the town itself—the last known infiltration being made by Sheik when he first went to greet the Hero of Time—the reconnaissance and sabotage objectives will of course be linked."

"Get in, recon and assess how best to damage the enemy and then damage the enemy?" asked Sheik. "Seems…a bit risky, especially if one does not know where to start."

"We have designated the permanent opening and sabotage of the gatehouses as a priority," said Aveil. "With these open, our army will have a huge advantage when it comes to getting inside the city itself."

"Weapons and ammunition stores are also something that would be high on the list, of course," added Zelda. "Notably the catapults that stand on the walls. Without them, the enemy will have to face us face to face."

"How did the Sheikah get inside the city, then?" asked a Hylian, who scowled at Sheik. "Can't he just do it all again?"

Link looked at Sheik, noticing that he was scratching at the Delta Force again. He tensed up, wondering if Sheik was going to have an outburst, but he had apparently expected the question, and sighed.

"Please note that at the time, Ganondorf was being very lazy when it came to securing the city as his stronghold," said Sheik slowly. "It was quite easy to sneak in as he had very few guards in place. But after I got the Hero out of the city and he continued his quest, security has been tightened considerably, him even going as far as to move two legions _inside_ the city itself. It's impossible to sneak in the way I did it now." When he had finished talking, Sheik let his hands drop beneath the table.

Link smiled gently and reached for Sheik's right hand with his left, grasping it tightly. Sheik seemed hesitant, but squeezed back when it was apparent that no one else could see the action.

"What about magic, then?" asked a Gerudo. "You Hylians and your instruments have always had strange qualities. I heard that the Hero of Time can simply teleport inside the Temple of Time with the Ocarina."

"That would be a viable opportunity had it not been for the discharge of energies that take place with such a teleportation," said Zelda. "Ganondorf would undoubtedly notice the discharge, and his guards would be upon the Hero within minutes. No, it's too risky to use anything but the drain pipe."

Link wondered if Sheik couldn't just use deku nuts. He then voiced this question out loud.

"Again, it's too risky," said Zelda before Sheik could even open his mouth. "Teleporting by use of deku nuts has the same, albeit smaller, discharge of energy. Not to mention that teleporting like that without any prior knowledge of where he is going can result in him impaling himself on a weapons rack, emerging inside a wall that has been raised that was not there before…"

"Too risky," said Aveil, as if reaffirming Zelda's dismissal.

There was a minute of silence as everyone around the table thought hard about the information that had been revealed to them. Myde seemed to be thinking hard in particular, his head fin waving back and forth, as if agitated.

"So, any volunteers?" asked Aveil cheerfully.

"What do you reckon our chances of survival are?" asked a Gerudo.

Aveil and Zelda exchanged a look, and they both sighed in unison, as if having feared that particular question. "Slim to none," said Aveil. "Once your presence and actions become apparent to the men inside the city, thousands of soldiers will be searching for you. The possibility of being captured are high, and…well, I suppose I don't have to tell you what you will be ordered to do if such an event occurs."

"Suicide," said Sheik. "Everyone around this table knows too much. If one of us is captured, chances of us divulging critical information under torture are high."

"Exactly," said Zelda grimly.

Another highly uncomfortable silence descended upon the room. Aveil made no attempt to be cheerful now, only stared glumly at Zelda, who stared back.

"Again," said Zelda, "this is voluntary. Those of you who do not wish to participate, please leave the room now."

Link wanted to groan when he saw that well over half of the gathered stood up and left, leaving only Aveil, Ayla, Zelda, himself, Sheik and Myde.

"Cowards, all of them," muttered Ayla angrily.

"To be fair, we did not present a convincing case," said Zelda.

"I had never thought my own men to be so…" said Myde, trailing off as he struggled to find a word. "Cowards is the word I would use too, I suppose," he said finally.

Link felt it before he heard or saw it, and he wanted so desperately to shut Sheik up, but it was already too late.

"I suppose I volunteer, then," Sheik said. "I know the basic layout of the city, and I have a good idea of whom you want assassinated—the legion commanders, if I'm not mistaken."

"Those would be the targets, yes," said Zelda, though her voice and eyes clearly disagreed with Sheik's volunteering. "But Sheik, I don't think—"

"Don't start," said Sheik warningly. "You know I am the best qualified."

"Then I'm going too," said Link. There was no way in hell he was going to let Sheik risk his life like this again, not after all that had happened to the Sheikah. "Sign me up too." When he noticed that everyone was staring at him, he got all flustered. "What?"

"Hero, with all due respect," said Aveil slowly, "from what I have heard, stealth is not your strongest suit. This mission requires its participants to be masters of it."

"Yeah, but I—"

"It's true, Link," said Sheik, smiling sadly. "I really think you would do more harm than good if you were to accompany me."

"But—"

"I too would like to put my name forward," said Myde, emerging from his pensive state. He looked at the gathered. "I have no proof of my mastery of stealth, but I feel I am capable of undertaking this task."

"Me too," said Ayla. "Consider me forwarded too."

"Three candidates?" asked Zelda uncertainly. "I am not sure if that is—"

"Look at it this way," said Ayla. "Three of us are going to able to do more damage than one or two. Sheik can teach us the basic layout of the city. We can all emerge from the fountain at separate times as to avoid detection, and we can all go back at separate times as well."

"I still don't know…" said Zelda, looking at Aveil. "Do you think this would be a viable plan?"

"To be honest, I believe Ayla is right," said Aveil. "Three agents all performing separate tasks at once in the city would create more confusion."

Link could only sit and look worriedly at Sheik, who tried to calm the Hero down by squeezing his hand back now, though it had little effect.

"It's settled then," said Zelda after a few minutes of discussion. "General Myde, Ayla and Sheik will all go in. Your objectives…well, you will have to decide on those between yourselves."

"But remember," said Aveil. "Gatehouses, weapons and ammunition, catapults and legion commanders. Those are your priorities."

Myde cleared his throat. "What about prisoner rescue?" he asked. "The Evil King took quite a few prisoners into the city, did he not?"

"I am afraid those will have to be lower prioritised," said Zelda. "In fact, I think an attempted rescue of prisoners would be detrimental to your purpose that night. But you can find out where they are kept, and then we can make those parts of our main objectives during the full assault."

"Very well," said Myde and nodded, though he seemed to clench his jaw slightly.

"Alright then," said Zelda. "Meeting adjourned. The mission will begin tomorrow night. Report here for final briefing and preparations at noon tomorrow."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 116**

* * *

Sheik felt a Link's eyes piercing through the back of his head the entire time as they walked. The Hero had dropped a few steps behind him when they had emerged from the tent and remained silent, despite Sheik's attempts at engaging him in conversation. It was not hard to figure out _why_ Link was acting like he did either. He had, after all, just volunteered to something that was practically a suicide mission. Well, it had been _assessed_ as a suicide mission, but Sheik had a feeling that Zelda and Aveil had exaggerated slightly in their description, perhaps to weed out those who did not feel confident enough for the task—which seemed to be everyone but Ayla, Myde and himself. And Link, of course, who was disqualified given his…inclination to loud noises. Anyway, the daggers currently boring into his neck came from Link, and Sheik knew, he just _knew_ that Link would explode once they arrived at a slightly secluded spot. Such as the sick tent, which was coming into view now as they turned a corner.

He half-expected Link to grab him by the shoulder and slam him into the closest wall, but when the Hero did nothing, he found himself confused, perplexed and on edge. Instead of saying anything, Link headed right for Tao, who had once again reverted to his non-speaking behaviour. Right now, he was looking through the same anatomy book as before. Link practically flung himself onto Tao's bed and began to talk animatedly to the boy, ignoring Sheik.

 _So, is that how it is going to be?_ he thought. _Well, two can play that game, Hero._ He scanned the tent for Kaura. He found the physician sitting at her desk, speaking to a female Gerudo, who looked quite worried. They were whispering, and Sheik knew little about reading lips. Their conversation came to an end, and the Gerudo bowed to the physician, obviously thanking her before heading out, pausing slightly to nod at Sheik and Link respectively before moving on. Kaura motioned for Sheik to come forward.

"Wow, what happened between you two?" asked the physician quietly. "He didn't even look at you when you came in…which is quite hard to do since _you_ entered first."

"How did you see that?" asked Sheik. "You were talking to that Gerudo girl."

"That's one of my outstanding and unique characteristics, I've been told," said the physician proudly. "I can keep an eye and an ear on two things at the same time and still be able to catch a hundred percent of them."

"Really?" asked Sheik. "That's quite amazing."

"It is, isn't it?" said Kaura, grinning. "That's how I was able to become a physician while still keeping up on gossip with my fellow students."

"I imagine it's a riot when visiting pubs," said Sheik.

"Actually, in such a crowded setting, it's easy to get confused," said Kaura. "But yeah, it can be quite…interesting. Especially when you're able to pay attention to what the hell is going on behind the bar…or should I say below?"

"Please stop," said Sheik, seeing where this was going. "I do not need to know any more."

"Suit yourself," said Kaura. "Anyway, what's up with you boys _now_? I swear, watching you two is better than any other form of entertainment. Are they angry at each other? What shocking secret has been revealed _now_? What kind of injuries are they sporting _this_ time? It's impossible to predict!"

"I may have volunteered for something that will most likely result in a very painful death," said Sheik. "I didn't really plan on it, but when no one else voiced their interest…"

"Is it just me, or do you have a death wish, kid?" asked Kaura slowly, eyes narrowing. "Why do you do this to yourself? You've already died once, almost died again a second time, and now you're going for a third? You Sheikah are a strange race…you're like the Terminan exploding blobs."

"Exploding blobs?" asked Sheik. He had never heard of such things.

"Nearly suicidal, slime-like creatures that inhabit the fields around the larger cities," said Kaura. "They attack anything that moves, even though it usually results in their bodies literally bursting because of the excitement and…well, death. They're tenacious bastards, though, gotta give 'em that. Anyway, suicide mission. Why on earth would you volunteer for that? Apart from said death wish."

"I am not entirely sure," said Sheik. "It just seemed to be the right thing. The mission will have…well, I cannot divulge too much information, but it will have great importance for the outcome of the war."

"And no one else wanted in on it? I find that highly dubious."

"Well, two others volunteered as well after I did. We're all going in."

Kaura thought for a few seconds. "How come those two can't do it on their own, then? I mean, I don't know about any other sixteen-year-olds in this army on par with you. Surely two adults will be better than—"

"I have certain knowledge of the location that is necessary," interrupted Sheik. "Besides, Zelda deemed that three people will perform better than two."

"Oh she did, did she?" asked Kaura, furrowing her brow. "I'm glad that the girl is assertive and determined and all that, but sending her best friend and adoptive brother into the breach just like that is just…well, she'll hear about in the next session."

"It had nothing to do with that," said Sheik. "She didn't want to send me in at first, but I convinced her."

"Oh, bloody hell…you kids are going to make my hair prematurely grey, you know that?" said Kaura, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Well, the Hero obviously doesn't approve. Don't you think that it would be wise to take his feelings into consideration for once?"

"I try to," said Sheik, looking back at Link, who was still engrossed in the book with Tao, the Hero whispering now. Why they both found anatomy so interesting was a mystery to him. "But…I still have a duty to my princess."

"Well, I'm sure the princess wouldn't mind if you took a day off for once," said Kaura. "But what do I know? I've only met and treated hundreds of teenagers in my days as a physicist, and I surely haven't become any wiser to your kind from that."

"We're a strange group of people, indeed," said Sheik, smiling ironically.

* * *

"Is something wrong?" Aveil asked Zelda. "You have been so…tense ever since the meeting."

Zelda looked up from the map. The two princesses were still in the meeting room, scouring documents for information on Castle Town which could of use to the tree infiltrators, though few of the mottled old papers yielded any usable material.

"No, nothing's wrong…I just…" said the Hylian princess, pausing. "I'm worried."

"About the mission? You shouldn't," said Aveil. "Sheik-sama and Ayla are more than qualified for the infiltration, and judging by the way Myde moved and acted, I suspect he is on par with them."

"I know they can do it," said Zelda hurriedly. "I'm not disputing that." She sank into her chair, looking glumly at the pile of papers stacked on the table. "I just…feel so guilty."

"Whatever for?" asked Aveil.

Zelda looked around the room. "It's Sheik."

"What about him?"

"I've been pushing him so hard lately," said Zelda. "Well, not just lately. For seven years, in fact. Ever since we were children I've been ordering him around."

"He is a Sheikah, and therefore bound to service to the throne," said Aveil carefully. "Isn't that his…lot in life, as you Hylians say?"

"I never agreed to basically enslaving the Sheikah for the benefit of my own race," said Zelda. "I have no idea what my ancestors were thinking when they first made the Sheikah do their bidding and fight in their wars." She picked up a paper containing a comprehensive report on the Third Legion that Sheik had written no less than two years prior. He had almost died after being discovered that time. "And I always felt I was somehow better, that by being Sheik's friend, his sister, that I was…morally superior, somehow. But now, in the last few months, I've started to realise that I am actually no better, if not even _worse_ than my family."

She felt like slapping herself now. How had she not seen this before? How many times had she ordered Sheik to risk his life, sometimes even unnecessarily, because of a whim she had. The information on the Third Legion had been mostly useless anyway as the Remnant's ability to engage in open battle had been all but ruined. And yet…Sheik had agreed immediately.

"Zelda, do not be so hard on yourself," said Aveil as she stood up, walked around the table and eased herself into the chair next to the Hylian's, draping an arm around her shoulder gently. "I am sure if you asked Sheik-sama, he would say that he has no regrets—"

"Of course he doesn't!" exclaimed Zelda, though she remained in Aveil's hold, perhaps even relaxing into it. "He's been raised to always obey me and the royal family. I wouldn't be surprised that he would throw himself off a cliff if I ordered him to."

"Well, what is the problem, then?" asked Aveil. When Zelda gave her a questioning look, she tried to elaborate: "Sheik-sama is performing the task he has been raised to do, simple enough, like all his ancestors before him. It is not just a matter of simply being indentured to the royal family, but his people's culture basically revolves around it. The thing that drives him is not so much a sense of debt, but duty and honour."

"But still—"began Zelda.

"But still," interrupted Aveil, "he enjoys it. I can see it in him. He enjoys following your orders because he knows that what you ask of him to do is invariably going to be for the greater good of the kingdom. Take this mission, for example: he knows the risks, he knows what will happen should he be discovered and taken prisoner, but he _also_ knows that his actions tomorrow night—assassinating experienced officers, destroying siege equipment—will ultimately be helpful for when we assault the city with our army. And I'm quite sure that—if he had it _his_ way—he would rather be doing it alone."

Zelda thought about this for a few minutes. It was true, she knew. Sheik was no fool, he would never be following orders he found to be ridiculous and counterproductive. But still…

"I feel so guilty—"

"If you feel guilty, then there is always the ultimate gesture you can do for him— _and_ his people," said Aveil, winking. "I am sure he would still follow you to the death, given that you _are_ his sister."

Zelda looked up. Why hadn't she thought of that before? Perhaps it was all the pressure from history that had blocked it from her mind, but now that Aveil had said it…it seemed like such a viable, not to mention desirable, alternative. "Thank you, Aveil," she said earnestly.

"You are so very welcome, my dear. Would that little speech of mine be worth a kiss?" asked Aveil playfully. Zelda nodded and placed a soft peck on the Gerudo's lips. The lovers smiled sweetly at each other.

* * *

"Ah, cripes!" exclaimed Kaura as another spurt of blood hit her right in the face. The wounded man screamed in pain as more of his precious life fluid continued leaking out of him, the stump of his arm flailing wildly despite the best efforts of three other soldiers trying to hold him down. Kaura wiped it away and looked at Sheik, who was still standing by the desk. "Oi, kid, get me a large pack of bandages from the storage area, yeah?"

Sheik nodded and went to fetch it, but noticed out of the corner of his eye that Link also rose from Tao's bed and made to follow him. _Oh, great, another bloody screaming match while a man is dying in the next room,_ he thought.

The chaos had erupted in the sick tent unexpectedly and within seconds. They had heard the screaming becoming louder and louder until the three soldiers had burst in, carrying the fourth, who was doing the screaming. An accident had occurred while they were training with explosives—the same type of bombs that Link had used, apparently—and blown the man's arm clean off. Kaura had immediately gone into her serious mode.

He opened one of the crates clearly marked "BANDAGES" and pulled out a bundle, all the while hearing Link's footsteps pause at the entrance to the storage area. Without looking at him, Sheik tossed the bandages to the Hero, soon followed by another bundle.

"Take this to Kaura, I'll be waiting," he said, still not looking at Link. He heard the Hero draw a breath, as if to say something, but stopped and did as he was told.

Sighing, Sheik turned around, leaning against the crate. He had expected Link to blow up immediately, but the Hero seemed to be practicing immense self-control at the moment. It was obvious how upset he was, however, when Link returned and gave Sheik a stare.

"Alright," said the Sheikah. "Let me have it."

"Let you have what?" asked Link, trying to ignore the soldier's screaming.

"An earful or whatever you have planned to say to me," said Sheik. "You obviously did not appreciate me volunteering for the mission tomorrow."

"You're right, I didn't," said Link, taking a step forward. Then another. His eyes never left Sheik's. "But I can't really stay mad at you, can I?"

This surprised Sheik, and he blinked. "Really?" he asked. "Why not?"

"Because I know how dedicated you are to Zelda's service," said Link. He was standing right in front of Sheik right now. He could feel Link's warm breath on his face as the Hero stared slightly down at him. "I knew almost right away that you would put your hand up when no one else did."

"If you knew I was going to do it, then why are you upset?" asked Sheik.

"Because…because…" Link tried to start the sentence several times, failing again and again. Finally, he seemed to settle for drawing Sheik into his arms and rest his chin on top of the younger teen's head. "Because…I'm so sick of seeing you risking your life willingly," he said.

Sheik closed his eyes, leaning against Link. "Link, you know who I am, what is expected of me—"

"No one expects anything of you but yourself," said Link quietly. "I don't expect anything of you, Zelda doesn't, Tao doesn't, Ayla doesn't…no one does. I'm sure if you asked her now, even Impa wouldn't expect anything of you. You've already done so much, but you never seem to think it's enough."

"Link, I—"

"No, I don't want to hear it."

Sheik closed his mouth, realising that no matter how hard he tried, there was no going up against Link when he had settled on something. There was a fierce, almost frightening focus behind Link's words and actions when he was like this. Relentless, unyielding…there was no point in even trying.

"I'm not going to start trying to convince you not to go," said the Hero after a few minutes of silence only broken by the wounded soldier's whimpering. Sheik briefly wondered if leaving Tao in the same room had been a good idea, but knew that the boy had probably seen much worse. "I know how stubborn you are. All I'm going to say is…please be careful. I've already lost you once, I don't want to again."

What could he possibly say to that? Link had just set aside his personal opinion of Sheik's actions and just asked him to be careful. Sheik tried to come up with something to say, but settled instead on looking up at Link, stand on his tiptoes and kissing him. Link responded, kissing back with a sense of desperation, like he was never going to see Sheik again. As they parted, Sheik smiled at him.

"I'll be careful, I promise."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 117**

* * *

The screams had subsided. Someone had gotten the bright idea of knocking the injured soldier out of commission with a convenient blow to the head. Kaura was livid. Within seconds, she managed to chaser all the big, burly soldiers out of the sick tent with a single, piercing gaze. You didn't give a man who had just gotten his arm blown off the added pain of a concussion. You just didn't!

The man was now lying in a bed, his stump of an arm tightly bound with bandages soaked in red potion, though Kaura was still doubtful about his chances of survival. He had lost a lot of blood. A medic-in-training was currently washing away the spilled blood from the sick tent floor. Sheik did not envy that job. It was hard not to look at him and feel pity, which was distracting him horribly from the maps he was drawing. As the only existing maps of Castle Town that Zelda's people had been able to take with them from the castle seven years ago were from the previous century, it fell to him the troublesome task of drawing up new ones—albeit heavily abridged. There was just no way he could remember every street, every point of interest, every…everything! As it was, he settled for making sure that the maps showed the _major_ points of interest. The gatehouses, the Temple of Time, the castle (or where it had used to be) as well as where he heavily suspected prisoners were kept, which was in the eastern part of the city.

Link had taken Tao for a walk, both on Sheik's and Kaura's behests. Sheik's because he needed silence and the ability to concentrate on his maps—ruined now because of the trainee washing away the blood—and Kaura's because…well, she just wanted as few people as possible in her tent. She tolerated Sheik's presence, however, and had even given him the use of her desk. The physician herself was currently in backroom doing Goddesses knew what.

He paused as he was drawing the Temple of Time, his pen hovering just above the inkwell. What had the temple's spire been shaped as? He was sure it was in the shape of the standard spire, but still… He shook his head, realising how ridiculous he was being. These maps were supposed to be used by Myde and Ayla as they navigated the city, not be displayed in some cartographer's office. He finished the spire and leaned back, studying his work. One map was finished, and he was quite happy with it. He remembered the upper part of the city best—as that's where he had spent most of his time—and had a workable knowledge of the middle part—the Temple of Time had also been a frequent haunt of his. But the lower part…he only knew the main street that skewered the entire city and that it led to the southern gatehouse. He made a mental note to ask Link about it later as he had a feeling the Hero had spent a lot of time there seven years ago.

He had managed to fill in most of the streets in the upper and middle part of the city as well as some warehouses—which could either contain weapons or prisoners. He had also marked their point of entry, which just happened to be the in the square that sat right in the middle of the entire City, just a few hundred yards away from the Temple of Time, in fact. Hopefully, there wouldn't be so many guards there, or else they'd be in for an interesting entrance.

He sighed and put the first map aside. At least the second map would be an exclusive copy-deal. His head was starting to ache with the sheer concentration he was applying to remembering the city's layout. He took a sip of water from a cup on the table, listened to the sounds of the trainee's brush as it slowly but surely washed away the dried blood. The sun had set an hour ago, and the darkness was falling. Time was running out. He immediately set to copying the map. He was halfway done when the flap to the backroom opened and Kaura stepped out. She passed by Sheik without a word and went to check up on the injured soldier, dismissing the trainee. She then began to wash the blood herself, which didn't surprise Sheik. Scary and terrifying as she was, Kaura _cared_. About her job, about her patients…

"Stop staring at me and get back to work," Kaura said loudly. "Those maps aren't going to draw themselves."

"Will do," he said and continued drawing.

Scary, terrifying, and with eyes in her neck.

* * *

"So, you really can talk, huh?" asked Link.

Tao nodded.

"But only when Sheik and me are around?"

Nod.

"Huh."

They were walking down one of the many streets in the camp. The general mood was quite cheerful. The Gerudo had successfully blended in with the rest of the occupants—especially among the Hylians, which the Hero found no surprise in whatsoever—and life was good. For now, at any rate. He tried to keep his mind off Sheik at the moment, for he could not stop worrying about what would happen if something went wrong, and he knew that doing so would only offer more trouble further down the road. He might, for example, get the idea of knocking Sheik unconscious and run away with him slung on his shoulder.

They passed the stables, and he suddenly got an idea. He looked at Tao, who stared back quizzically. "Wanna go see Maladict and Epona?" When Tao only cocked his head to the side in confusion, he realised that the boy didn't know what he was talking about. "The horses we rode over the plains." The boy smiled and nodded.

The stables themselves were really just a set of hastily and flimsily constructed enclosures in which most of the horses—quite a few, several hundred by Link's head count—had been let in. Someone had constructed a small building however, which seemed to contain another dozen or so horses in what looked like separate booths. In the middle of two of these enclosures a small tent stood, in front of which a fire burned merrily. A middle-aged man sat by the fire, his uniform clearly giving him away as the stable master. He looked up as Link and Tao approached, a smile on his face.

"Ah, if it isn't the Hero of Time. It is good to see you again," he said, standing up and offering his hand.

Link shook it, smiling back as he tried to remember the man's name. "Yeah, great to see you too, eh…"

"Heh, you do not remember my name because you have not heard it," said the stable master, grinning slyly. "The name's Reuben, and I'm the caretaker of all these horses."

"What, all by yourself?" asked Link, taken aback.

"Haha, of course not," laughed Reuben. "I have a small army of boys and girls to help me, but they're all off-duty now. I do all the night shifts."

"Oh, that make sense," said Link. "Anyway, my name's Link, and I'd appreciate you call me that rather than Hero of Time. I don't really like titles…"

"Heh, I can see that," said Reuben. "You're probably addressed by your title by every single person you meet. I can definitely see it getting old." He glanced down at Tao. "And who's this little fellow, then?" he asked.

"This is Tao," said Link, pushing the boy—who had suddenly turned quite timid—slightly forward. "He doesn't speak, but I'm sure he's happy to meet you."

Reuben crouched down and shook Tao's hesitant hand. "Nice to meet you, lad," he said. "If you want to, you can come down and look at the horses at any time. Hell, I'll even let you ride them for a bit."

Tao nodded, suddenly smiling brightly.

"Ah, you like horses, then?" asked the stable master.

Tao nodded furiously.

"Heh, this is a good kid," said Reuben, standing up. "A bit scrawny, but good."

"He is," said Link. "Listen, Reuben, I was wondering if I could visit Epona."

"Epona?" asked Reuben. "The mare that kicked Saul's head in?"

Link blinked, his jaw falling open. "That was her? Oh, Goddesses, I'm so sorry, I—"

"Don't worry about it," said Reuben, brushing off the man's death like it was nothing more than dust on his shoulder. "Saul was the scum o'the earth. Tell the truth, I'm pretty sure the entire camp is glad he's gone. Besides, he brought it on himself by pestering her."

"Yeah," said Link slowly, wondering how someone could take someone else's death so easily. "She doesn't really like that."

"Mares are even worse when they're pregnant, however, which Saul ignored," said Reuben. "Safe to say, she got an extra carrot that night."

"Can I see her?" asked Link, the urge to see Epona once more growing stronger and stronger.

"Of course, follow me," said Reuben and began walking toward the building with the separate booths. "The expecting mares have been given their own, private enclosures to give 'em some peace and quiet. All…except that bloody nightmare of a stud, though."

"Let me guess," said Link. "Maladict."

"Oh, is that what he's called?" asked Reuben. "The midnight black one? Huh, the devil has a name. That bastard sure is possessive of his mate."

"He's not really in a good mood unless Sheik's around, I think," said Link.

"And Sheik is that Sheikah lad, is he? He's a good kid too, despite what people say about him," said Reuben. He suddenly moved even higher on Link's mental list of people he liked, at the top of which Sheik reigned supreme. But then something started niggling at his mind…

"What _do_ they say about him?" the Hero asked.

"You haven't heard?" asked Reuben, stopping and turning around to look at him. "I thought you'd be on top of all the rumours and sayings in the camp."

"Well, I'm not, so I'd appreciate it if you told me," said Link.

Reuben hesitated. "You're his friend, so this might offend you…"

"I don't care, I want to know," said Link seriously.

"Alright, just don't…overreact, okay?" said Reuben. He leaned forward, as if afraid of anyone else but they hearing it. "The biggest rumour going around is that he's put some sort of spell on Princess Zelda, as a sort of revenge for the subjugation of his people, that he's actually the one who's controlling everything from behind the scenes. And, here's the kicker, that he's actually working for Ganondorf."

"That's ridiculous!" exclaimed Link. "Sheik is completely loyal to Zelda, and—"

"I know that, anyone can see that," interrupted Reuben. "But the people who are saying these things are so rooted in old prejudices that they can't see past their own noses. I have nothing but respect for the boy."

"Yeah, but—"

"But that's not the worst of the rumours, in my opinion," said Reuben. "They say he consorts with other males."

"So what if he did?" asked Link quickly, perhaps a bit too quickly in his own opinion. How had they found out? "What's so wrong with that?"

"Personally, I have nothing against it, though I'm not entirely fond of the idea," said Reuben. "But many people in this camp are hostile to people like that."

Link shook his head. People really didn't have anything better to do than making rumours about Sheik and the 'evil' Sheikah? It was almost enough to make him lose faith in Hylians in general.

"But anyway, those are just rumours. I've spoken with the kid himself a couple of times, and there's no way in hell that he's anything like the rumours." said Reuben suddenly. He opened the door to the flimsy building, and all three were immediately overwhelmed by that oh-so-familiar smell of horses. "I suppose I should warn you that horses that are so far along in their pregnancies can be a bit…snappy, so I'd be careful about petting her too much."

"Just out of curiosity," said Link slowly. "How far along is she?"

"We're expecting her to give birth any day now," said Reuben, smiling. "It's the fastest pregnancy I've ever seen, though, and I've got one question for you…"

"Which is?" said Link.

"Is she from Lon Lon Ranch?"

Link blinked. "That's…right," he said. "How did you know that?"

"Heh, I recognised her the moment I saw her. There's always been at least one horse of her kind at that particular ranch. There's something magical about 'em, I tell you. No wonder the pregnancy was so short." He suddenly put a hand on Link's shoulder, clenching slightly. "You promise me one thing, Hero of Time," he said seriously. "You be good to them. They're a special breed."

"Of course," said Link.

"Good," said Reuben, smiling again. He let go of Link's shoulder and turned around. "I suppose you'll be wanting some privacy with her. Carrots are in a bucket on the shelf." With that, he went back to his fire.

Link stared after him for a few seconds. "What a strange guy," he said. Tao nodded.

A single lantern stood on a table, its flame barely there, casting a subdued light on the walls and floor. Several pregnant mares raised their heads to look at the two new arrivals with disinterest before retreating back to sleep. The gigantic, black shape of Maladict was not hard to notice where he stood. He snorted at the two in greeting, lowering his head so that Link and Tao could clap him on his muzzle.

"How are you doing, boy?" asked Link. "Sheik's busy tonight, but I'm sure he'll visit you soon." Maladict snorted, as if offended. "Sorry, but you're gonna have to give Sheik a kick next time he shows up, alright?" He looked at the booth next to the stud's, seeing something moving in the shadows. "Epona?"

The mare's head suddenly appeared over the edge of the booth. She blinked at him.

"Heh, there you are, girl," said Link and patted her. Epona snorted and bumped his forehead with her muzzle. "Yeah, I missed you too. Sorry I'm so late, but the last few days have been crazy."

He noticed Tao pulling on his tunic and looked down.

"Are you going to introduce me?" the boy asked.

Link hesitated for a second, so unused to hearing Tao speak that he didn't quite know how to react. "Uh, sorry," he finally managed to stutter out. "Epona, this is Tao, Tao, this is Epona."

Tao reached up, but was not even close to reaching Epona to pat her. Maladict was no problem given his enormous size, but Epona… After a few seconds, Link couldn't bare it anymore and picked the boy up. Twelve years old or not, he was still the size of a much younger child. Tao didn't seem to mind, though, and happily petted Epona, who seemed to like the boy just as much back.

"Hi, Epona," Tao said. "Thanks for saving me."

* * *

"Ah, finally," said Sheik as he put the last dot on the map. His hand had started to cramp up at the end. He happily closed the inkwell and put the pen down. "That took a lot more time than I thought."

"Congratulations, you can draw a map," said Kaura sarcastically from her seat by the wounded man. "Let's see you put a man's arm back on."

"That particular surgical procedure is beyond me, I'm afraid," said Sheik as he rolled the maps together.

"Me too, actually," said Kaura. "There are just too many risks you take when trying to reattach blood vessels and nerve paths. Hell, this man should be glad he's still alive, although I suspect he has a concussion thanks to that brute." She was sitting by the unconscious man's side.

"Will he survive?" asked Sheik.

"I don't know yet," said Kaura. "If he doesn't, then he'll probably go sometime tonight. And there's nothing I'll be able to do about it."

"Then why so concerned with being by his side all the time?" asked Sheik. He stood up and walked over to her, sitting on the bed next to her.

"No one should die alone," muttered Kaura. "This man's friends…they're not coming back. And no, it's not because I chased them away, but because they just can't bear to see another comrade die, especially as a result of a training accident. Can't blame them, but it's still sad to see someone lying here alone."

"You let the other man die, the one who was kicked by a horse," said Sheik, hoping he wasn't setting off a powder keg.

"Who, Saul?" asked Kaura. "That man was the biggest bastard I have ever met, and I was prepared to make an exception for him. But still…had I been there when he died, I would have sat by his side. But I was busy, so…"

"But this one," said Sheik.

"This one…I actually don't know this man," said Kaura and brushed the man's bangs away from his eyes, revealing a face much younger than Sheik had expected. He couldn't have been much older than Link, actually. "But…I _know_ he doesn't deserve loneliness in his hour of passing. But who knows, he just might recover." She smiled at Sheik. "How long a walk are those two going to take, anyway?"

"Knowing the Hero, he was probably distracted by something shiny along the way," said Sheik jokingly, sharing a small laugh with the physician.

"Actually, I was distracted by our mounts," said Link, who was standing in the tent opening. "And they're doing fine, by the way."

"Whoops, loverboy's back," said Kaura.

"How was your walk?" asked Sheik.

"Just fine, we paid a visit to Epona and Maladict and introduced Tao to them," said Link as he and Tao came inside. "Epona really likes him. Oh, and you should probably pay a visit to Maladict as soon as possible, he's kinda grouchy."

"I will, then," said Sheik.

Tao climbed into his bed, yawning silently. It was getting late. The hourglass on the table—which was filled with enough sand to last twenty-four hours—was showing that it was soon to be what Sheik thought was midnight. Almost as one, he and Kaura began to extinguish and turn down the lanterns placed around the tent, only leaving one burning on a low flame by the injured man's bed.

Link covered Tao with the blanket. Sheik watched him and smiled. It was just too cute for words, seeing the mighty Hero of Time tucking in a little possibly-Gerudo boy. Tao was out like a light.

Sheik and Link nodded to Kaura as a goodnight, and then went outside, heading for Zelda's tent—and their room.

"He was tired," said Sheik as they walked. The camp was mostly silent now, the only people still awake being guards and insomniacs, it seemed. Oh, and the Gerudo, who seemed to be having some dancing ceremony in their section.

"Yeah, he was," said Link. "We were with Epona for at least two hours. He really loves horses."

"Like all Gerudo," said Sheik. He stopped when he realised what he had said. "Damn," he whispered.

"You really think he's a Gerudo?" asked Link. "I thought you didn't believe what Ayla said."

"I thought I didn't," said Sheik, shaking his head. "But now…I'm not so sure. After our talk, I only see a Gerudo boy when I see Tao rather than one of ambiguous origin…"

"You're not going let them force him to be king, though, right?" asked Link.

"Of course not," said Sheik, staring at Link as if he had grown a second head. "When I make a promise, I keep it. If Tao does not wish to be king, then he shan't be king. Even if I have to take him away somewhere."

"Aw, that's adorable," said Link suddenly. "You really care for him, don't you?"

Sheik blushed and continued walking, leaving Link laughing. When the Hero caught up with him, he said: "Wouldn't you, though? Do what it takes for him to avoid the throne?"

"Of course," said Link seriously. "I didn't save him from that shithole…sorry…"

"No, that's quite alright."

"Right, I didn't save him from that place only to leave him to a fate he clearly hates."

"Good, then we are on the same page," said Sheik as they came into view of the princess' tent. The guards stepped aside, letting them in.

* * *

"I guess we share a bed from now on," said Link absentmindedly as he pulled off his tunic while Sheik closed the door to their room.

"I suppose so," said Sheik, trying not to blush when he thought about what they had the last time they shared a bed. "It's only natural for…couples." His breath hitched when he felt Link's arm encircle him from behind. "Link?"

"You're going away tomorrow," said Link huskily into Sheik's ear. "And we don't know when you're coming back. You think I'd let you go away without a good luck-kiss?"

"From behind my head?" asked Sheik, blushing when he felt something hard brush against his rump, clearly giving away what Link was thinking about. "That would be quite an amazing feat."

"Amazing…like last night?" asked Link.

Turning around, Sheik grinned. "I suppose so."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 118**

* * *

It had rained during the night, turning the entire camp into a gigantic mud field. The layer of clouds was thick, allowing little heat through, and left no possibility of said mud drying anytime soon. Sheik could only imagine how bad the angry mutterings and complaining from the soldiers would be once the day started proper. For now, however, all was quiet. Of course, who in their right state of mind would get up at five in the morning when there really was nothing to do but sit around and wait for the order to move? Link probably had the right idea, still snoring quietly in their room. But Sheik, being the fool, was currently sloshing through the mud and shuddering from the cold on his way toward the stables, intending to pay an overdue visit.

He knew that Reuben, the stable master, was no morning bird whatsoever, and steered clear of the tent the man slept in. Instead, he took a closer look at the enclosures. It took him no more than a few seconds to realise that neither Maladict nor Epona were in any of them, which only left the small shack-like building to the right of the tent. At least it was warm inside. The thin cotton shirt and tights (stolen from Link) did little to keep the chill out, and it was with relief that he closed the door.

Maladict opened his eyes, looking at Sheik with the kind of accusing gaze that only horses are able to muster, which made the Sheikah feel a pang of guilt immediately. He smiled embarrassedly and went for the shelf on the wall just above the small table, on which a small bucket with carrots stood. He took one out and held it out for Maladict as a sort of peace offering. The stud gave him another accusing gaze before he finally bit down on the carrot and practically inhaled it. He then snorted quietly and bumped his muzzle against Sheik's forehead, like he had done with Link the night before.

"Sorry I'm late," said Sheik. Maladict stared at him accusingly again. "What?"

The stud craned his head to look at the booth next to his, and Sheik realised his error immediately upon seeing Epona, fast asleep.

"Oh, sorry," he whispered. "It's happening soon, huh?"

Snort.

"I bet you're excited to be a father," Sheik said, smiling. "It's going to be an entirely new level of responsibility though, I hope you realise that."

Snort.

"I guess you're right. You've handled things fine until now." He turned around and picked up another carrot. "You can give this to her when she wakes up, I bet she'll _really_ appreciate it."

Maladict seemed to nod at him and gently picked up the carrot with his teeth, placing it on top of the wall dividing their booths. The structure rocked slightly, and Sheik hoped the vegetable wouldn't fall down into something…disgusting. He shook his head and petted Maladict again.

"I'm going somewhere tonight, and I am not sure if I will return," he whispered. "And if I don't…well, I know for certain that there is no way in hell you will accept being separated from Epona and your foal…can I trust you to take care of Link for me?" When Maladict didn't do anything in response, Sheik felt ridiculous. "What am I doing?" he asked himself. "Why am I even entertaining the idea that I won't return? Of course I will. I've survived this bloody war for seven years."

Now Maladict seemed to agree, clicking his teeth together in a gesture Sheik had absolutely no hope of understanding completely, but he took it as a positive one.

"But still," he said, "you _will_ take care of him, won't you? And Tao?"

Snort.

"I knew I could count on you."

He left the stables with a smile on his face despite the dreary morning weather. As he tried to navigate through the muck that the streets had turned into, he realised that this was probably the last time he would walk through it. If the mission was a success, then Zelda would surely take advantage of the confusion and chaos in the city and attack immediately. If all went according to plan, the three infiltrators would emerge from the pipe after the mission to the sight of the army marching across the bridge.

 _At last, we're finally making headway,_ he thought. He made a small jump over a large mud pit, hissing when a sharp pain issued from his backside. _Damn it, Link…you just had to be so rough…_ He then proceeded to blush as he finally came within sight of the princess' tent.

Aveil seemed to be a permanent "guest" at Zelda's abode now, which made him smile. It truly was good to see his adopted sister happy with someone. And Aveil was a good woman, he knew, there was no way there would be any betrayals from either side here.

He left his now completely mud-covered boots at the entrance and padded barefooted through the tent hallway, sneaking into his and Link's room. The Hero was still snoring the morning away, his mouth having fallen open in a most ungracious and unflattering way. Sheik removed the shirt—but kept the tights on; it was dreadfully cold inside the tent—and slipped under the covers next to Link. The Hero instinctually wrapped an arm around him, and he yawned. Morning could wait a few hours more.

* * *

"Right, this briefing will have to remain short and concise," said Zelda. A board had been set up at the end of the table, and one of Sheik's maps had been hung on it. The Hylian princess was currently standing in front of it, clad semi-formally in Gerudo clothing, consisting of a pair of extremely baggy trousers and a silk blouse. "Regardless of your success in this mission, we will march on the castle tomorrow morning. The three legions will not be floundering around in the forest forever, and once they return we will have lost our chance forever."

The three infiltrators were gathered around the table, dressed in their outfits as they would immediately make their way toward the bridge once the meeting was over.

Ayla had opted for a skin-tight suit of leather similar to Sheik's though a few shades darker and covered in a large amount of buckles. Blades of different shapes and sizes covered her entire being, the most obvious ones being the large pair of scimitars strapped in an X-shape on her back. She also wore a veil over the lower part of her face, though Sheik did not know for what reason. She had tied her hair back in a tight ponytail that was coiled at her neck.

Myde, being a Zora, was not accustomed to wearing much clothing, but Sheik had to admit that he had done quite a decent job in assembling an outfit suited for sneaking and stealth. It consisted of the standard blue tunic that every Zora soldier wore, though it seemed to have been died to a dark shade of grey. It also had long sleeves, with holes cut for the fins on his lower arm. A matching pair of trousers covered his lower body, though he seemed to dislike these in particular, adjusting the hem every now and then as well as kicking out slightly. A long, broad-bladed sword was strapped to his back.

Link was present as well, fully armed and equipped. He was going to accompany the three to the bridge. He had demanded it, actually, and no one in their right state of mind would deny him the right to see off his friends. He was sitting at the end of the table opposite of the board, his face rather glum.

Sheik had asked around the armoury and had been given a pair of dagger holsters he could tie around his lower arms in an imitation of the usual bandage solution he had opted for with his exoskeleton. It wasn't perfect, but it would do the job. Anything was okay as long as he had quick access to his blades.

"Anyway," continued Zelda and gestured toward the map. "Sheik has drawn up two copies of this map, which will help you orientate yourselves in the city. By Sheik's own admission, the lower part of the map is rather lacking in details, but that should not be a big concern."

"And I will give you both a quick rundown of the city en route in addition," said Sheik. "Navigation in the city itself should not be a big problem unless Ganondorf has made any major changes to the infrastructure. The lower part of the city and the area around the Temple of Time has been ravaged quite badly, but is still easily navigable."

"Is there a specific time by which we have to be out of the city?" asked Myde. "As in, is there a time limit?"

"Not as such," said Zelda. "The only limit is the one you impose on yourselves, though I highly recommend that you get out of the city before dawn…or before any daylight whatsoever, in fact. It will be difficult to slip unnoticed out after the sun has started to rise."

"I see," said Myde.

"Are there any specific targets you do _not_ want us to go after?" asked Ayla. "Like certain people, certain buildings…?"

"Apart from the Temple of Time, which should remain undisturbed, it is literally a free-for-all," replied Zelda. "Any target, if realistically possible and you think you've got what it takes, is yours."

"Even prisoners?" asked Myde, his eyes suddenly lighting up.

"Oh, right," said Zelda, looking embarrassed. "The Temple of Time _and_ prisoners should not be touched. You can locate and mark where the prisoners are on your maps, but make no attempt to free them. It simply is not worth the risk."

"Very well," said Myde.

Sheik thought for a few seconds, and cleared his throat. "I would just like to say that you two do not need to worry about the legion commanders. _I_ will deal with them."

"Why is that?" asked Ayla suspiciously.

"I have no particular reason other than that I have a personal desire to see them dead," said Sheik. "Also, I have the most experience in assassination here. I believe I would be the best candidate for it." He _knew_ that Link did not like hearing this, the creak of the leather in his gauntlets giving away his clenching fists, but that was just the way it is.

"I agree," said Myde. "The Sheikah knows what he is doing."

"Fine, but don't hesitate to call for help," said Ayla.

"Also, there's one thing I've been meaning to ask," said Sheik.

"Which is?" said Zelda.

"The length of the pipe. How long will it take us two navigate to the square?"

"No more than a few kilometres," said Zelda. "It cuts through the mountains right into the city, but the pipe itself is rather oddly shaped with many right angles. According to the reports from the exploration team, it will take you at least a couple of hours, which is why I'm sending you out at the end of this meeting." She unfastened the map from the board and handed it to Ayla and gave Myde the rolled-up copy.

"Are there any other questions?" she asked. No one raised their hands, and Zelda sighed. "Then this meeting has reached its end. Four horses are waiting by the gate, which you will ride to the bridge. There, you will meet up with the exploration team who will help you down to the pipe itself. After that, you are on your own."

She smiled at the three as they rose, shaking their hands one after another. "I commend you all for your bravery in undertaking this task, and Hyrule and all its citizens thank you the bottoms of their hearts." She held Sheik's hand a bit longer than the others'. Then she hugged him. "Be careful, alright?" she whispered. "Don't take any chances."

"I won't," Sheik whispered back.

"Good," said Zelda, stepping back. "Good luck, and may the Goddesses guide your paths."

* * *

"Right, so you've got everything?" asked Link for the tenth time since they left the briefing, prompting Sheik to clench his jaw slightly as he responded.

"Yes, Link, I have everything. I have my weapons, my spyglass, everything I need for a mission that will take me a night to complete, don't worry," he said.

"Okay, okay, I just want to make sure," said Link.

Sheik shook his head and smiled. "It's alright, I know you mean well." For some reason, he had a feeling that Ayla and Myde—who were walking a few paces ahead of them—were sharing a laugh at Link's rather nagging behaviour. "And I have already promised you a dozen times that I will be careful. I think we've got it all covered."

"I guess," said Link. Judging by his twitching finger, Sheik knew that Link was barely able to stop himself from reaching over and taking his hand. He resisted the temptation, however, to Sheik's relief.

The mud squelched as their boots kept sinking into it, and Sheik started to wonder how the army was going to be able to move out if half of them would simply sink into the mud when they took a single step. That was Zelda's problem, though, and Sheik did not envy her. Logistics was apparently a nightmare to deal with, considering the amount of paperwork that kept stacking up on her desk.

The gate came into view, and he felt his heart sink a little as he recognised two shapes standing by it. Kaura and Tao were waving at them as they approached.

"What are you doing here?" Sheik asked.

"Couldn't let you leave without saying goodbye, could I?" said Kaura. "Besides, the kid would probably steal the rest of my chocolate stash if I didn't take him here."

"What about the…patient?" asked Sheik.

"He died during the night," said the physician, shaking her head sadly. "But he didn't go alone." She reached into the pocket of her robe and withdrew three small vials filled with a familiar red liquid. "Anyway, I took the liberty of preparing some potion for you three," she said as she handed one each to Ayla, Myde and Sheik. "The vials are small, but I can assure you that the potion is quite concentrated and will dull the pain from your wounds enough for you to get the hell outta there."

There was a chorus of thank-yous from the three infiltrators as they hid the vials on their persons. Sheik had a small satchel on the back of his armour, held in place with a belt. His spyglass was in there as well, and he made a note to be careful not to smash the bag into a wall or something.

"Right, I'm not going to do any long, drawn-out goodbyes, so I'm just gonna say this:" said Kaura, staring at them all. "Good luck, and don't be stupid and get yourselves killed, alright? Especially you," she said and pointed at Sheik. "You were lucky once."

"Don't worry," said Sheik. "I have promised five different peoples and animals to be careful tonight."

He looked down when he felt a tug at his hand, smiling at Tao. He crouched down and the boy immediately hugged him tightly. As Sheik hugged him back, he felt Tao's hot breath on his ear.

"Please come back," Tao whispered. Then he let go of Sheik and stepped back, smiling.

Sheik nodded. "I'll be back, I promise."

"Right, that it's, then," said Kaura. "Good luck again, and remember: I'll kill you if you get yourselves killed." She took Tao's hand and led him away, the boy waving at them before they disappeared behind a group of soldiers.

"That kid really is too cute for words," said Ayla after a few seconds.

"Hm," said Myde.

"Well, I suppose we should get going, then," said Sheik.

They climbed into their saddles. It was strange, getting on another horse other than Maladict, who seemed to be a giant compared to the little mare he had been given now. As they rode out, they noticed a figure skulking around the corner. His armour gave him away immediately.

"Vorphus?" asked Link.

"Oh, hi there," said the warlock, looking around nervously. "Is she gone?"

"Who?"

"Kaura, of course!"

"Well, yeah," said Link. "She went back to the sick tent, I think. Why so nervous?"

"I'm giving her space," said the warlock. "I've realised I need to back down a bit. I came here to give you something before you leave, but then she showed up and I had to hide."

"Well, she's gone now," said Ayla. "So what have you got for us?"

"Ah, now there's the question of the now," said Vorpheus and fished around in his pocket, much like Kaura had done. Out he pulled three small, black marble-like balls. He gave them one each. The texture felt like rough coal. "I'm going to have to ask you to be extra careful with those," he said. "They are highly explosive."

Myde immediately stiffened upon hearing the word 'explosive' and tried to hold the marble as far away from him as possible. "And why are you giving us these?" he asked.

"To use them, of course," said Vorpheus. "I thought they might come in handy when you need to blow something up. Just slam them into the object you wish to see go boom. Ammunition stores will go up rather prettily, I think."

"Thank you," said Sheik, carefully putting it in his satchel. "You didn't have to do this."

"I wasn't planning to, actually, since I think this plan is ridiculously stupid," said Vorpheus. "But your princesses were rather adamant about my contribution, so I whipped up those in a jiffy."

"Well, thanks anyway," said Ayla, looking at the ball rather suspiciously. "I guess it'll come in handy…"

"There is a slight delay from the moment of impact until the actual explosion too, which should give you the time to get away from the blast," said Vorpheus. "Just…uh…be careful not to drop it, okay?"

"I think we'll manage," said Sheik. He looked around. They were losing time. "I'm afraid we must be off."

"Of course, of course," said Vorpheus, stepping aside. "There's one thing I must ask of you, though."

"Be quick about it, then," said Sheik.

"Dehl…leave her alone," said Vorpheus, his tone serious. "She is _my_ responsibility, understand?"

Sheik paused and thought about it. "No," he said. "If I see a chance to take her down, I will take it." He held up a finger before Vorpheus could protest. "This is a war that goes beyond your petty, familial hatred, Vorpheus, and she is a powerful enemy of Hyrule. I won't actively seek her out, that's all I can give you my word on."

Vorpheus looked angry for a second. Then he sighed, nodding. "I understand," he said begrudgingly. "But if you _do_ have a chance…make it quick and painless."

"That I will promise," said Sheik.

"Well, I suppose this is the point where I wish you all good luck," said the warlock, walking through the gate without looking back— _or_ wishing them luck.

"What an ass," said Ayla.

"That's the Vorpheus we know, alright," said Link.

* * *

The ride was a quiet one, the seriousness of what they were embarking on finally hitting the three, it seemed. Sheik and Link rode in the back, keeping rather close while Myde and Ayla were several paces ahead.

When the bridge finally came into view, it felt like Sheik was standing just before a butcher's block. He couldn't quite place a finger on it, but now that they were at the point of entry…a powerful sense of dread filled him. But then again…he always felt like this before an important mission. The first time he had been sent to assassinate someone…he had felt like there was no point and had wished to end it right there and then. He steeled himself and banished the thoughts and feelings.

 _This is going to be fine,_ he thought. _In, cause havoc, out…that's it. No complicated plans…_ The simpler a plan was, the less chance it had of going wrong, that was what Impa had always told him, and she had yet to give him a reason to doubt her wisdom. And the current plan…it was as simple as it could be.

Three Gerudo were waiting on the side of the road, waving at them.

"It's about time you showed up," said the lead Gerudo. "Any longer, and you would spend more time navigating the damn pipe than completing your mission."

"Ah, shut it, Farrah," said Ayla, growling at her. "We're here, aren't we?"

Farrah glared at her, but didn't say anything more about the time taken. "Dismount and follow me," she said and walked over to the edge of the cliff, where a rope was hanging. She pointed down toward the river. There was a small, visible recess, a ledge just above the water level. A metallic halo could be seen in the cliff wall. "Right, that is your point of entry," she said and looked at them. "The pipe itself is big enough for you to walk upright, and the first five hundred metres or so are more or less straight. But further up the mountain it gets very curvy and tight. There are also a few completely vertical sections, but easily climbable."

"How is the point of exit, though?" asked Ayla.

"You may have to move a few pieces of the broken fountain aside in order to get out of the pipe," said Farrah. "But the stone is light, so you should have no problems."

"Alright," said Ayla. "Then you are relieved and may return to the camp."

"Thank you," said Farrah and bowed. "Good luck to you all."

The three Gerudo took a horse each and rode away quickly, leaving the four to stare at each other in silence.

"You might want to catch up with the girls if you don't want to ride alone back to the camp," Ayla said to Link.

"I think I'll wait a while," said Link. "I need some peace and quiet to think anyway." He looked pointedly at Sheik, who took the hint.

"You two get ready, I'll join you shortly," the Sheikah said as he and Link walked a bit away, finding a convenient outcropping to hide behind. Sheik was prepared for what was coming and responded immediately to Link's longing, almost desperate kiss. They parted, and Link stared into Sheik's eyes.

"I don't want you to go," the Hero said.

"But you know I must," said Sheik. "And you won't try to hinder me."

"No, I won't," admitted Link.

They kissed again, this one lasting much longer. Link pushed Sheik against the cliff wall, and Sheik wondered for a moment if Link wanted to make love right there and then, and he pushed his tongue at Link's lips, begging for entrance. The idea of a 'session' right now didn't seem too bad, despite the rather persistent pain down there. But then Link ended the kiss and stepped back.

"That's all you get until you come back to me," said Link playfully. "Consider yourself cut off."

 _Of all the childish and silly things to do…_ Sheik thought, but smiled back. "Then I shall labour to return as soon as I can."

"Alright then," said Link.

As the Hero climbed into the saddle of the remaining horse, Sheik looked at him with hard eyes.

"Look after Tao, okay?" he asked. "I'm not willing to overlook the possibility of the Gerudo pulling a fast one and taking him for their king already now. Make sure either you or Kaura is around him at all times."

"Geez, aren't you a distrustful one," said Link jokingly, but nodding. "Don't worry, I'll watch him."

"Good," said Sheik. "Now get yourself back to camp so you won't miss supper." He slapped the horse's rump. Link's eyes widened as his mount whinnied and shot off like a rocket back in the direction they had come, his scream quickly fading away. Sheik smiled after him and went back to the cliff edge, where Myde and Ayla were waiting.

"Ready?" asked Ayla.

"Nowhere near," said Sheik. "But it has to be done."

"That's the spirit!" exclaimed Ayla and swung herself down the rope, sliding down. Her feet hit the ledge, and she waved for the next one to come down. Sheik nodded to Myde and grabbed the rope, disappearing over the edge.

The Zora shook his head. "Humans…" he muttered before following.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 119**

* * *

"Careful, it's slippery."

"You don't need to tell me—ah!"

"You alright?"

"I think I've trodden in something disgusting."

Sheik lost count of how many times this exchange—or the many variations of it—was repeated as they made their way through the pipe. No one had thought of bringing a torch, though judging by the smell _that_ was just a blessing. Either way, none of them could really see where they were going.

He was walking in the front, for some inexplicable reason, and he was usually the one that slipped, much to Ayla's amusement. Even now he could hear her chuckling. He gritted his teeth and shuffled on. The pipe, while tall enough to allow them to stand upright, was shaped rather strangely. The sides pressed in on them, making it practically impossible to turn around. There was a constant, annoying streaming sound that reminded him of running water, only amplified a hundred billion times because of the pipe. It was not so loud that they were forced to shout, but Sheik knew, he just _knew_ that the sound would plague him later.

"Look on the bright side, boys," said Ayla all the way from the back, a spot she had somehow managed to occupy despite the fact that Myde had been the last to enter the pipe. "It least it ain't a sewage pipe."

"Judging by the smell, it's not far from one," said Myde, his voice perfectly calm and collected—truth be told, Sheik hadn't seen or heard be anything but calm and collected—but he had started to breathe rather heavily during the first few minutes of their trek through the pipe, stabilising after twenty minutes or so.

"Given that I just trod in something I'd rather not know what is, I believe General Myde is correct," said Sheik. "The soldiers in the city have probably rerouted the waste disposal—"

"Thank you, I did not need to hear that," said Ayla, interrupting him with a huff. "I was just trying to raise the mood a bit, but you two are such bores. All analytical and stuff. Relax, live a little."

"Ayla, I have trodden in shit," said Sheik seriously. "I find it hard to 'relax and live a little' at the moment."

* * *

They were officially an hour into the pipe now. The stench was getting worse and worse, and Sheik had resorted to pulling his mask over his face, though it did little to help. They—or he and Ayla, at least, as he had not studied the anatomy of the Zora and knew little about Myde—were sweating heavily, despite the considerably low temperature inside the pipe. It was the moisture, of course, that did this, but they all found it annoying.

There seemed to be something ahead, and he paused. He felt Myde approach him from behind, stopping just a few inches away, having sensed Sheik's presence. Ayla, however, crashed right into the Zora.

"What is it?" asked Myde.

"There's a wall there," said Sheik, his eye giving him a slight advantage in the pitch black darkness. "And…a junction?" He paused, narrowing his eyes. "There was no mention of a junction inside the pipe."

"Are you serious?" asked Ayla.

"Hang on," said Myde. Sheik heard him rummage around in his pockets. Suddenly, a pale, blue light exploded from the palm of his hand. Sheik blinked, trying to get used to the sudden brightness. Myde was holding a strange, crystal-like object in his hand. It was just enough to illuminate the pipe a few feet in front of them and a few feet behind them. "There, is that better?" the Zora asked.

"Have you had that this entire time?" asked Ayla, glaring at him.

"No one asked," said Myde simply. "We Zora see quite well in the dark, you know."

"What is it?" asked Sheik, staring at the luminescent object.

"It's a type of glowing coral," said Myde, smiling slightly. "They grow at the very bottom of Lake Hylia and the Fountain. It's usually forbidden to remove them from those places, but I decided to take this with me when we evacuated…as a sort of memento of our home." He blinked and shook his head. "But that is of no relevance," he said and looked pointedly ahead. "We have reached a junction no one told us about. What do we do?"

"Let me think," said Sheik and stepped forward. The paths branched off to the left and right, offering no middle option. Both passages looked identical, and there were no visual aides that the exploration team might have left behind to show the way. At least there was some more room here, enough for all three of them to stand in a sort of semi-circle as they tried to figure out which way to go. "Huh…this is quite annoying," Sheik finally said.

"Ooh, I'm going to _kill_ Farrah when we get back," muttered Ayla. "She did this just to annoy me, I swear."

"The castle lies to the east, does it not?" asked Myde.

"Yes, it does. Why?" asked Sheik.

"Well, the pipe has been more or less straight the entire way until now," said the Zora. "Can we not just take the right path?"

"Actually, the pipe has curved slightly to the right for quite some time, though I am not sure for how long," said Sheik. "And it slumped downwards a few times as well."

"Alright, then we take the left path," said Ayla. "Easy."

"Not really," said Sheik. "If we take the wrong path, we might end up wasting several hours traversing it only to find that it ends up in a dead end. By the time we finally managed to find our way to the city, we will have run out of time."

"Fine, Sheik-sama," said Ayla. "Then what way do _you_ want to go?"

Sheik rolled his eyes. "I don't know yet. I am just voicing my opinion on jumping to conclusions."

"Well, we cannot hang around here for too long," said Myde. "The smell is…quite overpowering."

"I know, I know," said Sheik. "Just give me a few minutes to think." He leaned against the pipe wall, regretting it immediately as said something came loose and dribbled down his shoulder with a loud glooping sound. The light from Myde's coral piece made their shadows long and ominious, giving the pipe a creepy atmosphere he certainly did not need right now.

After a few minutes of thinking, he realised that there was no way he could figure this out. He hadn't even known of this pipe's existence before yesterday. "Alright," he said slowly. "We know that one of these paths will lead us to the city, but not where the other one will."

"Yes, dear, nice work," said Ayla sarcastically.

"Shut up," said Sheik. "Now, we also know that the path that will lead us to the city has a few vertical sections that are easily climbable. As far as I can see, our best bet is to choose one direction, walk in that direction for a while, and if we hit a place where we have to climb, we will know we have chosen the correct path."

"Sounds like a plan," said Myde. "Though for how long will we walk until we decide we have chosen the wrong path?"

"No more than an hour," said Sheik. "Perhaps just half an hour."

"What if we don't hit a vertical section in either direction?" asked Ayla.

"Then we will have to come up with another plan," said Sheik. "Listen, this is the best I can come up with given the little knowledge I possess of this place. If you have a better one, then I'd very much like to hear it." He stared at Ayla until she blinked and looked away.

"I've got nothing," admitted the Gerudo.

Nodding, Sheik turned to Myde. "What about you? Any suggestions or complaints?" It came out a lot harsher than he intended it to. The background noise in the pipe was grating on his nerves now, and the Delta Force had started to itch ever so slightly. He sighed. "I'm sorry, I—"

"No, that is quite alright," said Myde. "I don't know any more about this place than you, and the plan seems solid." He looked around them. "The sound of running water is quite annoying to me as well, and I _live_ in it. There is something about the way that the tubes amplify it…the frequency is much higher than it would be naturally."

"Good, it's not just me, then," said Sheik.

"It's annoying me too," said Ayla. She cleared her throat. "Right then, we have a plan. There's only the matter of choosing which path to take."

"Flip a coin?" asked Myde.

"I would if I actually had one," said Sheik. "I suppose we will just have to do it the old fashioned way…" He pointed a finger in one direction. "Eeny," he said. Then he pointed in the other direction. "Meeny…"

"Oh, for pity's sake," muttered Ayla and grabbed Sheik's shoulders and made him face one path. "Which way is that?" she asked.

"The right path," said Sheik, surprised by the sudden physical contact.

"The right path it is!" shouted Ayla triumphantly. She regretted it immediately when the sound of her voice, amplified thousands of times, hit her ear in the form of a screeching sound so horrible that it sounded like someone scraping a rock against fine glass. Sheik and Myde shared an exasperated look as they covered their ears.

* * *

"Ah, crap!"

"Told you to be careful."

"Shut up, fish-face!"

Sheik wanted to groan. With the introduction of light, they could at least see where to avoid setting down their feet so they wouldn't slip, but the two infiltrators behind him seemed to have developed a sudden mutual dislike for each other. Myde kept "forgetting" to announce a piece of…well, Sheik didn't really want to know what it was, was currently lying in their path, leaving Ayla to slip and fall, resulting in yet another of the exchanges above.

But at least they seemed to be on the right way now. Not that they had reached any vertical surfaces to climb yet, but it just…felt right, somehow. It was better than stewing around in the bloody intersection, at least. He was rather surprised at the general lack of life in the pipe. Not complicated life like fish and such (he pitied any animal that lived in a place like this) but at least some type of slugs or worms… But there was nothing here.

 _The stench probably scared them away,_ he thought. He readjusted his grip on the piece of coral (Myde had decided to give it to him since he walked in the front), holding it a bit higher. The edges of the damn thing kept digging into his fingers, making it very uncomfortable to hold it at any length of time. _No wonder he gave it to me._

"Shit!" exclaimed Ayla again—though she had learned to keep her voice down now so the others wouldn't be aurally raped.

"Told you," said Myde, his voice gloating.

"No you didn't, you piece of—"

"Alright, stop it you two," said Sheik, turning around to glare at them. "I don't know what it is that made you two hate each other mere minutes after meeting each other, but you had better put it aside until after the mission is complete, or I'll personally make your lives hell. Understand?"

They stared at him with wide eyes for a few seconds, and then nodded silently in unison. Sheik turned around and continued walking, hoping for some peace and quiet. The constant sound of their arguing was even _more_ grating than that of the water.

It didn't take long for his spirits to rise rapidly, however, as a wondrous—all things considered—sight came into view. He smiled. "I believe we chose the right direction." The pipe opened up into a wider, far more spacious section before taking a rapid turn directly upwards. While there was no ladder present, several notches seemed to have been cut into the metal, most likely made by those who laid the pipe itself as they looked quite old.

"Great," said Ayla happily. "Then all this muck _hasn't_ been for naught."

"It never was," said Myde. "It provided me with great amusement."

"Oh, ha-ha," said Ayla, stepping away from the Zora. She inspected the notches. "This looks kinda slippery…"

"Well, a little challenge is always a good thing, my aunt always says," Sheik said and took hold of a notch, lifting himself up—

—and almost fell backwards as he lost his grip immediately, his fingers and boots slipping on the wet metal. Ayla caught him before any real damage could be done and carefully set him down, once again pointing out to Sheik his infuriating height difference with everyone else.

"You alright?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," said Sheik, blushing. It was quite an embarrassing mistake to make at this point. "You were right. It _is_ slippery." He tried again, clenching the muscles in his fingers and legs as he practically bit into the metal. At least he managed to hold on this time, managing several steps upwards before pausing, panting heavily. It was absolutely exhausting, having to use all his strength just to avoid falling to his death, but then also having to find that tiny bit of extra energy to launch himself one step upwards. He looked down at Myde and Ayla, finding only despair in the fact that he had not even made it five metres up, and the pipe itself seemed to stretch for at least seventy or more… "This is going to take a while," he said, jaw clenching up involuntarily.

"So we've noticed," said Myde. "We should just take our time. Nightfall won't be for at least another hour or so."

"Yeah," said Ayla. "Besides, it won't be any point in emerging before midnight anyway. Better to wait until most of the soldiers are asleep."

"Right," said Sheik, looking back up. "Why did I volunteer for this?" he whispered to himself.

It was extremely slow going. After Sheik had made it halfway up—using twenty minutes—Myde started climbing as well. He seemed to have it easier than Sheik, probably because he was used to climbing on slippery rocks in his native environment, but still struggled with the notches that weren't as deep as the others. Ayla made a few false starts, but managed to claw her way up as well.

"Am I the only one who regrets signing up for this shit?" she asked after half an hour, at which point Sheik was just about to reach the top.

"No," said Myde.

"No," said Sheik.

* * *

"You've got to be kidding," said Ayla when she finally reached the top, needing the help of both Myde and Sheik to clear the lip.

The source of her outrage was another vertical wall to climb—even higher than the previous one. And the notches…were small. Sheik had tried to fit his fingers into one of them upon reaching the top, and had realised that only three of them could fit, making it impossible to get a proper grip. He only thanked Zelda for providing him with gloves for his new outfit, or else he'd be just about useless by now.

"I think…we should take a break," Myde announced after looking at new wall they had to scale.

"I couldn't agree more," said Sheik.

At least the small area between the two walls allowed for them to sit down with some distance between them. Sheik found a relatively dry and unsoiled piece of piping and promptly planted his bottom there—wincing when said anatomical feature flared up in pain, a memento of Link's…well…

Ayla plopped down against the wall just opposite of him, blowing on her fingers, which seemed to be developing some wicked blisters. She reached for a small knife, most likely intending to puncture them before they could get any worse.

"You don't want to do that," said Sheik, staring at her.

"Why not?" asked the Gerudo. "I always do this when I get blisters."

"Perhaps, but in this environment…you're just asking for an infection," replied Sheik. "Wait until we're done and you've had an opportunity to wash your hands."

"Fine," said Ayla and put the knife away.

Myde sat down next to Sheik, keeping a foot or so away from him in what Sheik assumed to be an observance of personal space…which was ridiculous since the small distance put him precariously close to the edge where they had just come up.

"You don't have to sit so far away, you know," Sheik said.

"Oh, I don't want to impose—"began Myde.

"Then don't sit so close to the damn edge," said Ayla. "You'll be imposing a lot more if you fall down and break something."

Sheik shuffled himself closer to the other wall, making more space for the Zora. "She's right, you know," he added.

"Fine," said Myde and scooted closer.

There was a small, restful period of silence—except for the damn rush of water. But of course, something like this couldn't last.

"A fine mess we've gotten ourselves into," said the Gerudo.

"A necessary one, though," said Myde. "Some things just have to be done."

"Speaking of things that have to be done," said Sheik, finally deciding to voice a question he had been wondering about for several hours. "You seem rather fixated upon locating and extracting the civilian prisoners. Why is that?"

"Yeah, what's that all about?" asked Ayla. "It's not like we'd be able to get them all out anyway. How many did the analysts reckon were imprisoned in the city?"

"Several thousand at the least," said Sheik.

"That's not really any of your business," said Myde.

"It is since my fellow infiltrator and—Goddesses forbid—partner won't be honest with me," said Ayla. "I'm not sure if I trust you completely, to be honest."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked the Zora, eyes darkening considerably in the light from the coral. "What makes me less trustworthy than you, Gerudo? If I recall correctly, your race is the one that started this war to begin with."

"I'd be careful with what I'd say next if I were you," said Ayla slowly, narrowing her eyes. "Accidents may happen…"

 _Good grief, how did this happen?_ Sheik wondered, looking nervously between them. "Alright, let's just calm down here," he said slowly. "We're all friends here—or allies, anyhow. Mistakes have been made, but that's what we are here for, right? To fix them."

"Do you realise how deeply he just offended me—and my people?" asked Ayla icily. "I should cut out his tongue right here and now."

"Technically, he _was_ speaking the truth," said Sheik. "There was a substantial number of Gerudo present on the night Ganondorf attacked the castle."

"Yes, but…" Ayla tried to come up with a rebuttal. "We changed…" she said weakly.

"Yes, you did," said Sheik. "And we are all grateful for it as you are a valuable ally. But you must understand the viewpoint from which Myde is looking at it. Ganondorf and those Gerudo present at the attack on the castle were responsible for freezing Zora's Domain over and trapping him and his people under ice for seven years."

"I had nothing to do with that," said Ayla. The tone was angry, but Sheik sensed the deep regret that she harboured for it, only covering it with fake anger. Though for what reason? Sheik wanted to slam his head into the wall with frustration. Why hadn't the two gotten their aggression out _before_ heading into the damn pipe?

They went quiet again, and Sheik sighed. "Listen, I'm not asking for you two to suddenly embrace and become the best of friends, but please put your differences aside until we are back in the valley. An argument now will only make things more difficult."

"Fine," said Ayla haughtily. "But I'm not apologising."

"Neither am I," said Myde in much the same tone of voice.

"Fine, don't apologise, just stop bloody arguing," said Sheik. He looked at Myde. "And can you please tell us why you're so adamant about the prisoners, just so we can get that off our shoulders?"

Myde looked annoyed for a few seconds, but sighed. With a single movement, he loosened the belt that held his sword to his back and held the sword gingerly in front of him, as if studying the scabbard. "I am looking for someone," he said. "The owner of this sword in fact. She is…very dear to me."

 _Oh, a lover's longing, then,_ thought Sheik. _No wonder he was so touchy about the subject._

Ayla stared at him, her gaze softening considerably. "Your lover?" she asked carefully.

Myde shook his head slowly. "No…my sister. She was taken. Just after Hyrule Castle was attacked, a group of Gerudo proclaiming their allegiance to Ganondorf gained entrance to the Fountain. They demanded our surrender…"

Sheik remembered this. He had been there, carrying a message to King Zora. He had managed to hide as the Gerudo entered the throne room, demanding that the Zora lay down their arms and surrender before Ganondorf the Great, as they had called him. The king had refused, and a warlock had entered the room soon after. After a confirming denial from the king, he had cast the spell that froze the domain over. Realising that there had been nothing he could do, Sheik had prepared a deku nut to escape, but had seen the young princess Ruto run toward her father, who was already being encased in red ice. He had grabbed her arm just as she passed the pillar he was hiding behind and done something incredibly risky: teleporting two people at the same time.

"But we fought back, though," said Myde, his eyes fastening on Sheik. "It was of no use, of course, but we tried. They captured several of our numbers…including Thea…" His jaw tightened and his hands clenched. "All she wanted was to help our wounded, she wasn't even armed!" he shouted. His voice echoed, though not as much as it would have done in the straight sections of the pipe.

"Myde," said Ayla. "I'm sorry. I…I didn't even know we took prisoners from there…"

"Don't be," said the Zora after taking a few minutes to collect himself. "You couldn't possibly have been a warrior back then, you are too young."

"Well, I may not have been an official soldier, and I didn't participate in the betrayal of Hyrule, but still…" She looked at Sheik uncomfortably, who could only offer a shrug in return. He didn't know what to say. She looked down at her hands, then back at Myde, who had closed his eyes, breathing deeply. "Listen, I'll help you find her."

Myde opened his eyes, looking at her with surprise. "What?" he asked.

"You heard me, fish-face," said Ayla. "I'll help you find your sister. How hard could it be, anyway? I'm pretty sure the Zora prisoners stick out among the Hylians like sore thumbs."

"No, I can't accept that," said Myde. "It's not your responsibility—"

"Not my responsibility?" asked Ayla, rolling her eyes. "After serving us that sob story and making me feel all guilty? I'm helping you, and that's that!"

"But, I—"

"It's better to just lie back and accept it," said Sheik. "She's a stubborn one."

* * *

The mood had lightened considerably after the little blowout, and Sheik felt a bit more confident that the mission would succeed now—even though he didn't quite agree with the sudden focus on searching for a specific prisoner. While poetically justifiable, he knew, it would simply not be very effective.

But he had not been particularly effective these past few months either, though, had he? When he thought about all the time he had spent with Link that he could have used for assassinations, sabotaging and spying, he realised that he was no better than the Zora and Gerudo who were now speaking cordially with each other.

He only wished that they could have been speaking at a _strategic moment_ —such was when they were climbing the much more difficult pipe wall. The notched seemed to be getting smaller and smaller, and Sheik was genuinely worried about losing his grip at any moment. And they were talking about _fashion_! Well, not fashion-fashion, but infiltration fashion. Or more specifically, _Myde_ 's infiltration fashion.

"So what's with those clothes anyway?" Ayla called from the bottom of their climbing team. "I thought Zora didn't wear them."

"We usually don't," replied Myde. "But I think my scales would simply offer nothing but trouble if they were to catch the light from a torch at an inopportune moment." He was now carrying the coral, lighting the way for Ayla below.

 _Unbelievable,_ thought Sheik. _Twenty minutes ago they were ready to tear each other's throats out. I will never understand social interaction…_ He looked up and sighed in relief when he saw that he was only a few feet away from the top. He summoned the last of his strength and pushed upwards. His fingers fumbled for a grip, finding it in the form of another depression in the metal. He pulled himself over the edge, panting.

 _Climb a mountain, no problem. Climb an ice cap, sure. But climb a damn drain pipe? Never again in a million years,_ he thought. After catching his breath, he sat up, looking around. There was light ahead, he realised, but not the orange sheen of a burning torch or any other means of artificial light. It came from an apparent bend just a few hundred metres ahead, and he hoped to the Goddesses that it was the broken fountain. He crawled over to the edge and looked down, nodding in satisfaction when he saw that both Myde and Ayla were making steady progress upwards. Just a few more minutes, and Myde would be up, and then Ayla a few minutes after that again.

He was about to let them know that they were at the end of the pipe when the sound of running water suddenly increased in volume—coming from the direction of the light. He narrowed his eyes and stared, wondering what kind of ridiculous obstacle that would be conspiring against them _this_ time. He got his answers seconds later when a small trail of water suddenly came flowing down the pipe, flowing faster and faster as more and more water widened the trail.

"Hey, what's going on up there?" shouted Myde. The water was dripping down on the two climbers. "Is that water?"

Sheik nodded slowly, realised what he was doing and leaned over the edge. "I think you had better increase your climbing speed," he yelled down to them. "Because I think someone just pulled the bath plug!"

There was a chorus of outraged "What?"'s from below. At the same moment, a torrent of brown, filthy water came rushing around the bend, surging toward the edge. Sheik's eyes widened and he cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Hold on!" he shouted, his voice feeble against the roar of the water. He then realised that he was in a somewhat worse position than those below, and began to look for something to hold on to himself, the water rushing ever closer. He spotted a smaller pipe jutting out from the wall close by and lunged. His fingers closed around it just as the water hit him, almost knocking him off the edge had it not been for his iron grip.

He had no idea how long he flopped around as the murky water rushed by, the only thoughts running through his mind having to do with holding on and grip strength. His gloves kept slipping, and he daren't try to reaffirm his grip in case he'd lose it completely. The sound was deafening. It felt like his eardrums had burst, agony slicing through his head like a white-hot scythe.

It took him several seconds to realise that the water had finally stopped flooding the pipe, and then an additional few to open his eyes—which he hadn't even noticed closing—and then another couple of seconds to recompose himself. He crawled over to the edge, peering down. "Are you alright?!" he shouted. His hearing had definitely taken a beating, he realised, when he could barely hear his own shout, though it seemed to be clearing up fast.

The blue glow of Myde's coral was gone, washed away, leaving the pipe in complete darkness save for the little light from the end of it. When no one answered, Sheik feared the worst. But then he heard an annoyed grunt, and a hand covered in scales suddenly appeared over the edge.

"A little help would be much appreciated," said the strained voice of Myde.

Sheik quickly grabbed the hand and pulled, helping Myde up. He too spent a few seconds just lying on the floor and panting while Sheik peered expectantly over the edge, waiting for Ayla.

"She's still there," said Myde, not looking up. "Heard her cursing just behind me."

Sheik sighed in relief when he saw Ayla emerging from the darkness below and helped her up as well.

"Of all the godsdamned, fucking shitty things to happen," Ayla muttered as Sheik helped her away from the edge. "What the hell was that?"

"You were right," said Sheik, suddenly unable to contain a mad grin, fuelled by the sheer relief that they had both survived. "They _are_ using it as a waste pipe."

"Shit," muttered Myde.

"Exactly."

They spent a quarter of an hour just recovering from the ordeal, careful to sharpen their decidedly reduced hearing so they wouldn't experience another "flushing" as Ayla called it. The stench was even worse now, and they were all thoroughly soaked and covered with something Sheik didn't even _want_ to think about, but he was willing to overlook it for now. They had almost died just now, all of three. And he had been terrified.

"I almost forgot to tell you guys," he said after a few minutes. "I think we're at the end."

"Good," said Myde. "I can't take any more surprises like this."

"Oh, no," said Ayla suddenly. "Damnit!"

"What is it?" asked Sheik.

"I just remembered that we have to do it all over again when we leave," she answered.

"…damn."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 120**

* * *

"Give me a hand with this, yeah?"

"Oof! I thought they said it wasn't heavy."

"They lied, obviously."

"Don't just sit there and comment, Sheik. Help us out."

"I would, but there's no room for me. If you could move a bit to the left, though…"

"Are you saying my bottom's big?"

"Wouldn't dream of it."

"Heh."

"Shut it, fish-boy."

"Alright, alright, I'm here. Let's see…okay, push on my signal. One, two, three, push!"

With a gargantuan effort of strength, the three were finally able to push the large piece of broken marble up and aside. Sheik realised the folly in not checking to see where the piece would land before actually moving it, but there they were. Luckily, the piece merely fell a few inches before coming to rest on the cobbles, hardly making a sound at all. Sheik quickly thrust his head up through the opening, took a quick glance around them and ducked back into the pipe.

"Well?" asked Ayla, looking at him with an intense look. The nearer she came to danger, the more focused she seemed to be.

"Looks clear," said Sheik. "They're using it to store barrels of some sort. It doesn't seem that they know the pipe is even here."

"Then where did all the…waste come from?" asked Myde, wrinkling his nose in distaste.

"I'm not sure," said Sheik. "The scouts reported that the pipe was blocked off further up the path…I suppose one of the smaller pipes, if not all of them, is still open and ready for…business. I can't believe I just said that," he added, grimacing.

"Either way, that unexpected blowout really ruined our chances for stealth," said Ayla. "Because we stink to high heaven right now."

"I know," said Sheik, shaking his head in annoyance.

It really was a huge problem for them, the smell. Out in open air, it would be a bit easier to sneak around, perhaps, but if their targets required them to move indoors, where there would be little to no airflow… Needless to say, they needed to do something about it quickly.

"There's only thing to do, I guess," said Myde, the fin on his head moving slightly about as he thought. "We have to get rid of these clothes and find some new ones…and probably somewhere to wash off the smell."

"That is a bit too risky," said Sheik, though he secretly held the idea of washing the stench off of him in the highest regard. "Switching clothes is a good idea, but the washing…well, if you see an opportunity in which there is no risk of being detected, then go for it, but if not…better leave it for when we get back."

"Alright," said Ayla. "But where can we find new clothes?"

"In the barracks, I would say," said Myde. "Or perhaps there is a clothesline somewhere."

"A clothesline?" asked Ayla, raising an eyebrow. "Myde, these people are soldiers, not washerwomen."

"Perhaps so, but they still have to wash their clothes _somewhere_ ," said Myde. "Otherwise…well, I suppose having the foulest-smelling armies in the world is a claim, though perhaps not the most highly regarded one."

Sheik ignored the conversation and poked his head out of the broken fountain again, making sure that no one could hear them. Some sort of gate had been installed in one end of the small square, probably blocking the part that led to the castle. Not that Sheik needed open streets to move about when rooftops provided an easier (and more direct) route. He ducked back down, noticing that the conversation between Ayla and Myde had ceased.

"Right, I do not think we should hang about here any longer," he said. "Guards could show up at any moment. I suppose this is where we split up for the night."

"I guess," said Ayla. "So how should we do this?"

"I will go first. There is a small alley to the west," said Sheik, pointing in the direction. "That is a good spot to start. We should exit the fountain one by one with intervals of about half a minute. Since I will work alone tonight, I will go first. Then you two meet up and go from there."

"Alright," said Myde. "Should we meet up at a later time?"

"If all stays quiet, then we will meet here in…oh, I don't know, three or four hours?" said Sheik.

"I can live with that," said Ayla.

"Four hours, then," said Myde. "Would give us each enough time to do enough damage."

"Right," said Sheik. He made one last check of the square. "Remember; do not worry about the legion commanders. They are mine. Good luck to you both." With that, he sprang up from the ledge they were sitting on, climbing over the pile of broken marble and was finally out in the open air again.

Wasting no time, he ran across the cobbled square, avoiding the large deposits of wooden barrels on the way. He reached the alley and ran for another few yards before stopping in a small patch of darkness, hugging the wall. He looked around. The alley was L-shaped. He inched his way toward the corner and peeked out. He could see a street brightly lit by torches beyond. He heard snippets of merry, drunk conversation as well.

He couldn't waste any more time. Ayla and Myde would be on their way here soon. He moved quickly toward the lighted street, carefully examining it. Two soldiers were stumbling away from a building that had once been one of the busiest taverns in Castle Town. It still was, apparently, though the clientele had clearly taken a turn for the worse. Apart from the two soldiers, however, the street was empty. He waited for the two drunks to disappear in whatever direction they were going and crossed the street, seeing an excellent spot for a rooftop ascend. He increased his speed as he came closer to the empty stall, kicked off it and reached up…

His fingers found purchase, and he quietly groaned as he pulled himself up, swinging a leg over the edge. And he was up. It was not a tall building, but it served as a good starting point. He took another look around. Not a single street in the city seemed to be unlit, and most—if not all—the buildings that had not been razed in the initial attack were inhabited judging by the lights coming from the windows.

 _Damn,_ he thought. _This is going to be more difficult than I thought._

The spire of the Temple of Time loomed over the city to the east, seemingly empty and devoid of life. At least the bastards hadn't touched it since he had been here last. Just over the hills to the north he could spot the top of Ganondorf's citadel. It gave off a feeling of evil, and Sheik shivered from just looking at it. At least he wasn't going _there_ tonight. He glanced to the west and noticed a construction he hadn't noticed before. A wall—a brick wall, at that—had been built along an entire street, effectively cutting half of the east side off from the rest of the city. There was still life there, as torches burned and windows glowed, but why was it cut off?

 _Prisoners, of course,_ he thought seconds later. _Why else would they build such a wall there?_ _At least I know where Myde and Ayla will be for the first part of the mission._

He shook his head, trying to focus on the task at hand: eliminating the commanders of Legions I and II. The Second Legion was probably garrisoned in the lower part of the city, manning the walls and siege equipment, charged with the defence of the city. The First Legion…well, they were most likely occupying the upper part, as they were charged with protecting Ganondorf himself. There was probably a small force of elite soldiers inhabiting the citadel itself.

 _Right…_ he thought. _Commander Nuviro was always one to get down and dirty with his men, so he will probably be living with the larger part of his force. But Commander Amel, on the other hand, always had a misplaced sense of priorities, preferring the lap of luxury…best focus on the most posh one, then._

He looked at the city walls. One of his targets was there. He took a running start and leapt from this rooftop to the top of the tavern one, repeating the process with the next rooftop. It was a much faster way of travelling than taking to the streets, and he could only hope that Myde and Ayla would realise that as well. The soldiers occupying the city were fools, he realised. None of them had seen fit to place guards on the rooftops, leaving him alone to frolic and play—well, perhaps not _frolic_ and _play_ —as he saw fit.

As he got further and further south, the sight of soldiers in the streets—either walking around or guarding a specific spot—got more and more frequent. There were a surprising number of soldiers who were just drifting around aimlessly as well, despite it being in the middle of the night. Perhaps they were anxious? Perhaps they knew that Zelda was planning something…

He cleared one final jump, realised that the target rooftop was much lower than the one he had jumped from, and braced himself for impact. He hit the slanted roof, and he rolled to dampen the shock, coming to his feet immediately. Then he hid behind the edge, staring at the sight below him.

The square in front of the main gate to the drawbridge was absolutely packed with soldiers. They were gathered around a small fenced-in circle, in which a pair of men dressed in nothing but rags and armed with rusty and broken swords was currently circling each other warily. Then one of them lunged forward with a clumsy stab, which the other man shakily avoided. One side of the gathered soldiers cheered loudly while the other booed. There was something wrong about this, Sheik realised and pulled out his spyglass. He looked through the eyepiece, focusing on the duelling figures—and almost gasped.

The men were thin, emaciated figures who seemed to have more in common with skeletons than other humans. Their ears proved that they were Hylians. Their faces looked haggard and panicked, none of them enjoying the fight very much.

"Come on, you filthy piece of shit!" shouted one of the soldiers. "Kill the bugger!"

Sheik put the spyglass away and had a dagger halfway out of its holster before he caught himself and stopped, his anger so overpowering. They were using _prisoners_! They were having them fight to the death for sport! And all the while, he saw other prisoners—men, women and children, all wearing collars of some sort—weaving in and out between the soldiers, giving them drinks and food and whatever they bellowed for. Sheik could feel his blood boil, the Delta Force itching…

 _Of all the disgusting, inhuman…_ he thought, gritting his teeth and carefully putting the dagger away. As much as he wanted to slaughter every jeering man down there right now, he couldn't let his anger control his actions. Not now. Perhaps later. He looked around again, trying to spot where the hedonistic, self-proclaimed connoisseur of the fine arts Commander Amel could be residing.

He didn't have to look for long. The tallest building in the square—what had once been a guard tower, really, was draped in the banners of the Second Legion—some sort of ridiculous animal-drawing on a purple background—and flanked by dozens of guards at each entrance. If that was not a place where the self-loving commander would be quartered in…

Sheik moved away from the short building and came to a halt on the roof of the one adjacent to the guard tower, biting his lip in annoyance when he saw that there wasn't a single window big enough for him to climb in through.

 _Damn, the ground floor entrances are out of the question as well,_ he thought. He couldn't see the fighting pit from here, but one side was winning spectacularly, apparently, as the cheers rose to an even higher pitch. He happened to glance upwards, and smiled. There was a balcony.

The guard tower was made of rough stone, and was full of cracks and gaps. Easily climbable. He took another running start and leaped through the air. The impact did not quite turn out as he had planned, and he had the wind knocked out of him as he slammed into the tower next to a small window. He quickly grabbed hold of the stone and hung there for a few seconds, trying to regain the ability to actually breathe. He hoped that none of the guards below had heard him—and since there were no calls for alarm, he guessed they hadn't—and looked upwards.

There were two balconies on the guard tower. One at the very top floor, which was quite big and designed for supporting a ballista, and another one two floors below. The second balcony was a bit smaller, for some reason, but could easily fit a group of archers. But given Amel's…aversion to a martial abode, he supposed the only weapons inside the tower were the ones he carried on his person.

It was a fast climb, even by Sheik's standards. The tower itself had to be centuries old and quite ready to be torn down, which made climbing it almost as easy as climbing a ladder. It didn't take him long to reach the lowest balcony. He swung himself over the railing and quickly ducked behind the doorway leading to the tower's interior. The inside of the tower was just as well-lit as the outside, and a wooden spiral staircase stretched from the bottom and all the way to the top. The top floor was only separated from the rest of the tower by a thin, wooden door.

He was about to move inside when he became aware of the sound of footsteps echoing. He ducked behind the doorway again, peeking. Someone was coming up the stairs. Sheik took out a dagger, just in case. He was disappointed to see that it was Amel himself, but a boy—no older than fifteen, by the look of him—carrying a jug of some sort. He was dressed in servant's clothes, and Sheik realised that this was most likely Amel's personal assistant—or slave, as everyone else called it.

Sheik waited for the boy to pass the balcony and lunged, wrapping an arm around his neck and pulling him outside. His hand covered the boy's mouth, preventing him from crying out. The slave was not stupid and tried to swing the jug in Sheik's face—failing as it was quite hard to aim when he could not see his attacker. He stilled however, when Sheik let his dagger's blade rest on his throat.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Sheik whispered. "Calm down." The boy struggled some more, but Sheik once again let the sharp edge touch his skin lightly, drawing a little blood. "I said calm down," he said in a harsher whisper. "I'm _not_ going to hurt you. I'm going to remove my hand and let you go, but if you scream, you will be dead before you even manage to draw breath. Understand?"

The boy nodded, and Sheik let him go. The first the boy did was to move away from Sheik. He did not scream, however.

"Goddesses, you stink," the boy said, glaring at Sheik. He too was a Hylian, Sheik saw. The brown leather collar around his neck was a clear sign of ownership.

"I apologise," said Sheik.

"Who are you?" the boy asked.

"My name is Sheik. I am an agent of Princess Zelda's. And you are Commander Amel's slave, I presume?" said Sheik.

"Yeah, I am," said the boy, still glaring at him. "And what do you want?"

 _My, isn't he a rude one?_ thought Sheik. "I am here to put an end to Amel, of course," he said.

The boy's eyes widened now. "Really? You're gonna kill him?"

"That would be the general idea, yes," said Sheik. "What's your name?"

"Tinn," replied the boy.

"Nice to meet you, Tinn," said Sheik, nodding. "Tell me, is there anyone else in the tower?"

Tinn shook his head. "There's only me and Amel here. He's declared the building off-limits to everyone."

"Very well," said Sheik, moving closer. "That jug of yours, what does it contain?"

Tinn raised the jug, the liquid inside rushing around as he shook it. "Wine. Amel always has some before he…" He looked away, trailing off. The shame was easy to see, and Sheik mentally added another charge for which Amel would be killed to his list.

"Give it to me," said Sheik, holding out a hand. Tinn gave it to him, after which Sheik put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Tinn, you are able to freely move around the city, are you not?" he asked.

"Yeah, why?" asked Tinn.

"Then I want you to leave the tower and find somewhere to hide for the next few days," said Sheik, smiling at him.

"But they'll find me if—"Tinn began.

"No," said Sheik, cutting him off. "They will be too busy to even bother looking for you. Trust me. Now go."

Tinn looked hesitant, but finally nodded and went inside the tower. Sheik halted him with a hiss.

"If you tell anyone you saw me, I will kill you," the Sheikah said with a serious look on his face.

"I won't," said Tinn. And then he was gone. Sheik listened to his footsteps disappearing before he went inside himself, carrying the jug by the loop at the neck. He wasn't worried about the young slave ratting him out. His eyes had told Sheik everything he needed to know.

 _Now then,_ he thought as he stood before the door to Amel's guard-room-made-chambers. Just to be sure, he removed the cork from the jug and sniffed. He grimaced. There was indeed wine in there, but it was either of horribly low quality, or just gone rotten. _Connoisseur of the fine arts my arse,_ he thought as he re-corked the bottle and knocked on the door.

"Come in!" a familiar voice said from the inside.

Sheik took a deep breath and opened the door.

The first thing that struck him was the abundance of drapes. They were everywhere, covering the walls, the windows—everything. Some of them even hung on ropes that seemed to have been nailed to the walls for that specific purpose—to hang drapes on them. And they bore that horrible standard. A candle provided the light for most of the large, circular room, close to the large balcony. The candle stood on a desk, behind which the man himself was sitting, writing. Sheik closed the door loudly, ready to abandon his plan and just kill the man right now if he looked up.

"Ah, Tinn, good," said the commander, his eyes not leaving the parchment he was writing on. "Go to the bedroom and pour the wine into a glass, there's a good boy."

Sheik briefly wondered if he was expected to reply or not, deciding not to in the end. He looked to his left and saw a king-size bed standing in there, hidden from the rest of the room by more bloody drapes. There was a nightstand, on which another burning candle and a fine, apparently crystal glass stood. He moved slowly, not wanting his boots to give his identity away. He quickly poured the stinking wine into the glass. One of the drapes prevented Sheik from seeing the desk.

"Please undress," said Amel from behind the drape. "I will join you shortly."

 _I only undress for one man,_ thought Sheik, pulling out a dagger. _And you are not him._

He heard Amel sigh and stand up, slowly approaching the bedroom. "If only those blasted fools would kill each other so I could have some peace," he muttered.

 _Oh, I will give you peace, alright,_ thought Sheik. He extinguished the candle on the nightstand, leaving the bedroom pitch black.

"Oh, are we not feeling up for it tonight?" asked Amel, chuckling. "Well, I can find my way in the dark."

Sheik saw him walk into the bedroom and tensed up, ready to spring.

"Tinn, have you soiled yourself?" asked Amel suddenly, pausing, sniffing. "No…wait…you're not Tinn!" He reached for the sword that hung from his belt.

_Damn!_

That was all Sheik needed. He sprung from his position, landing a heavy kick to the man's chest. Amel went stumbling backwards, pulling a drape down from its pegs as he tried to remain standing. He failed. His back crashed to the wood floor, and he groaned loudly. Sheik was on him in instant, pinning the man to the floor. He finally saw Amel's face in the light from the candle on the desk.

There were a few more lines here and there, yes, but this was indeed the same man. The face had gone a bit puffy—most likely as a result from all the bad wine—and his eyes were a bit…wet. But it was him. The same man who many years before had betrayed the royal family by killing several royal guards before the alarm could be sounded during the attack on the castle. Had Sheik known he had done this that night, he would have gone after him, but the information had not surfaced until years later. But here he was, and Sheik had a blade against his throat.

"Good evening, Commander Amel," he said quietly, glaring down at the blue-eyed man. "I trust you have been well?"

"Who the blazes are you?" demanded the commander.

"I'm not surprised you do not remember me, commander," said Sheik. He leaned closer. "Or should I say, _Captain Amel of the Royal Guard_?"

Amel squinted at him. "Those eyes…you're that Sheikah boy!"

"Exactly," said Sheik, pressing his dagger harder into Amel's throat, not hard enough to break the skin but enough to keep the man quiet. "It's been a long time, commander."

"What, are you here to kill me?" asked Amel. "I won't respond to torture, you know."

Sheik shook his head, almost unable to contain the grin that was trying to surface. "Oh, trust me, if I were to torture you, you would most _definitely_ respond. But no, I'm not here to torture you. You betrayed the royal family seven years ago. I am here to punish you for that."

"You still cling to that pathetic princess?" asked Amel. "I don't understand why you Remnant bastards just won't give up. How could you possibly hope to defeat us?"

"We have the Hero of Time," Sheik said simply. "But I grow weary of discussing matters that are not of your concern with you, and I have much to do. Therefore, I will simply leave you with this:" he said and cut Amel's throat with a single, fluid motion. "That was for Tinn," he said.

Then he climbed off, leaving Amel on the floor, clutching his throat and gurgling loudly as he vainly tried to call for help. Sheik watched him die slowly, his eyes slowly glassing over. It was over quickly. Sheik waited for another minute after Amel had given his last jerk and gurgle before moving over, checking him for life signs. No breath, no pulse.

 _That's one down, one to go,_ thought Sheik as he cleaned his dagger with an errant drape. He was about to leave through the door when he noticed the stench again—having blocked it out with excitement—and decided to do something about it.

 _Sorry, Zelda,_ he thought as he stripped off his leather armour, throwing it away. _But I can't let a foul smell give me away._

* * *

"Okay, this did not turn out the way I wanted it to," said Ayla, glaring at her foot.

"What, spraining your ankle upon jumping out of the fountain was not part of your plan?" asked Myde. "I'm amazed."

They were both standing in the alley across the square from the fountain. Ayla had made a rather serious miscalculation concerning the height of the fountain and had announced this mistake with a choked howl of pain. Myde had sprung into action immediately and dragged her over to the alley before they were discovered, though he had a rather amused expression on his face the entire time.

"Ah, shut it," said Ayla. She stood up, trying to put weight on the foot, wincing. "You could have been more helpful, you know."

"More helpful?" asked Myde, scoffing. "I immediately jumped out of the pipe and pulled you over here, did I not? What else could I have done to help?"

"You could have warned me about the edge," muttered Ayla.

"You went before me," said Myde flatly.

They both went quiet for a few seconds, both of them wondering what the hell to do now. Five seconds within the mission and they had already screwed up.

"Can you walk?" asked Myde.

"'Course I can," said Ayla. To her credit, she did not cry out or wince. Her eyes, however, seemed to scream. "See?" she said shakily. "No problem."

"I think it's time you used that potion," said Myde.

"Why didn't I think of that?" Ayla asked and pulled out the small vial, popping the cork and gulping it down in one go. Her eyes widened. "Wow."

"What is it?"

"My leg went warm all of a sudden," Ayla said. She looked down at her foot and began to move the ankle around, testing the joint. "Huh, it doesn't hurt anymore. What a marvellous potion."

"I believe it is more of a painkiller," said Myde, smiling. "But I'm glad it worked. Let's go."

"Right."

* * *

Sheik opened the door carefully, making sure that no one was waiting to ambush him on the stairs. Tinn had kept his word, apparently, and he opened it fully. The tower was empty. He went out and closed the door, giving Amel's body one final contemptuous look. At least his wardrobe had been useful. Or, Tinn's wardrobe, it seemed. He'd had a quick wash—getting rid of the worst of the sewer odour from his skin and hair—and had rummaged through the room, looking for other clothes to wear. What he had found was not very suitable for stopping bladed weapons from skewering him, but at least they wouldn't interfere with his stealth.

He refastened Kazuya to his back and walked out on the lower balcony. The fight was still on, though one of the prisoners looked close to death, blood leaking from a multitude of wounds. Neither combatant looked ready to collapse. Sheik shook his head and looked away, focusing on what to do next. He was awfully close to the walls and the catapults and trebuchets…

He had a duty to disable them, really. But there was a problem. How was he supposed to get down? He couldn't jump—he wouldn't survive the impact. He couldn't really climb down either as there were guards on all sides of the building, and seeing a Sheikah dressed in slave's clothing climbing down the commander's tower would surely raise suspicion. He doubted he could jump from the wall and land on an adjacent rooftop, which would probably end in disaster anyway.

He groaned. _I should have thought this through a bit more,_ he thought. _There's only one way out, really…_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 121**

* * *

A foul, cold wind had started to blow across the city while they were making their way through the streets. Neither of the two were as vertically inclined as Sheik was, and progress was somewhat slower as they had to hide from a patrol every now and then. But at least they were moving. And they had even found one of their targets already! A large warehouse full of bombs and explosives of every kind, most likely meant to be hurled with catapults judging by their size, was just begging to be blown up. However, Myde and Ayla had decided to put it off until they were done with the tasks that wouldn't give their presence away in a brilliant, fiery explosion. At the moment, they were hiding inside a burned-out house in the western part of the city, observing a small column of slaves that were being herded by. It took a great deal of willpower from them both not to leap out of cover and slaughter every soldier there—but Sheik's insistence on stealth kept repeating in their heads, over and over. So they didn't, and could only guiltily stare at the sad faces of the slaves as they passed the house.

Their footsteps faded away, and they both breathed out, relieved that none of the soldiers had decided to check out the building they were hiding in. Ayla adjusted her position behind the counter, looking glumly at the ceiling. Myde was crouching, his eyes just over the countertop as he observed the outside, wanting to make sure no one was coming. Then he plopped down next to Ayla. He looked at her for a few seconds, and then at her foot.

"How is your ankle?" he asked.

"It's surprisingly well," said Ayla. "The medic didn't lie. It must have been a super-concentrated one."

"Indeed," said Myde, recalling the scary, purple-haired physician. "That woman is no liar."

"Oh, you've met her before, then?" asked Ayla. "I've talked to her once before, and those eyes…it's like they're staring right through you."

"They do give off that feeling, yes," agreed Myde. He couldn't help but feel exposed and vulnerable where he sat, and worriedly looked over the countertop again. The street outside the black-burned house was absolutely empty.

"I can't believe we just sat here," said Ayla after a while.

"What?"

"I said I can't believe we just sat here while those poor prisoners were herded by us," clarified Ayla. "We should have done something."

"Done what?" asked Myde, his eyes flashing in the darkness. "If we attacked, one of the soldiers would surely have shouted off a warning to any others in the area, and then we would be surrounded. Remember, two entire legions are housed in the city. That's well over twenty _thousand_ of them. Do you really think we could take on so many enemies ourselves?"

"No, of course not," said Ayla, her eyes dropping to the floor, or what was left of it anyway. Big patches of planking were missing, and the basement was clearly visible. "But still…"

"I know what you mean," said Myde. "But there's nothing we can do for those poor people. Not tonight, anyway. Tomorrow, on the other hand…"

"I guess you're right," said Ayla. She wiped away the moisture that had gathered in her eyes and looked at Myde with a serious gaze. "Are you ready to find your sister?"

"Very much so," said Myde, smiling. "But where too look?"

"Remember what Sheik said," the Gerudo said as she pulled out the map the Sheikah had made. She unfurled it and started to point and gesture to places as she spoke: "The citadel is to the north—where we won't go unless absolutely necessary—and the Temple of Time to the east along with the barracks, I assume. But he didn't say anything about the western section and since the prisoners we just saw _came_ from the western part of town…"

"Then west is our best bet," said Myde, nodding.

"Exactly."

"Then we should go," the Zora said, standing up after checking if the coast was clear. "I reckon there will be more guards in that direction if that's where the prisoners are."

"I wouldn't worry about them," said Ayla, putting away the map. "From what I've seen of the security so far, they are too relaxed and comfortable in their safety within the city. Hell, I'm sure half of the guards we've passed so far were all asleep, leaning against the walls."

"Still, no need to take chances, as the esteemed Sheikah would say," said Myde.

"Did you just do a joke on Sheik's expense?" asked Ayla, grinning. "I guess we can be friends after all."

"Joke…?" asked Myde, his head fin twitching in confusion.

"Eh, never mind," said Ayla, shaking her head in disappointment. "But yeah, you're right. No chances. Oh, and one more thing."

"What?"

"If you see a clothesline, let me know."

"Got it."

* * *

 _Why am I doing this? This is bound to fail, surely,_ Sheik thought as he walked down the stairs. After doing some serious thinking, he had come to the conclusion that the only way out of the tower that would not end with grievous bodily harm was through the front door, however much he hated the idea.

 _Let's see…Kazuya hidden, daggers hidden, satchel hidden…not very_ well _hidden, I suppose, but at least I am making an effort._ Tinn's clothing, while clearly of a higher standard than the other slaves', were surprisingly loose and ill-fitting, even on Sheik, who filled them out much more than the thinner boy. But they provided great hiding spots for the dagger holsters around his lower arms (hidden beneath the sleeves) and Kazuya (the bandoleer had been loosened so it hung much lower on Sheik's back, hidden underneath the baggy shirt. The tip kept bumping into his upper thigh, but at least it wasn't visible). The satchel…well, it had to be hidden in a rather troublesome spot, but he was sure that no guard—unless _very_ perverted—would think of looking and grabbing it.

He adjusted the leather collar. Why on earth Amel had been keeping a spare collar for Tinn in his wardrobe, he didn't want to know, but at least it came in handy. It was uncomfortable to wear, the leather itself coarse and hard, chafing the skin of his neck, and it cut off ability to breathe if he turned his head just _so_.

_I can only hope no one looks at my eyes…_

Anyway, there he was. The inside of the tower had been decorated very much like the outside and Amel's chambers. Horrible, purple drapes everywhere as well as a general atmosphere of…attempted luxury, he supposed. Either way, said drapes and the burning torches on the wall made for a pretty bad combination, and Sheik supposed that if he made the slightest adjustment to one of the drapes, a very entertaining diversion could be created.

He shook his head and banished the thought. Cover had to be retained at all costs until further notice. He took a deep breath as he stood in front of the door. Conveniently, it had a small hatch, enabling him to see what he was getting into. He opened it and looked out, and smiled. He then opened the door carefully and stepped out. The guards in front of the tower were too engrossed in the fight between the slaves, which seemed to be in its final stages as both men were covered in blood and panting. Sheik quietly began to sneak away from the back of the crowd, moving slowly and trying to emulate the kind of hunched-over posture the other slaves had—trying to make it appear that his will was broken, he supposed.

To his surprise, not a single guard turned their head to look at him as he slowly walked past, hoping to high heaven that his weapons weren't visible under Tinn's clothes. He skirted along the edge of the gathered crowed, knowing that it would appear suspicious if he went too far away. However, as soon as he saw his chance, he ducked into a nearby alley, running as fast as he could until he reached a bend. He leaned against the wall, breathing heavily. He hadn't noticed that he had been holding his breath, nor how tense he had felt. But now it all came crashing down, and he felt exhausted.

He suddenly became aware of the sound of water splashing against stone to his left, and slowly raised his head to look in that direction. A guard was relieving himself against the wall of the building, so engrossed in his task that he hadn't seemed to notice Sheik's panting. The Sheikah's eyes widened, and he slowly tried to round the corner he had just come from. Hopefully, the guard wouldn't see—

"Hey, you! Slave!"

_So much for sneaking away quietly…_

Sheik turned around, doing his best impression of a submissive slave, his eyes not meeting the guard's, scuffling his boots (he was _not_ giving up proper footwear, even if it meant stealing Amel's, which were slightly too big on him, a problem he had temporarily solved by stuffing pieces of cloth down there) on the ground. "Yes?" he asked hesitantly, trying to make his voice shaky and frightened.

"Where d'ya think you're going?" asked the guard, tucking his private parts back inside his pants. "You're not supposed to be here. Get back to the ring!"

 _Damn,_ thought Sheik. _If I go back there, I'm sure to spotted for sure, especially if this lout is following me…_

"Hey, didn't you hear me?" said the guard, approaching Sheik, his hand going for the sword in his belt. "I said get back to the ring!"

Sheik studied the guard. He was in his thirties, it seemed, and was quite thin and frail-looking. He walked with the sort of gait reserved for those who had never really come to grips with their legs and how they worked, producing a rather comical bobbing in his step. And judging from his stance…he was prepared for a slave fighting back at all.

_I can take him._

"Hey!" bellowed the guard, his face close to Sheik's. The Sheikah blinked with distaste as he felt spit hitting his face. "I said—hergh!"

He wasn't able to get anything else as Sheik's hand moved lightning-fast and grabbed his throat, cutting off his air with a crushing grip. Before the guard could react, Sheik used his other hand to pull out a dagger from underneath the sleeve of the first and rammed it into his temple. Sheik then put his leg behind the guard's and pushed him backwards. He hit the ground with a thump, already dead.

Sheik looked around; making sure no one had heard or seen him. The cheers from the fighting ring were loud and provided the perfect cover. When no one else came running to investigate, Sheik assumed no one had heard the guard shouting and pulled the dagger out of his head, wiping the blood and brain matter off on the dead man's clothes.

 _Now, what the hell do I do with his body?_ he wondered, taking another look around the alley. A wooden barrel stood just a few dozen yards ahead. He ran over to it and checked its contents. It was empty save for a small amount of water gathered at the bottom. He looked back at the body, trying to gauge its size, coming to the conclusion that it would probably fit. Working quickly, he dragged the dead man over to the barrel, careful not to get blood on his clothes in case he needed to fit in somewhere else and lifted the body into the barrel. The guard fit perfectly, his head several inches below the top. Even so, Sheik closed the lid.

With that done, he decided that it was far too risky to move on ground level. The buildings in the alley were quite close, and it took very little effort to run a few steps up one wall, jump off it and grab the edge of the roof of the other. He pulled himself up, making sure there weren't any archers up there.

 _Right, then, that's Commander Amel dead,_ he thought.

The catapults and trebuchets on the walls could be seen even from here, he realised, their wooden frames outlined against the night sky. There seemed to be quite a number of guards up there, however, and he wasn't too confident in his ability to avoid detection. But if he didn't, then Zelda and the Remnant would be quite vulnerable until they managed to take down the walls…

On the other hand, there was the gatehouse. The one that contained the mechanism for the drawbridge. There would be no need to take down the walls if the drawbridge was down and could not be raised. He looked up at the walls again, counting the number of guards standing at the war machines. Dozens, at the very least, and there wasn't any cover he could use up there either.

The gatehouse, by contrast, seemed to be almost devoid of life, the few guards standing there also caught up in the fighting in the pit. But how to bring the drawbridge down and _then_ destroy the mechanism?

He thought about it for a while, and made his decision.

* * *

"Too big," said Ayla, her arm appearing from around the corner to hand Myde the shirt he had given her. "It's like wearing a dress."

"How about this?" the Zora asked, handing her another garment.

"I'll try," said Ayla, her arm disappearing behind the wall.

Myde sighed and leaned against the brickwork, wondering how long this was going to take.

He _had_ been the first to spot a pair of buildings that were being used for barracks as well as the line of clothes hanging between them. Everyone inside seemed to be asleep, so it wasn't difficult to grab the garments and run off with them, but the _fitting_ … He'd found a pair of pants and a shirt easily enough, but Ayla, being shorter and slimmer than most of the soldiers around here, apparently, simply couldn't find clothes that didn't flap about like a sack around her. Myde understood the problem with movement and agility, but still…

"Perfect," said Ayla, stepping out. She was wearing a dark-coloured, short-sleeved shirt of some sort and matching trousers. Footwear was still a problem, so they had both opted to use their stinking boots until further notice. "How do I look?" the Gerudo asked.

"I think you should stick to women's clothing," said Myde. "But it will do for now, I suppose."

"It'd better," said Ayla.

Without any other words, they moved out, sneaking along the streets and squares on their way westwards. Neither of them had truly gotten the sheer size of the city in their heads before now, and they were still amazed every now and then when they came across a massive, open space filled with weapon stalls and other military equipment. Using one of Vorpheus' explosives was tempting her as well, and Myde had made a note to possibly stop by there later.

None of them were sure that they were heading in the right direction. Sure, _west_ was easy to find, all you had to do was to go after the mountains, but were the prisoners there?

They got their answer once they emerged from another alley and came face-to-face with a massive brick wall, a fairly recent one at that. In some places, they could see that the plaster was still drying. About every hundred yards or so along the wall, there seemed to be a checkpoint and a heavy, barred door built in. The entire wall itself was brightly lit with torches, and they could hear voices from the other side. Pleading voices. Voices that shouted for mercy.

They both shared a look that said: "Found it!"

They retreated back into the alley.

"What now?" asked Myde. "The only way to the other side seems to be through those doors."

"And I don't think those guards are just going to let us walk in," said Ayla. "Hm, I suppose we could try and climb over it…"

"We would be seen, though," said Myde.

"Not if we were to…create a diversion," said Ayla, winking at him as she took out one of Vorpheus' explosives. The black bead was still warm to the touch. "That square filled with weapons and supplies looked pretty…combustible."

"That would blow our cover, though," said Myde hesitantly. He wasn't so sure about causing so much mayhem before he was certain that Sheik wouldn't be caught in the middle of it. Sabotaging one's fellow saboteur seemed so…he couldn't find a proper word for it and settled for _dickish_.

"Unless they thought it was an accident," said Ayla. "There was a rather large pile of bombs in one of the carts. Hell, I don't think I even need the bomb, just a match." As if to demonstrate, she pulled out a matchstick and waved it back and forth in front of Myde's face. "Should I?"

Myde didn't like this. It was too early to start blowing things up, he thought, and it would surely only cause trouble further on. But still… He looked at the wall. His sister was in there… He looked back at Ayla, and nodded. "Do it."

"Alrighty, then," said Ayla and grinned. "You just stay here and, you know, hide. As soon as the bombs go off—and the guards disappear—climb the wall. I'll meet you on the other side once I'm sure I've gotten away." She made to turn around and run toward the square, but Myde stopped her with a clearing of his throat.

"Ayla," he said, unable to look at her. "Thank you."

"Hee, no problem," said Ayla and disappeared into the darkness.

Myde settled against the wall, trying to appear as inconspicuous as a shadow. Hopefully the guards wouldn't come rushing down this alley when everything went to hell.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 122**

* * *

Link and Tao sat on the boy's bed, watching as Kaura and seemingly every other medic in the entire camp rushed back and forth, trying to load up the cart that stood outside with medical supplies as quickly as possible. There was also a certain entertainment value to be had and enjoyed whenever one of Kaura's underlings dropped something and suffered a tongue-lashing from the stressed physician. Of course, Link did his best to appear the responsible adult—even though both he and Tao knew it to be otherwise—and tried to cover the youngster's ears whenever he heard a particularly vicious rant coming up. And failing miserably when he started laughing so hard that his stomach hurt.

Zelda's orders to clear up the camp had come out of the blue seconds after Link had finished his supper, even though everyone else seemed to have expected it. Already, a thousand soldiers were slowly assembling at the lip of the canyon, preparing to march on Castle Town. The orders were to leave everything but the bare essentials behind, including tents, food and clothing. They had to travel light and fast if they were to reach the plains before dawn. Link didn't exactly see the wisdom in leaving all the _food_ behind, but that was probably also why he wasn't a princess…er, a prince, as it were.

"Are you _trying_ to give me a heart attack? Are you _trying_ to kill me?" Kaura shouted at a poor, young medic as he hastily tried to sweep up the many vials of red potion he had spilled from a crate—none of which, fortunately, had broken—his fingers clumsily and shakily reaching for the glass tubes. "Do you have _any idea_ how long it takes to make those vials?"

"Yes, doctor! I'm sorry, doctor!" the young man practically cried as he put the last of the vials back in the box, rushing out of the sick tent before the purple-haired fury could find something else to viciously attack him for. Link knew Kaura wasn't all that mad, for he could see the small grin that found its way to her mouth every now and then. She just enjoyed the influence she held over her fellow medical staff.

"Leave the beds!" she shouted over the din of the other medics. "They take up too much room! Take only the cots and the futons!" She finished packing her personal bag and heaved it up on the desk along with a smaller satchel, which Link had seen her fill with several flasks of…well, _non_ -medical fluids. Apparently, she had raided the kitchens for any alcohol before the closed up shop, giving only the reason: "I'm gonna need it."

"Wonder who's gonna screw up next," Link said to Tao, who only grinned in return. While Link was happy to discover that the boy was not actually mute, the perpetual silence the boy offered when in the company of others was…grating. He hadn't minded it when he thought he actually _was_ mute, but knowing he could speak yet chose not to…it kind of annoyed him. But who was he to condemn habits and pet peeves of others? He had enough of them on his own. He grinned and pointed to a girl who was clearly carrying much more than someone of her weight class should be able to, the boxes teetering in her hands.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" asked Kaura suddenly, striding over to the girl and taking a couple of boxes off her hands. "Those are filled with valuable equipment! What if you'd dropped them? Stupid girl!"

"I'm sorry, doctor!" wailed the girl and ran out of the tent.

Kaura looked after her for a few seconds, scoffed and carried the other boxes out herself. She came back inside, noticed Link and Tao and went over to them, glaring. With a huff, she seated herself on the bed next to Tao's, wiping her brow. "All of them are trained medics, practically bred to function under high-stress situations…and look at them now! Panicking because of a damn march!"

"Well, they didn't get much of a warning, did they?" asked Link, deciding that _someone_ needed to stick up for the poor boys and girls who were aspiring to become fully-fledged doctors some day. "And not a lot of time to work with, either."

It was true, too. Zelda had given everyone an hour to pack the belongings they felt were absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, this time limit applied to _everyone_ , including the armouries, kitchens, sick tents… At first, he had merely shrugged at it, knowing that he was pretty much good to go since all he needed was the Master Sword, the Mirror Shield and his tools, all of which were stuffed safely under Tao's bed.

But then Epona, Maladict and the situation that revolved around them had popped into his head, and he had hurried over to the stables, where Reuben had clearly been expecting him. The stable master had smiled when Link had tried to voice his concern, coming over all panicky, and reassured him that he and a specially selected team of his best stable boys and girls would remain behind in the valley to assist with the birth should it happen while the army was on the move. It was too special an occasion, he said, too be busy fighting a war. Link had left the stables comforted—and after paying another visit to the soon-to-be-parents, which had yielded a particularly hard head-butt from Maladict, presumably for luck, and what he supposed was a hug from Epona.

"Warning, schmarning," said Kaura. "The point is that these boys and girls should be ready at any time. But they're clearly not."

"I still think you should give them a break," said Link, leaning against the bedpost. "There's a war going on, after all."

"Heh, if I got a rupee for every time someone told me that…" muttered Kaura.

"You'd be a rich woman?" asked Link, smiling.

"No, I'd have a rupee, you stupid boy," said Kaura. "War is _not_ mitigating condition for slacking off."

Link was going to respond with a snarky comment himself, but the sudden hush that fell over the gathered medics seemingly cut him off. He looked to the entrance, and saw why, smiling.

"I'm not hearing any moving," said Kaura, turning around, freezing as well.

Zelda smiled at the panicking medics. "Don't mind me; I'm just here to pick someone up."

"That means get back to work, you lazy do-nothings!" Kaura yelled.

"Aren't you being a bit rough on them?" asked Zelda. She kept smiling at the medics as they slowly inched past her, both in awe and fear, surprised by the princess' sudden visit.

"Well, the time limit you gave us leaves little room for error," said Kaura. "You're more than welcome to pitch in, though," she added, grinning evilly.

"I would if I had the time," said Zelda. "If only to prove that I am actually worthy of being your student." She looked at Link, nodding. "Link, I need you to come with me, and bring your weapons."

"Why?" asked Link, already pulling out his equipment. "Are we under attack?"

"No, I just need to find out a few things," said Zelda, shaking her head, as if to reassure the medics who had looked up sharply upon hearing the word "Attack".

"Alright, fine," said Link and strapped on his weapons, filling his pockets with the large number of tools, which was even beginning to annoy _him_. He then smiled at Tao. "I'll be right back. Kaura, will you—"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll look after him," said the physician. "Just go do your thing and get your butt back here."

The Hero followed Zelda through the camp, realising that the relaxed state of it had hidden the number of people who actually lived in it. The streets were packed, and the noise level was unbearable.

"Where are we going?!" he shouted to Zelda.

"To the armoury!" Zelda shouted back. "Or what's left of it, anyway!"

"Why?!"

"We need to get you some protection!"

Link stopped, confused. "Protection?" he asked.

Zelda rolled her eyes and slapped his shoulder. "Armour, you dolt!"

* * *

Sheik held his breath as the guard walked by, completely oblivious to the Sheikah hiding in the alcove. He was inside the gatehouse now, which had been expanded since the last time he had been here, it seemed. Rough stonework made the walls thicker, sturdier and stronger. There was no doubt that Ganondorf was preparing for the long haul and was fortifying the city even further. Too bad that his efforts would be for naught. Once Sheik was done with the drawbridge, anyone would be able to simply walk into town. Well, perhaps not walk, but at least fight their way through whatever rough barricade that could be put up on such short notice.

The guard disappeared behind a corner, and Sheik emerged from the alcove. The mechanism for the drawbridge, a complex series of cogs, wheels, ropes and chains, were housed underground, below the moat's water level. And while he wasn't entirely sure how he was going to destroy it, he knew he had to make an attempt.

He found his entryway a couple of yards further along the wall: a doorway behind which a downward staircase lay. The door itself was wide open, and loud and rambunctious laughter could be heard. Sheik took a quick look inside. There were another two doors at the bottom of the staircase, one of which was open. The light from the room within painted the staircase a golden colour, and Sheik decided that the laughter and voices were definitely coming from in there. The other door was closed, though Sheik could not see any visible locking mechanisms. It was, however, in plain view of the occupants of the other room.

 _Damn,_ Sheik thought. _Knowing my luck, that's the door I need to go through…_

He heard footsteps approaching, and quickly retreated back to the alcove, watching the guard that had passed him by previously returning. The fact that he was not on patrol was glaringly obvious since he was carrying a keg, and Sheik could only assume who the keg itself was for. His suspicions were confirmed when the guard inside the doorway, his boots clicking against the stairs. The voices cheered, and Sheik heard a door slam shut.

_Could it be…?_

He couldn't believe his luck when he saw that the returning guard had indeed closed the door behind him, leaving Sheik with clear access to the other door. He carefully went down the stairs, tried the door handle with utmost care. It turned fully, the door swinging open, revealing another staircase—a spiral one this time—made out of forge iron. It snaked its way down a narrow shaft that extended at least four floors underground. Torches burned on the walls, though Sheik could not see how anyone would be able to replace them as they were impossible to reach from the stairs. Shrugging, he carefully made his way down the spiral, listening intently for more voices.

His boots touched upon the stone floor—which was wet with moisture that came off the walls, a result of the proximity to the moat—and he realised that he was more or less alone down here. He opened the only door in the wall, and what lay beyond made him gasp.

He had heard of the ancient mechanism, but never actually seen it up close. The descriptions he had gotten from other eyewitnesses had always seemed somewhat exaggerated, perhaps even made up, but he was forced to eat his own suspicions on this one, as they all fit perfectly.

Seemingly infinite, a network of cogwheels, pulleys, chains, ropes, other wheels and things he had never even _seen_ covered every single bare patch of wall, stretching upwards at least as far as the spiral staircase in the shaft, perhaps even farther. There were cogs of all sizes: big, small, thick, thin, rusty, shiny, golden… He inspected one near the floor closer, and realised that it was actually made of _gold_. The fact that he was going to have to destroy wondrous thing made him feel terrible…

 _No, stop it!_ he shouted in his thoughts. _You're here to sabotage in order to save the kingdom, not admire the damn clockwork!_

He looked around the room, wondering what could set off the wonderful machinery. There was a lever, tucked in neatly between two cogs, almost invisible in its plainness among the golden wheels. He was just about to pull it when he realised that doing so would condemn him to a quick death in the form of alerted guards. The sound (and sight) of the massive drawbridge suddenly slamming down would surely summon a bunch of soldiers who would storm down here to see what had happened.

 _But I need to lower the drawbridge somehow, and then break the mechanism,_ he thought. _Had this been any other bridge, I could simply have cut the ropes and chains, but I have a feeling that there are countless backup measures in this place…_

He looked up. If only he knew where the main chains were…wait, what was that? He narrowed his eyes. The torches at his level were ruining his vision, making it impossible to see what was up there in the darkness. The decision was simple. He started climbing. Since the mechanism was standing absolutely still, it was easy to swing back and forth from the crossbeams, even enabling him to take small breaks on some of the truly massive, horizontal-lying cogs. The further up he came, he saw that his eyes had indeed not been lying to him. A massive pair of chains extended from either side of the mechanism, disappearing into the ceiling above, the coils attached to the walls. Sheik grinned. If there was something that would definitely make it difficult to fix the bridge, it would be the removal of those chains.

_But how?_

His hand went automatically to Kazuya, but he felt silly for even thinking the thought. Sure, the sword was sharp and capable of cleaving through most materials if the user was really, really, _really_ determined and patient, but he couldn't imagine himself hanging from a crossbeam and hacking away at them for the rest of the night. He fingered one of his daggers underneath his sleeves. Jamming one of them into the gears could probably work, and it'd be quite easy. But then again, it would be equally easy for the enemy to pull it out again. He opened his satchel and looked inside. His spyglass glinted faithfully, Kaura's potion vial was still full and Vorpheus' explosive…

 _I didn't want to make so much noise so soon, but what else can I do?_ he thought as he pulled out the small, black bead, rolling it between his fingers. _Do I even have the time to get out of here before it blows? Just how strong is it? Will it merely destroy the chains, or will it take the entire building with it?_ _I hate working with unknown factors…_

"Ah, screw it," he whispered to himself and put the explosive back in the satchel, continuing the ascension. "Might as well go out with a bang, so to speak."

He reached the first of the chains, which was thicker than his torso. There was a small niche inside the duct it disappeared inside as well as a kind of shelf-like feature. Sheik tried to look inside the duct, seeing nothing but darkness. He let himself hang from the beam by one arm and fumbled out the explosive. How Vorpheus expected something so small to actually bring down a building, he didn't know, but the warlock had more than demonstrated his talent for destroying things. He clicked his tongue.

 _Right, slam it into something, and run like hell were his instructions, basically,_ Sheik thought. He looked inside the duct again, seeing that it ran horizontal for a few feet before it sloped gently upwards. _Damn, it will only take out one of the chains!_

For a few minutes, he seriously contemplated the sabotage attempt, but if he did so—what then? The walls were too well guarded to allow for any disabling of the catapults. He could go after an ammo storage, he supposed, but how effective would that be compared to bringing the drawbridge down and practically serving the city to the Remnant on a silver platter?

He could only hope that Vorpheus hadn't exaggerated. Gripping the bead tightly between his thumb and index finger, he drew his arm back and hurled it into the duct with all his strength, aiming at one of the walls. He lost sight of the explosive immediately, but heard it smack into the wall further in. Right after, he let go of the beam and landed on one of the huge cogwheels, jumped off and swung himself down from another beam. He had never had the opportunity for something like this before, and the rapid descent was exhilarating. Hell, it was even _fun_!

But it did not last for long, and his feet hit the stone floor soon after beginning. Time was precious and he practically hurled himself out of the door. He ran up the spiral staircase, taking up to four steps at a time. His heart pounded like mad, the beat going faster and faster with every second that went by with no boom. He couldn't believe how long a fuse Vorpheus had actually given the thing as he emerged into the final staircase. The door was still open up there, the night sky having never seemed so inviting.

He had barely taken a step outside of the gatehouse when it went off. The ground shook, tripping Sheik up and making him fall to the ground. A massive roar underground could then be heard, and bricks began to fall from the surrounding buildings. A giant crack spread along the foundation. Sheik was finally able to get back on his feet and ran away from the gatehouse as fast he could, not caring if anyone saw him. Then the gatehouse exploded, along with several sections of wall. Bricks, mortar and soil was flung in all directions as the building disappeared in a massive fireball. The drawbridge, its chains all but vaporised, toppled and fell with an unheard boom, the explosion drowning out the sound.

His ears rung as if someone was ringing a cowbell right next to his head, and his vision swam. Sheik slowed down, realising that he was liable to fall and break his neck if he tried to run now. Fumbling his way through the alleys, he came to a stop at a junction, putting his back to the wall, and sat down, trying to clear his head. A blanket of dust and smoke was already starting to fall upon the city, which he took as a blessing since it'd make his disappearance easier. He hoped Ayla and Myde realised that their cover was blown and needed to get out of the city as soon as possible.

* * *

The ground finally stopped shaking, and Myde unfurled from the protective position he had assumed.

"Just how many bombs were in that cart?" he whispered to himself, looking behind him, wondering if Ayla had decided to blow something _else_ up instead. He peeked out from the corner and spotted the soldiers at the checkpoint looking in the direction of the city walls, where a massive cloud of smoke and dust had risen. So it hadn't been Ayla. Sheik, then, he decided. "A bit soon for such fireworks, no?" he muttered. "I guess it serves as a useful distraction, at least."

He was then surprised when a ball of flame erupted from the square Ayla had gone to, the boom reaching him a second later. The ground shook again, though this tremor was far smaller.

"We're under attack!" shouted one of the soldiers at the checkpoint. "To the armoury!"

The others shouted their agreements and began moving toward Ayla's explosion—straight at Myde, whose eyes widened. "Shit."

Panicking slightly, the Zora looked around desperately for something that could help him. He spotted a low, wooden wall that separated the alley from a backyard of sorts belonging to one of the houses. Sprinting, he leap over the fence and crouched behind it. The soldiers rushed by, not even sparing a glance in his direction. As soon as he was sure they were out of sight, he jumped back over the fence and rushed directly for the wall separating the west city from the rest. He jumped, grabbing on to the rough stonework, scuttling up it. Anyone could have climbed this, he realised as he swung his legs over and dropped down.

There were a lot more intact buildings on this side of the wall, he noticed as he ran down the streets beyond. And most of them seemed to be occupied. Everywhere, he could see faces appearing in windows, figures standing in doorways. The regarded him with quiet curiousness, interest and—from what he could see—surprise and awe. There were no guards here, and the figures in the buildings were definitely _not_ soldiers, judging by their clothing, collars and starved figures.

He stopped when he realised that this was truly the prisoner's section. He looked around, trying to achieve eye contact with the people, but they only looked away when his gaze swept by them.

"Excuse me, I'm looking for someone," he said loudly, hoping he wasn't rousing any guards from behind the wall. None of the prisoners—or slaves—answered, and many of them ducked back inside their houses, slamming the doors shut. Clearly they were afraid of him. He sighed and continued on his way.

After a few minutes of running, he came across a group of men standing around a fire. They too were thin, almost skeletal, and they stared at him with frightened and suspicious eyes. He slowly approached them, holding his hands up in a peaceful gesture. They were all Hylians.

"Excuse me, gentlemen—"he began.

"What do you want?" asked one of the men, glaring at him. "You fuckers can't get enough, can you? Bad enough that you mock us and spit at us while we work, but now you're gonna come after us when we're resting too?"

"Pardon?" asked Myde. "I'm not here to mock you—"

"Then get the hell away from us!" yelled one of the other men. "We've done our work for today!"

"We didn't have anything to do with those explosions," added another.

"Please, I am not one of Ganondorf's men," said Myde after realising how badly his arrival had seemed, though he wondered why they thought a Zora was working for Ganondorf. "I am with the Remnant, and—"

"The Remnant? Hah!" said the first man. "As if. The Remnant doesn't give a shit about us! They only worry about _Zelda_." He spat the name like poison.

"That's not true," said Myde, fighting down the urge to punch the man in the face for his insult toward the Hylian princess. "In fact, those explosions were actually _our_ work. We're coming to set this city free!"

"I'll believe that when I see it," said one man.

"I'm standing right here!" said Myde, wondering why he was even bothering with them.

A door opened across the street, a man with a slightly thicker and more healthy-looking build emerging. He too was a Hylian (not a big surprise, really), and he looked angry. "What the hell are you screaming about?" he demanded. "People are trying to sleep!"

"Boss, we got us a _Remnant_ here," said the first of the men.

"I bet he's just another spy from Ganon!" said another.

"No, I'm not," said Myde, trying to appeal to the new arrival, who seemed to hold some influence over the others. "I am here on a mission from the princess Zelda herself, and—"

"Right, right, be quiet," said the one called Boss. He stepped out from the doorway and walked over to Myde.

The Zora realised that he was half-standing in the shadows and stepped out, coming into full view.

Boss froze when he saw this. "You idiots," he said, directing it toward the man standing around the fire. "Can't you see he's a Zora? Since when the hell did the Zora work for Ganon?"

"We don't," said Myde, stepping closer to Boss. "As I said, I am here on a mission from Princess Zelda of the Hyrulian Remnant."

"And what kind of mission would that be?" asked Boss. Now that he was closer, Myde could see that his chin was covered in a very short, very rough beard. His eyes were almost hidden by a low brow. "You're not here to…to rescue prisoners, are you?" he asked hopefully.

"I'm afraid not," said Myde, shaking his head. "I am here to weaken the enemy fortifications."

"Well, the drawbridge sure as hell won't be standing in your way, then," said Boss. "But what are you doing here? These are the prison quarters. There aren't any strategic targets here."

"Truth be told, I am looking for someone as well," said Myde.

"Ah, that would be the other Zoras, am I correct?" said Boss. At Myde's nod, he frowned. "You'd best head down to the infirmary, then. That's where they all are. Though I'd rather that you get the hell out of the city."

"Why is that?" asked Myde.

"The guards'll be swarmin' all over the place very soon," said Boss. "And if they find you…well, I wouldn't want to be in your shoes. I've kept my head down for the past seven years, and they've left me alone. But those who haven't…" He let the sentence hang, and Myde understood completely.

"I understand," he said. "But I have to see them."

"Aye, I s'pose you do," said Boss. "Then head to the infirmary. Take this street for two blocks and then make a right. It'll take you right there. Can't miss it."

"Thank you," said Myde. He paused. "Also, another person will be coming through here very soon. Can you direct her toward the infirmary as well?"

"Sure thing," said Boss. "What does she look like?"

"She wears the same clothing as I," said Myde. "And she is a Gerudo."

"A Gerudo?" exclaimed one of the men around the fire.

"Shut up," growled Boss. Then he looked suspiciously at Myde. "A Gerudo, you say? The ones who betrayed us?"

"I am not going to get into details," said Myde. "But they are working with the Remnant now to bring Ganondorf down. They were the ones who discovered a way inside the city. Please, just tell her where I am."

Boss stared at him for a few more seconds, as if trying to gauge whether or not Myde was telling the truth. Then he sighed, nodding. "Alright. Don't have much of a reason to doubt you. And if you say the Gerudo's alright, then I believe you. Just don't expect her to receive a warm welcome."

"Thank you," said Myde again. "And don't worry. The Remnant has not forgotten you. We are coming."

With that, he left them. The men around the fire were staring at Boss with wide eyes.

"Why the hell are you helping them?" asked one of them. "They haven't done shit for us in seven years, and _now_ they're gonna pull their thumbs out of their asses? And why the hell are you helping a Gerudo?"

Boss sighed, staring in the direction Myde had gone. "I'm not," he said. He looked at the first man. "Go get the guards. Looks like we finally have our ticket outta here, boys."

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 123**

* * *

"I don't know about this, Zelda," said Link, trying to move his arms and failing miserably. "Plate armour's kinda…heavy and constricting." He took a step forward, demonstrating to Zelda how unbalanced and inflexible he had suddenly become. "See? I can't even reach my sword with this."

Zelda clicked her tongue, resting her chin in the palm of her hand. "Hm, maybe you could start wearing your sword at your waist rather than your back?" she asked.

"Uh, no, I don't think so," said Link. "Sword on back is kind of my thing, you know? I can draw it and the shield and be ready for the fight in less than a second. And I think that time is going to be pretty significant during the battle." He leaned against a stack of crates containing more plate armour, already starting to sweat from all the extra weight of the steel. "Don't you have anything lighter? Like that leather armour you gave Sheik?" he asked.

"Hm, it's too late to make some custom leather armour right now, Link," said Zelda, shaking her head sadly. "It takes at least a day for the tailor to make it, and he needs to apply his full concentration. We're marching out in less than two hours. This is all I have, I'm afraid."

"Are you sure?" asked Link, looking around the depot. "I'd hate to go into combat without _any_ protection, as you say."

"Hm, hang on a second," said Zelda and went over to the quartermaster, who was counting crates and preparing logistics. "Excuse me, you do you have an alternative to plate armour?" she asked.

"Not really, Your Highness," said the quartermaster regretfully, bowing his head. "Plate is pretty much what this military is founded on." He seemed to suddenly remember something and peered at the crates Link was leaning on. "I _think_ there is some leftover chainmail in those crates. Would that be adequate, Your Highness?"

"I don't know," said Zelda, looking pointedly at Link. "Would it, Link?"

"Is it heavy?" asked the Hero. "I haven' worn it before…"

"Then let's try it on," said Zelda happily.

Link eyed the metal rings warily as the quartermaster opened the crate and pulled a chainmail shirt out, holding it out for his inspection. "That looks _really_ uncomfortable," he said.

"It's supposed to be worn beneath your tunic, but over your shirt," said the quartermaster helpfully. "The only thing that will be different is the added weight, but it will be much lighter than plate." He held the shirt up to Link, inspecting the length. "Hm, this one should fit you perfectly. Here, try it on."

The Hero slowly put it on, grunting in annoyance when some hair caught on one of the rings. He pulled it over his head and put his arms into the sleeves. He was surprised at how light it really was, having expected something much heavier from the look of it. He tried to stretch his arms, crouching and bending his back—the shirt offered no resistance. He smiled. "It's perfect," he said. "Still a bit heavy, but at least I can _fight_ with this on."

"Alright," said Zelda. "Then we'll take that," she told the quartermaster, who bowed and voiced his agreement. Zelda then looked closer at Link, who was starting to feel a bit like a dress-up doll, like Sheik must have done at times.

"What is it now?" he asked.

"I'm just wondering if you need a helmet as well," said Zelda.

"No," said Link immediately. "I don't need a helmet…but I would like a cap, if you've got one."

"A cap?" asked Zelda. "Like that green, ridiculous one that you gave to Tao?"

"Yeah," said Link, smiling. Then he processed the description she had used. "Wait, ridiculous? Why does everyone think that? I think it's cool."

"No, Link, that cap is anything but cool," said Zelda. "It looks like you're wearing a large, green sock on your head."

"Then how come Tao can wear it without being mocked?" demanded Link.

"Oh, Tao just looks cute with it," said Zelda. "You probably did as a child too, but when an adult wears it…well…" She let the sentence hang for a few minutes. "Anyway, so you do not want a helmet?" she asked. "It could save your life."

"Let me ask you this," countered Link. "Are _you_ going to wear a helmet?"

"As a symbol of the people, it's not really appropriate for me to cover up my appearance, is it?" said Zelda, blinking when she realised she had just answered the question, even though she hadn't intended to.

"So that's a no, then?" asked Link.

"…yes."

"Then I'm not wearing one either."

"Don't come running to me when an arrow hits you in the ear, though," said Zelda.

"Ditto," said Link.

* * *

 _Ah, what was_ in _that bomb?_ Sheik wondered as he stumbled along the streets, ducking every now and then to avoid a large, angry mob of enemy soldiers rushing in every direction as they tried to find whoever had blown up the gatehouse. Sheik couldn't be sure, but he could have sworn that he had heard a second explosion somewhere to the west a few minutes after the gatehouse one. Either way, the city was on full alert now, and he had to find somewhere to hide until his ears stopped ringing, his head stopped spinning and his eyes stopped flowing.

 _It's the dust, that's it,_ he thought. He had breathed in great quantities of the smoke and dust from the explosion. _Some parts of that wall are ancient. The fallout could certainly not be very healthy…_

He stopped at a crossroad going in four directions, temporarily disorientated and confused. "Where the hell am I?" he whispered to himself as he tried to get his bearings. It was impossible to see the Temple of Time's spire because of the smoke, and the many barricades and modifications the enemy had put up made it difficult to find points of reference. In short, Sheik was lost, he was dazed, and he was definitely putting himself in danger while wasting time just wondering where he was.

_And there's another group of guards…wonderful…_

He looked around and spotted an alley…well, not an alley. More an empty space between two rows of houses less than a metre wide, and very, very dark. From what he could see, it seemed to run all the way to a street that ran parallel to this one. He scuttled over to it and ducked inside. Even for him, it was a tight squeeze as he made his way further inside, disappearing from view just in time, the soldiers coming down the street seconds later.

They marched by completely oblivious to his presence. Sheik had to blink repeatedly as his vision fogged over once again, eyes watering incessantly. After a solid half minute of soldiers continually appearing, he gave up on waiting them out and began to shuffle further into the space, his chest scraping against the rough brick wall.

He emerged on the other side, practically collapsing. He made a note to never trust Vorpheus' trinkets ever again. He got to his feet and stumbled along this new street, hearing the synchronized feet of the soldiers on the other side of the buildings, their officers belting out orders to keep their eyes peeled for intruders and so on and so forth. Standard "Find the Spy"-babble, really, Sheik decided. He pulled at the collar around his neck again, wondering how it was possible to wear such a garment twenty-four hours a day without going insane. It felt so constricting.

He paused underneath a window, trying to catch his breath. This was definitely not his night. He punched the wall in annoyance, muttering curses. He choked on his own breath when light suddenly spilled out from the window, and shadows appeared in it. He tried to move away, but found himself completely frozen, staring at the figures in the window as one of them came closer. The window opened, someone poked their head out.

"Sheik?"

* * *

More and more prisoners were appearing in the windows as Myde ran through the streets, all of them pointing and gawking at him, as if they had never seen a Zora before. He knew why, though. He had noticed it when talking to Boss. Every single person he had seen in the prisoners' quarters was thin, emaciated, starving. Myde, while not nearly eligible for any competition involving body mass, was practically huge next to them. They _knew_ this new Zora was not one of them, and the two explosions _might_ just be his work. And they were excited that someone was _finally_ doing something.

He offered the ones who caught his eyes a smile or a small wave as he passed by their windows. He took a right, as Boss had told him to, after the second block, entering a smaller, narrower street. At the end, he could see a building that was slightly larger than the others, whose windows were all lit up brightly. Outside, several people were loitering about, all of them wrapped in blankets and sporting some injury or other. Myde stopped a few dozen feet away, deciding to take it slowly as to not scare the hurt people. They observed him warily as he approached; their eyes focused on his weapons without fail. They were afraid of him.

He forced a smile on his face and made his posture less rigid, less threatening. The people moved away from him, none of them even interested in talking to him, scurrying into the building through the numerous doors. All but one. An old woman who was sitting on a rotten-looking footstool looked up at him, her eyes squinting.

"Good evening," said Myde carefully, hoping his voice didn't intimidate her. It didn't. On the contrary, the woman began _glaring_ at him, saying nothing. Hesitating, Myde cleared his throat. "Er, I am looking for someone—"

"I know who you are," barked the old woman.

"Really?" asked Myde, surprised. Had Boss sent some sort of message through some sort of jungle telegraph? "Then who am I?" he asked.

"I know," barked the old woman again. "I know _exactly_ who you are!"

"Is that so?" asked Myde, wondering if the woman was actually demented or just a very good actor. "Could you please enlighten me as to who I am?"

"I know!"

"Wonderful," Myde muttered under his breath.

A door in the brightly lit building opened, and the shadowed outline of a Zora appeared in it. "Who's shouting out here? Mrs. Trine, please keep your voice down. There are children trying to sleep in the infirmary."

"I know this one!" shouted the old woman, presumably Mrs. Trine.

"Know who?" asked the Zora, a male one by the sound of the voice. The figure's head shifted and looked toward Myde, and froze. "No…that's not possible…" He stepped out of the door, which slammed shut behind him, finally revealing him fully. "Colonel?" he asked.

Myde could only stare at the Zora, gawping. He looked terrible. His scales, which were supposed to shine and glow in any ambient lighting, were dull and listless. His fins hung lazily about. His eyes were dim, almost dead. And he was thin. So, so thin. There seemed to be hardly _any_ muscle mass on him at all, much less any fat. He had covered up most of his body with rags, his feet naked.

He had a distinct feeling that he knew this one, that he had seen him before. Had he been a soldier? His slightly defensive posture would say so, but that was not a guarantee. His build revealed nothing other than a prolonged period of starvation.

"Colonel Myde?" the Zora asked again. "Is that really you?"

Myde snapped out of his reverie and nodded. "It is me…though I'm a general now."

"I know who this one is!" shouted Mrs. Trine again.

"Please, Mrs. Trine, go back inside and go to sleep," said the Zora tiredly. "It's been a long day."

Mrs. Trine looked ready to shout again, but listened to the Zora and disappeared inside the building with long, shuffling steps, pausing one last time at the door to glare at Myde. After she had gone, the other Zora relaxed and looked at Myde again. "A general, huh?" he said.

"Yes," said Myde. "Pardon my rudeness, but even though I have the distinct feeling that I should know who you are, I do not. And you seem to know me…"

"Well, that is not a big surprise," said the Zora. "I was a soldier in your company, though only for a day before we were…attacked. By Jabu-Jabu, I thought we had seen the last of any other Zora when we were taken away."

"So did we," said Myde, relaxing slightly. If this one had been a soldier, then he could be trusted. "The Fountain was frozen over just after that, and we were all trapped in the ice."

Someone shouted in the distance, most likely one of the hundreds of patrols that had suddenly appeared in the streets after the explosions. The Zora looked to the distance, eyes widening. He opened the door and waved for Myde to go in. "Please, come inside before the guards see you."

Myde was led into some sort of antechamber, or just a very large foyer. The infirmary must have been some sort of mansion before appropriated by these people, he thought. Everywhere, he could hear voices, weak and strong. Coughing and hacking, crying and snoring. Up the stairs, on the second floor, he saw another Zora rush by, her arms filled with what looked like bandages.

"Welcome to the infirmary," said the male Zora. "Just another word for hell, really."

"What's your name?" asked Myde, deciding that he needed to call the other Zora by something.

"My name is Pesco, General," said the Zora. Something clicked into place in Myde's head.

"Ah, Private Pesco, now I remember you," said Myde, shaking his hand. "You are a spearman, are you not?"

"Was, general, I _was_ a spearman," said Pesco, smiling slightly. "I haven't wielded a weapon for many years. Our fins have been…well, if we display them threateningly, they are threatening to cut them off. They already did it to Marina."

"Goddesses," muttered Myde. "How many Zora did they take?"

"Well over a dozen, though some of them were taken to Ganondorf immediately, and were never seen again," said Pesco. "There are five of us here at the infirmary."

Myde knew not to get his hopes up. Instead, he nodded, swallowing a lump that had started to form in his throat.

"General, what happened at the Fountain?" asked Pesco. "You said you were trapped in the ice, but how did you escape? What about the king and princess? Are they alright?"

Myde realised just how out of the loop the prisoners of the city were. "We were trapped there for over seven years. The Hero of Time freed us," he said. "He brought red fire and thawed the ice. The king was frozen along with us, but a Sheikah warrior named Sheik saved Princess Ruto before she was trapped. She has ascended as the Sage of Water."

"By Jabu-Jabu," said Pesco and leaned against a wall. "So…only now has our people been freed?" he asked.

"Yes," said Myde. "And…Lord Jabu-Jabu was slain in the attack."

"The shit just keeps piling up, doesn't it?" said Pesco.

"That is quite an apt description, yes," said Myde. "In more than one way. But things will change soon," he said.

"Really?" asked Pesco. "How?"

"I am not supposed to tell you this, but the Zora, the Gorons, the Gerudo and the Hyrulian Remnant have entered into an alliance," said Myde, leaning in and whispering. "And we are planning an attack."

"On the city?" asked Pesco. "How?"

"The explosions you heard…well, one of them seemed to have taken out a rather large piece of wall along with the drawbridge," said Myde. He remembered why he was here, suddenly, and shook his head. "But Pesco…I need to ask you something."

Pesco nodded. "I think I know what."

"My sister…is she here?" asked Myde, almost dreading the answer. He felt his heart give a jump when Pesco smiled and nodded.

"Thea is upstairs, tending to the sick," said Pesco. "She has been…a real inspiration to the rest of us. No matter how bad things get here, she always manages to cheer us up."

Myde wasn't even listening to what Pesco was saying, his eyes looking intently at the stairs. "I must see her," he said simply.

"Of course," said Pesco. "Follow me."

* * *

Losing the guards was harder than she thought. Ayla jumped over another fence, the wall finally coming into view. Hopefully, Myde had managed to get over it before the entire legion came down upon the area. They had spotted her, she thought, but had lost her over a series of alleys, fences and street corners. And now she was in the same place she had left Myde in. Now it was only a matter of retracing his steps.

She ran toward the wall, jumped and quickly scaled it. She had climbed the exterior of the Gerudo Fortress countless times, and this was just a piece of cake in comparison. She dropped down on the other side. She was sure that the Zora had not decided to make it difficult for her and ran straight forward.

Several blocks after, and she came across a burning fire, where a solitary, bearded man stood. He turned toward her, waving her over in a friendly gesture.

"Are you the Zora's companion?" he asked when she came closer. "He told me about you."

"Myde?" asked Ayla, looking at the man suspiciously. He was obviously a prisoner, but even so…

"Was that his name?" asked the man. "Huh, he didn't tell me. But you're with the Remnant, right? I sent him toward the infirmary."

"And where is that?" asked Ayla.

"You take this street for another two blocks and then take a right. You can't miss it," said the man, smiling.

"Alright, thank you," she said and made to head in that direction, but noticed something out of the corner of her eye.

Perhaps it was the way the man was so easygoing towards her, a member of a people who had betrayed his, or maybe the so-obviously fake smile on his face. Or maybe just the fact that he pulled a sharp-looking piece of iron wrapped in cloth for a handle out of his pocket and made to stab her in the back.

Either way, she reacted much quicker than he anticipated, drawing her scimitars. His face locked up in a grimace when she sliced his hand off with one scimitar, at the same time poking the tip of the other into his stomach. He fell to his knees, clutching the wounds, screaming like a stuck pig. She locked her scimitars in a scissor-shape, placed them at his neck and snapped them shut, severing his head, cutting off his scream with a gurgle. She spat at his corpse and put her scimitars away.

" _No one_ tries to stab _me_ in the back," she growled and began to run toward the infirmary.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 124**

* * *

The first thing Sheik's instincts told him to do was to draw a dagger from his holster and hurl it into whoever it was' face. But for once, common sense got the first draw, and told Sheik very clearly that no one could possibly know his name and what he looked like in this city. So instead of carving the unknown person a new blowhole, he calmly looked up, raising an eyebrow when he recognised the face.

"Tinn?" he asked.

"Goddesses, Sheik, what are you doing here? And why are you wearing my clothes?" The young slave left the window momentarily, a door opening further along the wall. Tinn waved him over. "C'mon, get inside!"

Sheik didn't have to be asked twice. His head was still spinning and he was pretty sure his eyes were having some sort of allergic reaction to the dust from the explosion. Tinn closed the door firmly behind him. They were standing in a small, dimly lit hallway. There were doors along the walls the entire way, a small staircase going both up and down at the end of it. There was no carpet on the floor, the wood freezing cold, even though Sheik's (originally Amel's) boots. He scratched his eyes again, hoping to clear away whatever it was that was irritating them. No luck, his eyes continued to stream. He looked up when Tinn repeated his questions.

"Oh, just taking a nice evening stroll through old, familiar neighbourhoods," he said, giving him a crooked smile. "And my armour got a bit heavy and warm, so I decided some of the clothes in Amel's wardrobe were better."

"So, Amel is dead?" asked Tinn, his eyes and voice so painfully hopeful that Sheik was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to say no even if the commander wasn't.

"Yes, he is," said Sheik, nodding. "His corpse is currently lying in the middle of his chambers."

He was not prepared for the hug that Tinn gave him seconds later. It was tight, and almost desperate. Sheik awkwardly returned it, patting the younger boy's back in a (hopefully) comforting way.

"Thank you," said Tinn, stepping away, blushing when he realised how uncomfortable he had made Sheik. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"That's alright," said Sheik, waving it away. "I am not usually that fond of hugs, but I've been getting a lot of them lately, and I've come to like them. But yes, Commander Amel is dead."

"That will be a great relief to the others," said Tinn. "And those explosions…were those yours as well?"

"One of them was," said Sheik. He picked up on the first part of Tinn's sentence. "Wait, others? He had others as well?"

"This entire house is filled with his…" Tinn began, but was unable to finish. He had removed his collar, Sheik realised, the skin around his neck where it had been was much lighter. "Slaves," the boy finished.

"I should have made him suffer more," said Sheik, scratching his eyes again.

"Is something wrong?" asked Tinn, looking at him worriedly.

"My eyes itch, and I'm a bit dizzy," said Sheik. "The explosives I used to take out the drawbridge were filled with something that my body clearly doesn't agree with. Do you have some water?"

"Of course, come with me," said Tinn and grabbed Sheik's forearm, dragging him toward the staircase. They went upstairs, the second floor turning out to be some sort of common room connected to a small kitchen area. Tinn made Sheik sit down on a rickety chair, no buts accepted, and filled a bowl with water from a bucket by the door. He sat it in front of Sheik, who thanked him and began to wash his face, trying to get the irritants out of his eyes. He heard Tinn sit down on a chair on the other side of the table.

"So it's really happening, then?" asked the slave. "You're really here to cause trouble for Ganondorf?"

"Yes, that is correct," said Sheik, feeling his spirits elate slightly when the itching began to abate. His head still spun, but that he could deal with. He found it quite unfair, though, that he should itch in _both_ his eyes when only one of them actually worked. "With the drawbridge gone, I think the army really has a good chance to take the city."

"You're attacking?" asked Tinn, eyes widening. "When?"

"That's classified, I'm afraid," said Sheik. "But soon. Very soon."

"That's great," said Tinn. "I thought the princess had…abandoned us."

"Never," said Sheik seriously, looking up. "There hasn't been a day where she has not worried for the well-being of her people, even while being hunted endlessly herself. She just hasn't had an opportunity to organise a real offensive before now." He decided to change the subject, realising that, even though he trusted Tinn, he couldn't talk about major subjects like these in the middle of enemy territory. "How many others are in this house?" he asked.

"Well, there's me, and four others," said Tinn. "Two boys and two girls. Amel liked to…switch around." He looked down at the table, ashamed.

 _Why did I change the subject, why oh why?_ Sheik thought, mentally kicking himself in a certain place for being so stupid. He made Tinn look at him, his eyes serious. "Amel is dead. You do not need to worry about him anymore. But you might…well, it seems I have alerted the entire city with my shenanigans. It's just a matter of time before they find his body in his tower. Do the other guards know where you live?"

"Yes, they do," said Tinn, his eyes widening. "Do you think they'll…?"

"You were the last person seen with him, I suppose," said Sheik. "And I don't think the soldiers are too stupid not to make a connection. I think it would be a very good idea for you, and your housemates, to find somewhere else to spend the night."

Tinn thought about it, and nodded. "I guess you're right. But where can we go?"

"I do not know," said Sheik. "Preferably somewhere far away from here…but with all the guards in the streets…"

"I don't think we'd make one block," said Tinn, shaking his head sadly. "We'd be picked up right away."

 _Damn,_ thought Sheik. _I_ definitely _should have thought this more through. Now I'm going to get a bunch of kids killed for treason…_ He rubbed his eyes one final time and pushed the bowl away, finally able to see without having to blink every few seconds. And his head was clearing up as well. _Splendid._ Then an idea hit him. "Downstairs…what's there?" he asked.

"The cellar," said Tinn. "It hasn't been used in a while."

"Could you barricade yourselves in there, maybe?" asked Sheik.

"Maybe," said Tinn. "But the guards would still find us eventually."

 _Pay attention, Sheik!_ he screamed at himself. _You're coming up with stupid solutions for a stupid problem that you in your stupid impatience stupidly created._ He sighed, leaning back in his chair. "I guess you're right…damn. I'm sorry."

Tinn only smiled. "Why are you sorry?"

"Because I only seem to create problems for everyone wherever I go," said the Sheikah. "I thought I was doing everyone a favour by killing Amel, but I didn't even consider the fact that it would land you and your housemates in trouble."

"Well, it's kinda my fault too," said Tinn. "You told me to go hide, and I went back to my house…that was stupid of me. And now it's too late to go anywhere else. I guess we didn't think it through," he said and grinned.

"You're taking this quite easily," said Sheik, raising an eyebrow. "I figured you would be a bit more…panicked…"

"I've been the bed slave of a horrible man for the past two years," said Tinn, pushing a stray lock of hair aside. "What could possibly be worse? From my point of view, things can only go up."

 _I wouldn't exactly describe being executed for killing a commander as 'going up'. But then again, I have never been a bed slave either,_ thought Sheik. "But what about the others?"

No sooner had those words left his mouth, a small, feminine voice behind him spoke. "Tinn? Is that you? What're you doing home?"

Tinn rose from his chair, smiling. "Hi, Kira," he said. "I'm just talking to a friend."

"Friend?" asked Kira.

Sheik turned his head to look at this Kira. She was older than them both, probably around Link's age, with long, blonde hair messed up by sleep. Her eyes were a deep shade of blue, with long lashes. She wore the same type of clothes Sheik and Tinn were wearing, slightly better than the other slaves'. She looked at him confused.

"Yeah, a friend," replied Tinn. "Kira, this is Sheik. Sheik, this is Kira, our mom."

"I'm not your mom," said Kira, annoyed. It seemed to be a sort of automatic response though, said with little enthusiasm or conviction. She looked at Sheik, shaking his hand when he offered it. "I just take care of the younger ones so they don't do anything stupid. So, which house do you live in? Haven't seen you around here before."

Sheik was about to make up what he hoped was a solid excuse, but Tinn, apparently deciding that everyone should know who Sheik was, beat him to the punch.

"He's not a slave, Kira, he's an agent of Princess Zelda's," he said, smiling.

"Yeah, right," said Kira, snorting in a most un-ladylike manner—pretty similar to Zelda herself, actually. "You will have to come up with a better story than that."

"It's true, actually," said Sheik, standing up and showing his weapons to Kira as well letting her get a better look at his eyes. "How many Sheikah do you think there are in this city?" he asked.

* * *

Myde almost shivered with anticipation as he was led up the stairs by Pesco. It had been so long since he had seen his sister last. Pesco directed him through a door and into a hallway that seemed to stretch on and on, probably extending into the building next to the infirmary. Along the walls, dozens of beds had been set up, each of them containing a prisoner with some sort of ailment or injury, moaning in their sleep. The smell in the room was revolting, a result of the fumes of whatever they used to sterilise bandages with and the smell of death, decay and sickness.

"We don't have a lot of supplies, and few of us have any medical experience," Pesco whispered as they walked past the beds. "Thea has been teaching the rest of us to the best of her abilities, but without proper equipment and clean bandages…"

"It's better than doing nothing, at least," Myde whispered back, pausing to look at a child—a girl, no more than five or six years old—who was covered in some sort of rash. Pesco pulled him along.

"She hasn't got long," he whispered. "We're discussing…lessening her pain."

They didn't speak anymore after that, both too uncomfortable to continue. There was a bend at the end of the corridor, revealing yet another hallway filled with sick and injured people. Pesco stopped here, pointing at a door at the very end.

"She's in there, sleeping. It's been a very rough day, but I think she'll be more than happy that I sent you to disturb her," he said, smiling.

"I certainly hope so," said Myde, shaking Pesco's hand. "Thank you, Pesco."

"No problem, general," said Pesco, saluting. Myde returned it. Then Pesco went to leave, but Myde stopped him.

"I am here with someone, a Gerudo girl," Myde said. "Her name is Ayla. If she comes here, let her in and lead her to me."

"Of course, general," said Pesco, nodding. Then he disappeared around the bend, leaving Myde alone in the corridor, slowly approaching the wooden door at the end. He knocked, the door making a hollow sound. No one answered. His fins went rigid as his hand closed around the doorknob, and twisted.

The room was dark, and the little light from the hallway did little to obliterate the darkness. He took a hesitant step inside. It was cold, and he could feel a light draft as well as the shouting of the soldiers outside, which had become an ambient sound just as familiar as those of a gurgling stream or a singing bird. None of them were close. He took another step, trying to spot a bed or something similar. He couldn't hear any breathing. Another step.

"Thea?" he whispered.

The door slammed shut behind him, leaving the room in total darkness while, at the same time, something pounced on him, having hidden behind the door.

"Myde!" shouted a familiar voice, arms wrapping around his torso in an impossibly strong grip.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 125**

* * *

It was a spectacular sight. Thousands of Hylian, Goron, Zora and Gerudo soldiers all assembled in (somewhat) orderly ranks, preparing to march on Castle Town. Zelda, Aveil and the rest of the command rode at the very front, flanked by the four-hundred or so remaining cavalrymen. Link got to ride next to Zelda, and he was starting to feel uncomfortable due to the many looks and stares he was getting from the other soldiers. Many of them had seen him while in the camp, but it seemed that they only saw him as the Hero of Time now that he was mounted on a horse, his weapons on display. The chainmail under his grey tunic was barely noticeable now, to his surprise since he had expected to have to get used to it. He looked behind him; saw that there were still a _lot_ of infantry to organise at the back.

"Just how many soldiers do we have?" he asked Zelda.

"The last count had us at ten thousand swords- and spearmen," replied the princess. "Along with three thousand archers and three-hundred and fifty cavalry units." She looked over at general Kato, who nodded to confirm the numbers. "So we have well over thirteen thousand men and women."

"That's quite a lot," said Link, trying to wrap his head around that number. It's not like he didn't understand how many they were, but more how much of a nightmare it must be to organise them. "And how many people are we leaving behind at the camp?"

"Fifteen-hundred non-combatants, most of them Gerudo, as well as a hundred and fifty soldiers to guard them," said Zelda. "Not that we expect them to come under attack, but it never hurts to be sure."

"Fair enough," said Link and readjusted his position in his saddle. He was trying to distract himself, he knew, and did his best not to think about it. "What exactly is the plan when we get to the castle?"

"Well, if all has gone according to plan, then we will most likely engage the second legion on the field before the walls," replied Zelda, picking her words carefully. She knew better than to mention Sheik at a time like this. "With our combined strength, we should be able to break them pretty quick."

"And then?"

"Then we will deploy our siege equipment," said Zelda, gesturing to the covered carts in the middle of the troops. "We only need to assemble them," she explained. "Afterwards, we will take down the walls or drawbridge, depending on how well the first battle went." She looked at Kato again. "General, are you sure about the first legion's tactics?"

The general nodded again. "Your Highness, if we defeat the second legion, then the first will not bother with meeting us on the battlefield. They will retreat into the city itself and fortify their positions. We also believe that many of them will be called back into the Evil King's citadel. So we will be facing, at worst, a legion and a half in the initial stages of the battle."

"I'm almost afraid to ask, but how many men are there in a legion?" said Link, dreading the answer.

"The average number of men is…oh, about fifteen thousand or so," said Kato. "But the first legion is much smaller than the others, probably because of the high requirements to join it. Really, the only thing that stopped us from attacking before was the three other legions, and they are still mucking about in the Lost Woods according to our scouts."

"Well, that's good to know," said Link. "But what will we do about those legions after we win?"

"Good question," said Zelda. "We will have to have a meeting about that later."

"If we win, of course," said Kato.

"Oh, we will win, most definitely," said Zelda, smiling. "Never before has Hyrule seen such a unified alliance between its peoples. We are stronger than Ganondorf's mercenaries, of that I am sure. Besides, we have the will of the Goddesses on our side. He does not. And if Sheik, Myde and Ayla have successfully done their job, then our victory will be a certain thing." Link sighed and looked away, and Zelda cursed under her breath. She hadn't meant to talk about Sheik. "Listen, Link, I know you're worried, but—"she began.

"Yeah, I know," said Link. "Sheik won't let himself or the others get caught. But still…"

Several soldiers in the back had begun a chant, which was quickly spreading among the troops. It grew, quickly becoming a sheer wall of noise that rolled over them like a tidal wave, drowning out whatever Link was going to say next. When they heard what the soldiers were shouting, Link and Zelda smiled at each other. At least the army was in high spirits. Taking deep breaths, they joined in.

"HYRULE! HYRULE! HYRULE!"

* * *

Myde eventually gave up on struggling and relaxed against the all-too-familiar assault, sighing loudly when he only felt the assailant's grip tighten. He let it go on for another few seconds, then sighed loudly again. "Thea, please let go."

"No," was the answer. "I've got seven years of hugs to make up for!"

"Seven years or not, I still don't want to get some kind of infectious disease from this floor," said Myde, trying to push Thea off, even though it was rather half-hearted. She let go, however, and he felt her weight leave his back. Taking her offered hand, he got to his feet. He heard Thea rummage around, and a lantern suddenly came to life, revealing his sister.

"How did you know it was me?" he asked.

"I saw you coming down the street," Thea said, grinning. "You're not very good at sneaking, are you?"

"Obviously, that is something I need to work on," he replied drily.

"Wow, you haven't changed at _all_ ," said Thea, suddenly leaping forward again to hug him. Myde gave up on dodging it and let it happen, eventually wrapping his own arms around her. "You still look the same," she added.

"Well, being frozen in ice is not exactly conductive to the aging process," said Myde drily, smiling when he felt her chuckle. He pulled away to look at her. "You haven't changed much either," he said, grinning. "Still annoying as hell."

"Bah," she said, crossing her arms in annoyance. "You're still just as mean, too."

They shared a look, a smile, and then a laugh. It was a relief to see that she was still more or less the same person he had seen being taken away seven years prior, even though she looked…slightly different. She, like everyone else behind the wall, was horribly thin, and her skin much paler. Her hair, while still a deep auburn, was fraying slightly, and the fins on her lower arms looked less vibrant than they should. They embraced again, and Thea pointed at her bed for him to sit down.

"How have you been?" asked Myde seriously. "You're so…thin…"

"We don't get a lot to eat around here," she said. "And much of our food goes to the sick anyway. It's so hard work here…" She wiped away the tears that had begun to gather in her eyes. "What are you _doing_ here, anyway? How did you get in? And is that my sword?"

"That's a lot of questions," said Myde.

"Honestly, did you expect anything else?" asked Thea.

"Not really, no," said Myde, smirking. "I'm here as a saboteur, sent in to do as much damage to the enemy's fortifications before we attack."

"'We'?" asked Thea. "Who's 'we'? We don't have a strong enough army…or do we? Was there a huge spawning period after you got out of the ice? How did you get out of the ice? Are you marching children into battle?"

Myde could only roll his eyes at the onslaught of questions that all but erupted out of his little sister, wondering when he'd actually get a word in.

* * *

"All clear, go," Sheik whispered, motioning for Tinn, Kira and the three other slaves—another pair of girls and a boy around Tinn's age—to cross the street.

They had come to the agreement that it was no longer safe for the slaves to stay in their house, and Sheik had, after thinking for a bit, decided to escort them to a safer location, even though he knew he was wasting valuable time that could be spent on destroying supplies. He knew that if he left the slaves to their plight, he would never have been able to live with himself. So here they were, carefully avoiding guards and lighted areas, slowly working their way toward another slave house, where they could blend in. Sheik had expressed his doubts about the plan—courtesy of Tinn, actually—but had promptly been ignored as Kira had gone to rouse the others.

 _But I guess it's better to go into hiding than just staying out in the open,_ he thought as he crossed the street himself, joining them in a huddle at the next corner.

"How far away is this house?" he asked Tinn. "I feel like we've been going around in circles."

"Just another block and we're there," said Tinn, still smiling despite the overhanging danger. "The people there are our friends. They'll hide us."

"I certainly hope so," said Sheik. "We've been lucky so far, but I don't think I'd be able to sneak you back if they reject you."

"They won't," said Tinn.

True to his word, the other house was just a block away, and the guards seemed to have little interest in this area as they could hear no shouting voices in the vicinity, nor the clinging and clanking of their armour. Kira knocked on the door. It took several minutes, but it was eventually opened by a gruff-looking man, whose grumbling visage softened considerably upon seeing who it was that had woken him from his slumber.

Sheik positioned himself at the corner again, keeping a lookout while Kira and Tinn explained what was going on to the man. He happened to glance over at the house and found that the man was staring at him intently, and then nodded. He stepped aside and let the slaves enter the house, waving Sheik over at the same time. He took one last look at the seemingly empty street and hurried over.

"You're the one who blew up the gatehouse earlier tonight?" asked the man, his voice surprisingly soft and gentle.

"Yes, that was me," said Sheik. "I wasn't really planning on it, but—"

"And you killed the bastard who's been preying on these kids?" continued the man.

"Yes, but—"

"Then you Sheikah are alright by me," he said and patted Sheik on the shoulder. "Thank you, and I look forward to hearing about the other trouble you're causing tonight." He went to close the door, but was stopped by both Tinn and Kira, who were looking conspiratorially at each other as they came closer.

 _Oh no, what now?_ Sheik wondered.

Both slaves pounced on Sheik, kissing his cheeks in a coordinated movement. Kira blushed heavily and disappeared back inside immediately after, but Tinn—also blushing—remained behind to whisper his thanks to Sheik. The man smiled and began to close the door.

"Is there something you need?" he asked as an afterthought.

"No, I have everything I need," said Sheik, patting his dagger holsters and Kazuya's hilt. "Just…don't tell anyone that I'm here should they ask," he said jokingly.

"No need to worry about that," said the man and closed the door.

Sheik sighed and looked around, realising that the house was quite close to the Temple of Time, its spire standing tall and proud over the houses. He tried to pinpoint his exact location, and realised that he was standing in what had once been an upper-class neighbourhood. Not that it looked like one anymore, but still…

"Right, time to cause trouble," he said to himself and picked a random street, hoping to encounter another armoury.

* * *

"Damn," Ayla whispered to herself as she barely managed to duck into a small alcove as yet another group of guards came rushing by, shouting amongst themselves about finding the intruders and liquidating them in a most unpleasant manner. She waited for their cries to disappear before continuing on her way. "At least they're making it easy," she said to herself. She wondered briefly what would happen once they found the man she had killed just a few minutes prior, but decided not to let it worry her just yet. First she had to find her partner. And perhaps leer at his sister.

She also wondered if heading in the direction the man had given her was a good idea, but told herself that it was as good a lead as anything else. She had no idea where Myde was anyway. In fact, she couldn't even be sure he had made it over the wall. For all she knew, he could have been picked up by one of the guards after she left to blow up the bomb storage.

"Gah, now I'm starting to think too much," she whispered again and kept running. She turned right where she had been told, and spotted a brightly lit building at the end of the street. From what she could see, it had been expanded, walkways extending into the buildings surrounding it.

She knocked on the door, tapping her foot impatiently on the doorstep, anxiously looking around. She could have sworn that someone was looking at her. She heard footsteps from within, and the door opened carefully, an eye peeking out. Then it opened fully, revealing a thin, almost sickly-looking Zora.

"Hi," said Ayla, pausing when she realised she had no idea what to say. "Uh, did a Zora with a sword come by here?" she asked.

"You are Ayla, I presume?" said the Zora.

"That would be me, yeah," said Ayla. "Is Myde here?"

"The general is upstairs," said the Zora, stepping aside to let her in. "Come with me."

"Thanks," said Ayla, following the Zora upstairs, across one of the constructed hallways and over into the adjacent building, all the while unable to take her eyes off the various sick and injured people lining the walls. "I didn't think the prisoners were being treated so badly," she whispered.

"Actually, they leave us mostly alone on this side of the wall," said the Zora. "It's the diseases and work-related injuries that are claiming most lives here. If anything, the slaves have it worse, forced into prostitution and the like."

"With any luck, it'll end very soon," said Ayla.

"As much as I would like that to happen, I have my doubts," said the Zora, stopping. "The general is through that door. I'd knock if I were you."

"Alright, thanks Mr…" said Ayla, wanting to know this one's name.

"Pesco. Just Pesco," said the Zora. "If you need anything, I'll be downstairs," he said, walking away.

"Heh, cheerful fella," Ayla muttered and walked to the door. She made to knock, decided against it and turned the knob, cheerily announcing her presence: "Hey Myde, did'ya find your siste…"

Her voice died in her throat as she saw the occupants. One of them was Myde, obviously, his eyes shining in the light from a lantern on a desk, but the other one… She had her back turned to Ayla, but the she was most definitely not a Zora. Pink skin, brown hair (hair at all, really) and no scales whatsoever.

"Ah, you made it," said Myde, smiling. "Did you encounter Boss as well?"

"Boss?" asked Ayla. "Who the hell is Boss? And who's this? I thought we were looking for your sister, not some random Hylian girl."

"This _is_ my sister," said Myde, looking offended. "Thea, this is Ayla, my partner in crime for the night."

Thea stood up and turned around. Ayla gasped. Now that she could see her properly, she realised that she wasn't a Hylian either. Thea wore a top that exposed her midriff, which again exposed the familiar gills that every Zora had… It looked so alien on someone with actual skin and yet…so at home, and exotic. At least on Thea. The next thing about the girl that drew Ayla's attention was the fact she had fins on her lower arms in the same shade as the rest of her skin. It was just…so strange, yet fascinating. It was impossible to actually place her within a race… She was pulled out of her thoughts as Thea waved a hand in front of her face.

"Hello? Anybody home?" Thea asked, grinning. "Does she regularly just turn off like this, or what? Gerudo girls are weird."

"I'm sorry, I was lost in my thoughts for a second there," Ayla said, shaking Thea's hand. "I'm Ayla."

"And I'm Thea, just like we established five minutes ago," replied Thea, giggling.

"Right, it's nice to meet you," said Ayla. "Myde hasn't been able to stop talking about you ever since we came here."

"So you _do_ love me," said Thea, spinning around to face Myde, who suddenly looked very afraid.

"Have I ever given any indication of feeling otherwise?" said the general, backing away. He looked at Ayla. "But you did not meet a man named Boss? I told him to send you here…"

"Well, there was a guy who told me how to get here, but he tried to stab me when I turned my back on him," said Ayla, drawing one of her scimitars, showing the still-drying blood on the blade. "He's dead now, anyway."

The atmosphere suddenly tensed. Myde hurried over to the window and looked out. The street was empty. "If he tried to kill you…" he said slowly. "Wait, were there others with him?"

"No, he was alone," replied Ayla.

"We can't stay here," said Myde.

"What's going on?" asked Thea, looking at them worriedly.

"I believe we have been tricked," said Myde, still keeping an eye on the street below. He could swear that the shouting and footsteps were coming closer and closer. "He probably sent the others to alert the guards."

"In short, we're fucked," said Ayla.

"And we have to leave," added Myde.

"Wait, so soon?" asked Thea, frowning. "You just got here…"

"I wasn't supposed to come here at all, Thea," said Myde, stroking her cheek with a hand. "I took a risk…and it seems that I have ruined the entire mission."

Thea touched his hand, smiling sadly. "I understand," she said. "I just…I was just so happy to see you again, and I—"

"We will see each other again very soon, I promise," said Myde. "We're attacking tomorrow. One final battle. We face either victory or complete annihilation."

"Myde, we've got a situation," said Ayla, having taken his spot by the window. "Large group of soldiers, led by two prisoners. They're pointing here."

"Shit!" exclaimed Myde.

"Is there a way out of here that's not through the front door?" Ayla asked.

"We can't leave," said Myde. "If those bastard prisoners have told them we're here, then they'll turn the entire building on its head…and probably punish the people inside when they don't find us."

"We can't take on that many by ourselves, Myde, that's suicide," said Ayla. She jumped away from the window. "I don't think they saw me…"

Thea had been thinking the entire time. "There's a tunnel in the basement that connects this building to one on the other side of the wall," she said. "No one but Pesco and I know about it."

"But Thea, they'll hurt yo—"Myde began.

"No, they won't," said Thea, silencing Myde with a stare. "We're the only ones with any medical expertise in this place, and unless Ganondorf wants a sick workforce he'll have to leave us alone. At worst, they'll just search through the building, and we will cover for you."

"Whatever we're gonna do, we have to do it quick," said Ayla. "They're halfway here."

"Come on," said Thea, grabbing Myde's arm and pulling him after her, Ayla following. She led them back through the corridors, into the main lobby, down the stairs. Pesco was talking to a Hylian. "Pesco!" exclaimed Thea, catching his attention. "Some guards will be at the door at any second. Stall them!"

"Alright," said Pesco, heading over the door.

Thea then led Myde and Ayla down another set of stairs, into a damp and murky basement. It smelled of rot, and the air was moist and unpleasant to breathe in. "We don't use it because of the moisture," Thea explained. They arrived at the basement itself, a large, empty room except for a few rotten crates standing in a corner. There was a trapdoor in the floor in another corner, which Thea quickly opened, revealing yet another set of stairs.

"Hurry up and get down there," she said. "There isn't any light down there, but it's mostly straight. A ladder will lead you to the other house. It should be empty."

Ayla nodded, smiling. "Thank you, Thea. Please be safe."

"Of course," replied Thea as Ayla hurried down the stairs.

Myde hesitated, hearing knocking upstairs as well as dampened voices. "I really don't think I should leave—"

"But you have to, or you'll make it worse for everyone," said Thea. "Come on, Myde, you know I can defend myself if things make a turn for the worse." To prove the point, she flexed her lower arm muscles. Her fins stiffened, displaying their razor-sharp edges, which were usually hidden. "Now go."

Myde hesitated again, and gave Thea on last hug. "I'll be back, I promise. I love you."

"I know," said Thea. She didn't even let him turn around for one last goodbye before slamming the trapdoor shut. Myde then heard something heavy being dragged across the floor, most likely the crates. She was covering the trapdoor up.

"Hey, Myde, let's go!" shouted Ayla from somewhere ahead in the darkness.

Myde wanted so badly to go back up, to help Thea in any way he could, but realised that he _would_ actually be doing more good in disappearing. "Be careful," he whispered. Ayla shouted at him again, to which he sighed and began to run in the direction of her voice. "Coming!" he shouted back.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 126**

* * *

_This is almost too easy,_ Sheik thought as he leaned out to observe the lone guard by the entrance to the armoury. Every now and then, a small latch in the door opened, and the guard exchanged some words with someone inside, as if they were trying to keep a conversation going even though they were supposed to…well, _guard_ the place. A larger group of soldiers had been by about ten minutes before, leaving with several bombs clutched under their arms. A series of explosions could be heard in the distance, and Sheik could only imagine two scenarios: Either Myde and Ayla were running amok downtown, or they were trying to clear up the rubble that Sheik had created by blowing up the gatehouse. Either way, the night was becoming quite interesting.

The latch in the door closed again, and the guard was once again alone, shivering despite it being quite warm. Sheik pulled out a dagger and began to run towards him. When the guard's head snapped to look at the rapidly approaching "slave", Sheik picked up speed, turning it into a full sprint. The guard clutched his spear tightly, began to open his mouth…

Sheik threw the dagger, hitting the guard directly in the throat. He dropped his spear, clutching at the handle sticking out of his larynx, gurgling. His back slammed into the door, slowly sinking to the doorstep. Sheik was getting closer and closer, one foot barely touching the ground before the other did. He heard the lock make a loud click, the handle turning as the guard inside went to see what was happening. The door opened, the man inside cursing loudly at the dying one, presumably thinking he was pulling a trick. The Sheikah jumped, aiming a kick at the door. His foot connected, slamming the door into the other guard's face.

Sheik stood above the guard, who was groaning, blood leaking from his shattered nose. He drew Kazuya and, without hesitation, stabbed it into the man's chest, twisting it. There was a disgusting squelching sound as his heart was torn apart. The man's mouth opened, attempting to scream. Sheik's (Amel's, really) boot slammed down on his face, breaking his jaw and stopping the scream. It was like putting a cork into a bottle. The man tried to struggle, his limbs flailing weakly as Sheik pulled Kazuya out and sunk it into his chest a second time. When the flailing stopped, Sheik slowly removed his boot from what remained of his face, satisfied that he was dead.

He left Kazuya stuck in his chest and turned around. The first guard was also dead, stuck in a position where he had almost been able to pull the dagger out, lying in the middle of the doorway. Sheik grabbed his shoulders and pulled him inside, closing the door firmly. It would be hard to see the blood splatters in the darkness, he hoped, in case someone passed by.

 _Too. Easy,_ he repeated in his thoughts as he pulled out Kazuya, wiped the blade off and sheathed it. Then he looked around. The room beyond the door was a small one, just some sort of office. A small table with a solitary candle stood in one corner, two chairs around it. Other than that, the room was empty. A second door was placed directly in front of him. Sheik opened it carefully, just in case there were more people inside. No one waited to jump at him.

This was an armoury, alright. Rows upon rows of weapon racks, training dummies, armour stands and chests filled with arrows filled the entire warehouse. As he walked down one of the aisles, he noticed that most of these weapons were brand new, had probably not even been used been in anyone but the blacksmith's hands. It was almost a shame that he had to destroy them, especially when he remembered how dated and ruined the Remnant's equipment was. But there was no way he'd be able to get these weapons out of the warehouse. He sighed and looked around again, trying to spot where they were storing—

 _Aha,_ he thought, spotting a cage-like area at the very back of the warehouse. Iron bars surrounded the many crates, in which he could see the familiar, round bombs. A heavy, iron gate blocked his path, however. He tried it. It was locked. He cursed under his breath. Then he remembered the pair of guards he had killed and ran back to the bodies, feeling slightly embarrassed when he found a matching key on one of them. _Stealing keys is really basic infiltration, Sheik,_ he told himself as he unlocked the gate, tossing the key aside.

He hadn't really thought of how he was going to destroy all the weapons, but looking at the sheer amount of bombs contained inside the cage—over three-hundred, at the very least—he smiled.

 _It's like they're doing my job_ for _me,_ he thought as he started to pick up and place bombs all over the warehouse, concentrating on really piling them up at structural weak points.

He picked up one last bomb and walked back to the small room, surveying his work on the way. There were bombs literally everywhere, placed inside racks, underneath shelves, all over the floor… Knowing how unstable the things were, he wondered why the mercenaries were so stupid as to store so many of them in one area. He opened the door, surveying the streets outside. They were empty. Quickly, he lit the fuse of the bomb he was carrying with the candle on the table and tossed it inside the warehouse. Then he tore out of the room, into the streets, running as fast as he could in any direction, as long as it took him _away_.

* * *

Myde easily kicked through the door, which was half-rotten anyway. While Thea's infirmary had been _somewhat_ well-taken care of, this house was in a very, very, _very_ advanced state of disrepair. He wouldn't have been surprised if the rest of the building went down with the cellar door. It didn't, however, and the two infiltrators emerged into the basement.

"That was close," said Ayla, looking around the room. "Good thing that tunnel was here, eh? Myde?"

He was staring back into the tunnel, wanting so badly to go back and make sure his sister was okay, but knew at the same time that his sudden appearance back there could make things even worse. He tried to comfort himself with the knowledge that Thea was quite skilled at talking her way out of difficult situations. He felt Ayla's hand on his shoulder, and turned his head to look at her.

"Are you alright?" she asked, smiling gently.

"Yes," he said. "And…no. I'm worried," he admitted.

"You shouldn't be," said Ayla. "Thea'll be fine, I'm sure of it. There's a girl who knows how to take care of herself, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to stand seven years of capitivity."

"I know," said Myde, shaking his head, trying to get rid of the negative thoughts. "But it feels like I'm abandoning her all over again."

"I wasn't aware you had already abandoned her _once_ ," said Ayla. "When did that happen?"

"When we were frozen in the ice, I—"

"That wasn't really abandoning, was it?" asked the Gerudo. "She was captured by enemy troops while you were trying to defend your home, correct?"

"Correct."

"Then you didn't abandon her," said Ayla. "Simple as that." She went over to the stairs leading up to the rest of the house, testing the rotten wood with a foot. It creaked and bent under her weight, making her frown. "Have I gained weight?" she whispered to herself. She turned back to Myde, who was still staring into the tunnel. "Hey, can I ask you a question?"

Myde looked at her, nodding. "You may."

"What…er...how…" she said, trying to find a nice way to ask it. "Damn, I don't think there's any way to ask this without being offensive…"

"It's about Thea, isn't it?" asked Myde.

"Yeah, it is," said Ayla, swallowing. When Myde did not say anything, only nodded to her, she took that final step. "What _is_ she, exactly? She's not a Zora, and she's not a Hylian, but looks like both."

"And what conclusion could you possibly draw from that information?" asked Myde.

"That she _is_ both?" tried Ayla.

"Bingo."

"But how is that possible?" she asked. "I mean, I am no expert on physiology, anatomy…or anything to do with biology, really, but I _do_ know that Zora lay eggs and humans give live births…"

"To be honest, I do not know," said Myde, finally able to tear his eyes away from the tunnel. "And neither does she."

"Really?"

"Yes. All we know is that she showed up at the Fountain as a baby, was taken in by the orphanage—"

"You have an orphanage?" asked Ayla.

"Yes, we do," said Myde, annoyed. "Is there anything else you would like to know if we have?"

"No, no, go ahead," said Ayla, blushing. "I just felt like displaying my lack of knowledge concerning your race."

"Hmph," said Myde. "Anyway, she was taken in by the orphanage, but due to her…being different, she had a difficult upbringing. No one wanted to befriend her as she grew up, and she was ostracised. I don't think she had a single friend or if anyone even wanted to really talk to her unless they _had_ to."

"Then where do you come into the picture?" Ayla asked.

Once again, Myde sighed in annoyance and glared at her. "Is every Gerudo this rude? Really, I'd think it common courtesy to shut up while someone is talking."

"Sorry."

"Anyway, I came into the picture, as you said, when she was about…hm, I don't quite remember her age, but it was in her early teens, I think. I had just joined the military, and I was proudly—and childishly—displaying my weapons to anyone who would look…heh, I was so young back then."

"How old are you, exactly?"

Myde gave up on correcting Ayla's manner, and only grinned. "I'd rather not say, and I doubt Thea wants you to know either."

"Ah, sensitive, eh? That's okay. I hide my age too," said Ayla, winking.

"I'd place you in your early twenties, though," said Myde, grinning wider when Ayla's face blanched. "But as I said, I was strutting around the Fountain, when I suddenly hear shouting. I spot a group of children standing around someone, jeering, laughing and cursing at them. I chased them away; found that their object of abuse was Thea." He smiled at the memory. "At first, she didn't want anything to do with me, said that I was just like the others. I was completely fascinated by her appearance, having never seen her before, and, of course, would not leave her alone."

"You sound like stalker," said Ayla.

"Perhaps, but that is also how she eventually opened up to me," said Myde. "I soon found out that she was alone, had no family, and I decided to…be her friend. Heh."

"What's so funny?"

"Explaining it like this…it's so awkward," he said. "Our relationship is…quite difficult to explain. Suffice to say, we spent a lot of time together, and we connected on a…familial level, I suppose. I became her big brother, she became my little sister, that's the only way I can say it. Heh, she even joined the military when she was old enough, just like me. Though it was clear that she was not that interested in fighting, which is why she joined the medics after being offered a choice."

"Sorry for interrupting again," said Ayla. "But you said she joined the military…even with her…appearance?"

"It's true that she did not fit in very well with the rest of the Zora population," said Myde. "But by the time she was old enough to join, I had already climbed the ranks to such a degree that I could…pull a few strings."

"Wow, what a brother you are," said Ayla sarcastically.

"Okay, that's it, no more explaining," said Myde. "We need to get a move on, anyway. If we stay here any longer, we might get caught. Come on." He walked past Ayla, skipping the step that threatened to break under her weight, heading upstairs.

"Hey, wait," said Ayla. "I didn't mean it like that. I wanna hear more!"

"If you promise to refrain from commenting, then I might tell you more later. But I really do think we should get out of here," said Myde, opening an equally rotten door.

The house itself was empty, devoid of any furniture. When one took a good look at the living room, one could see that the whole building was leaning to one side, surely close to falling over. They decided to climb out the kitchen window rather than take the chances of going out the front door, emerging into the side street. As it turned out, the house was almost right next to the wall, and they could see the roof of the infirmary in the distance.

"Alright," said Ayla, looking at Myde. "What do we do now?"

"I say we find another armoury and take it out," said Myde. "Apparently, Sheik took out a good part of one of the city walls, so I don't think there's any point in trying to disable their siege equipment."

"Hm, I guess that's a plan," said Ayla. "But shouldn't we try to find Sheik first? I mean, if we're going to start blowing stuff up, then we should…you know, coordinate so we don't accidentally kill him, or something."

"Good idea," said Myde. "But how do we find him? This city and its inhabitants don't exactly lend themselves well to a search."

The ground shook as an explosion painted the sky orange, barely a dozen blocks away. They looked at each other, than at the fireball which rapidly burned out.

"We could just follow the explosions?" asked Ayla, grinning like a fool as she began to run.

"Fair enough," said Myde, shrugging.

* * *

He had miscalculated the size of the explosion. Sheik picked himself up from the ground, having stumbled and fallen as the bombs had detonated. But it destroyed the armoury, at least, a fact which he comforted himself with. There was a certain satisfaction to be had, knowing that all those shiny weapons would never be lifted against a Hyrulian soldier.

Already he could hear the shouts of guards redirecting their patrol routes to inspect the new explosion, and he ducked into an alley. There was a large drainpipe, which he quickly shimmied up. Well up on the roof, he could see that a fire had started close to the wall that separated the prisoners from the rest of the city. Hopefully it would provide a little distraction.

 _Well, enough dilly-dallying,_ he thought, looking to east. By now, the entire population, not to mention the legions, must have been alert to the fact that someone was sabotaging their equipment. _Must have,_ he thought, snorting despite himself. _As if the collapse of the gatehouse and wall didn't wake them all up._

It was high time to get out of the city, he decided. He jumped across several rooftops, passing over groups of soldiers that had started house-to-house searches. Too bad none of them decided to look up. As he got further and further away from the now burning warehouse, he realised that they were running out of time as well. The sky was growing lighter.

He was about to cross another set of rooftops when he suddenly noticed a pair of shadows moving through an alley in a suspicious way. When he saw Myde's head fin, he grinned. He stopped, intending to whistle to get their attention, but heard them whispering not-so-quietly to each other:

"You think Sheik is around here?" Ayla asked.

"He's certainly getting away from the explosion," replied Myde. "Maybe he's heading this way."

"Or you could both just look up," said Sheik, grinning down at them. He dropped down from the roof, rolling on the ground to dampen the impact. "You two really need to work on your whispering," he said when he stood up to face them. "I'm surprised you've made it this far without getting caught. Did you find your sister?" He directed the last question at the Zora.

"Yes, and she was quite well, all things considered," said Myde. "Though I _may_ have let slip that we are attacking in the morning."

"You're not the only one," said Sheik, shaking his head.

"Oh?" asked Ayla. "This is a story I have to hear."

"Not now, though," said Sheik. "We have to get out of here. It's not worth the risk staying any longer."

"Wait, already?" asked Ayla. "We haven't even used our explosive thingies." She pulled out one of Vorpheus' beads.

"Well, that's good," said Sheik. "I used one on the drawbridge mechanism, ended up taking out part of the wall as well. Almost poisoned myself too, I think. Anyway, as I said, we're getting out of here. Can you climb to the roof?"

"Probably," said Myde. "But I don't think we can jump across them as you do."

"Then we'll have to take the streets," said Sheik. "I got a good look at our position from up there, and I think I can lead us back to the broken fountain."

"Then by all means, lead us," said Ayla.

The trek through the streets could be described as anything but fast. Due to the general excitement in the city, it was impossible to move with any kind of speed, and the three were growing more and more impatient. Stress began to build up. At one point, Ayla was all but ready to chuck her bead at a group of soldiers that absolutely refused to move past their hiding spot (a bloody garbage heap!). Myde managed to stop her, though, much to Sheik's relief. They moved on after the guards left, running through what seemed to be a labyrinth of back alleys, side streets, back streets and—eventually—upside-down streets. It was enough to turn them all off ever going back again, really.

Sheik reckoned they were about halfway to the fountain when they broke into one of the main streets, which would take them a good distance to the fountain if they were careful. It was oddly deserted, but Sheik assumed that most of the soldiers were out searching for them. They probably didn't expect the infiltrators to even get _close_ to this particular street. Even so, they were careful as they moved along, hugging the shadows whenever possible. No alarms so far. The fire to the west was getting more and more intense, apparently, as they could now see a column of smoke rising from the buildings.

"I hope it doesn't spread to the prisoners' houses," Ayla whispered.

"It probably won't," said Myde. "There was a large distance between the buildings and the wall."

"The prisoners may be safe, but the slaves are still at risk," said Sheik. "But there's nothing we can do about that. We can only have faith—and I say it with disgust—in the legion's fire-fighting ability."

The emptiness of this street was really starting to unnerve him, and he quickly guided them through another series of alleys, emerging in front of an empty gatehouse, a mile or so away from the broken fountain. He stopped, staring at the gate.

"I don't remember this being here," he mumbled, noting that high walls stretched in either direction, blocking their path. "How did I not notice this?"

"Does it really matter?" asked Myde.

"Not in the big picture, but…" said Sheik, trailing off. _Maybe I'm just worrying too much. The soldiers are busy fighting fires and investigating explosions…_ He sighed, taking a deep breath. "Alright, let's go."

They decided to take it slow through the gate, keeping their gazes upwards in order to spot anyone hiding the walkways. There weren't anyone, and Sheik felt silly for stopping like that. Something moved, and he stopped. Myde and Ayla continued walking, not noticing his pause. For a second, Sheik stood there, staring intently at the spot where he had seen the movement. He shook his head.

 _I'm seeing things…I must be tired,_ he thought, running to catch up with his partners, who were almost to the other side of the gate. A few steps away from them, he heard a click. It sounded mechanical, like the latch for a crossbow, or a gate—

"No!" he shouted. He pushed Myde and Ayla forward, sent them stumbling forward just as a portcullis began to drop from the ceiling. Myde's foot barely cleared the space before it slammed shut, preventing Sheik from joining them. He turned around, and the second portcullis closed, trapping him inside.

"Sheik!" Ayla shouted.

"Run! Get out of here!" Sheik shouted as soldiers began pouring out of the buildings on the side of the gatehouse they had come from. Oddly, no one seemed to be waiting on the other side. "Go!" he shouted again.

"But what about—"

"I said go!"

Myde, who seemed quite capable of keeping his head cool, grabbed Ayla's arm and began to pull her away. He gave Sheik a look that clearly spoke seven words.

" _ **You know what you have to do."**_

Then the Zora turned away and dragged the upset Ayla with him, disappearing into the shadows.

Above Sheik, archers had suddenly filled the walkways, aiming down at him. _Perfect,_ he thought. _How could I fall for such an obvious trap as this one?_ All the while he thought this, he pulled out a dagger, placed it against his throat. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, and—

The dagger was ripped out of his hand by a soldier. The other portcullis had been opened, and guards were flooding in like a black tide, all intent on capturing the one who had caused so much havoc in a single evening. He tried to fight back, but their hands were everywhere, punching and pulling his arms behind his back. Someone kicked him in the stomach, and he was pushed to his knees. A fist crashed into his cheek, filling his mouth with blood as he bit the inside of it. Someone ripped his shirt apart, tearing off his dagger holsters as well as Kazuya from his back. His face was pushed into the floor. Someone kicked him several times in the ribs, hard enough for at least one of them to break. A boot collided with his head, causing his vision to go dark for a few seconds.

"Stop!" someone shouted over the triumphant screams of the soldiers. "Don't kill him! The commander wants him alive!"

This was met with roaring disapproval from the soldiers, but they stopped kicking and punching Sheik and hauled him to his feet. He was unable to stand, his head reeling. He was let go, and fell back to the floor. The soldiers laughed, pulling him up again, dragging him through the gatehouse toward the voice that had shouted. Once again they threw him to the ground, though they quieted down this time. Sheik opened his functioning eye, seeing a pair of booted legs standing in front of him. He let his gaze travel upwards, head spinning. Blood still filled his mouth, and he spat it out.

"Ah, so _you're_ the one who has caused us so much trouble tonight," said the grinning Commander Nuviro, staring down at him. "And I must say that I am not surprised that the princess would send her most trusted operative, the Sheikah…"

The commander had one of those faces that seemed to have too little skin stretched over its features, giving the commander a permanent smile on his face. His eyes were a deep shade of brown, almost black, producing a disconcerting effect. His head was bald, the skin a deep bronze due to the sun baking it. His height was probably the most noticeable feature, however, easily dwarfing every man in the entire city save for Ganondorf himself, from what Sheik could remember of the Evil King.

Sheik spat out another mouthful of blood, doing his best to grin. "Commander. A pleasure to finally meet you," he said. He was pretty sure one of his teeth had come loose.

"And courteous as well," laughed Nuviro. "Hard to imagine that this is the same boy who so brutally murdered my colleague, Commander Amel."

"He got what he deserved," said Sheik. It was embarrassing, lying like this in front of the commander, half-naked and bleeding.

"Perhaps," said Nuviro. "But that is life, after all." He crouched down, grabbing Sheik's hair and pulling his head up to his level. "And spies _also_ get what they deserve," he hissed. "The King anticipated that you would turn up here sooner or later. As for your friends…well, let's just say that I have put measures into place in order to capture them as well."

Sheik glared at the commander, preparing to spit him in the face. Nuviro covered Sheik's mouth with a gauntleted hand, forcing him to swallow it. The commander grinned at him.

"Blood is delicious, is it not? Especially when it is one's own…" He licked his lips, smacking them. He grimaced and slapped Sheik, pulling him up at the same time. He steadied Sheik with one hand and drew the other back, closing it to form a fist. Sheik could see it coming and prepared himself. Nuviro's fist slammed into his head. He fell, feeling himself slip out of consciousness. Faintly, he heard the commander's voice. "Take this filth to the citadel. The King wants to question him personally!"

_I'm sorry…_

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 127**

* * *

The soldier gritted his teeth as his and Myde's blades clashed, the sound ringing out across the street. The Zora pushed against it with all his strength, slowly but surely forcing the man backwards up against a wall. The soldier could only watch as the edge of his own sword came closer and closer to his face.

They had been ambushed at several points along the way to the broken fountain and the drain pipe, but they had been able to elude them with quick thinking and sheer acrobatics, jumping over walls and fences that the soldiers, in their clunky armours, could not hope to scale. But here, at the last crossroad before the fountain square—at least according to Myde's mental map of the city—there had been quite a large force waiting for them, numbering twenty or so. There was no other choice but to fight their way through.

Clearly, the soldiers had been expecting someone less skilled than the two infiltrators as several of them fell to Myde and Ayla's blades within minutes, the smarter ones hanging in the back, looking for weak spots and openings in their defences. There was no such thing in Ayla, apparently, her fighting style consisting mostly of turning into a flurry of blades, not leaving the enemy a single moment of respite, just continually attacking until she could score a hit, usually their throats.

Myde, being armed with only a single blade, did not have the benefit of continually having one blade to attack and one to defend, but easily compensated for this by just dodging the enemy attacks. Besides, he had a secret weapon, which he'd get to use any moment, apparently.

The soldier's face was growing redder and redder as he put more and more effort into repelling Myde, and it was working. Myde was by no means a weakling, but the man clearly outclassed him when it came to weight. As he was forced to step back, he began to flex the muscles in his left lower arm, the fin responding by straightening. He feinted, pretending to finally buckle under the guard's strength. The guard's grin was short-lived, however, as Myde spun around and raked his razor-sharp fin across his neck, easily cutting through his jugular. This was followed by a spin-kick to the side of his head, which snapped his neck like a twig.

His body hit the ground, and Myde looked over to Ayla, who had just finished off her own opponent, ripping her scimitars out of his chest. They nodded to each other and continued running, cutting through an alley and ending up in a side street that ran parallel to one of the main streets. They were no more than two blocks away from the fountain square, he was sure of it!

"We should turn back!" Ayla said, panting. "We have to go and get him!"

"No!" replied Myde. "We have to get out of this city!"

The Gerudo had said this more than a few times after leaving Sheik in the enemy's hands back at the gatehouse, urging Myde to reconsider, but the Zora knew it was an impossible task. Losing Sheik was a great tragedy, of course, but what could they do about it?

No, their priority had to be to get out and report everything they had seen and done tonight, help the Remnant in any way. Wordlessly, he signalled for them to make a right at the next corner. And that was it. The broken fountain was there, in all its glory, surrounded by the hundreds of barrels containing who knew what. They shared a look of relief and headed towards it. Behind them, they heard voices. Someone had spotted them enter the square and was now summoning the entire legion, it seemed. They were about halfway to the pipe when the first arrow hit the ground, nearly striking him in the foot. Then another arrow struck the ground, followed by several more. His first thought was to run in a zigzagging pattern, but the placement of the barrels and crates made this impossible. They were sitting ducks, he realised.

Then Ayla was hit. She cried out, an arrow shaft sticking out of her left shoulder, the point poking out on the other side. She didn't fall, but faltered slightly. Her left arm dropped uselessly, her scimitar clattering on the ground. Myde tried to make a grab for it as he passed it, but missed it by half an inch. Ayla was at the fountain now, trying to climb down into the pipe, but failing miserably as her arm refused to cooperate. Myde reached her, tried to help her, but was almost skewered as another arrow struck right between them.

"Shit!" he exclaimed, turning around to face the coming horde. They were coming from everywhere, pouring in through every entrance to the square. A group of archers were notching yet another hail of arrows. He gritted his teeth, began to fumble around his pack for the explosive the warlock had given them. If it could take out a city wall, then he it could surely cause some damage here too. He looked to Ayla, who was finally able to lower herself into the pipe, giving him a nod as she realised what he was going to do. Growling, he threw the little, black bead to the ground. It bounced away, smoke already coming off it as it hissed loudly. Without looking back, Myde climbed into pipe.

"Come on!" Ayla shouted from further ahead, already close to the edge where they had almost been washed away by the putrid flood. The stench was even worse now, if possible, but he was able to push it away as he ran on, hearing the explosive hissing so loud that it seemed to block out every other sound.

"Take cover!" he yelled as he reached her, crouching down and holding on to the wall for support. No way in hell was he going to start climbing now.

They didn't hear much of the explosion itself, but the soil around them groaned as it shifted, the entire pipe shaking as if an earthquake had suddenly struck. Vaguely, he felt Ayla's hand link with his, squeezing it hard. He squeezed back, wondering if the pipe was going to collapse upon them. He dared to open his eyes, and saw the roof collapsing further ahead, soil, dirt and mud pouring in, quickly cutting them off from the fountain.

Darkness. The collapse cut off their only source of light, and as the tremors slowly stopped, the only sound that could be heard was that of his and Ayla's heavy breathing. They let go of each other, groped to find each other again and settled against one of the walls, shoulders touching.

"I hate this city," Ayla murmured.

"Me too," said Myde. He couldn't see anything, but turned his head to face Ayla. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Took an arrow to the fucking shoulder," she growled, probably fidgeting with it. "Can't feel or move my arm."

"Don't touch it," said Myde. "If you do, you could end up losing the arm."

"Easy for you to say." The Gerudo moaned as she apparently tried to pull the arrow out. "Damn!" Her voice echoed in the darkness, carried down the pipe. "How the hell am I supposed to get out of here now? I can't climb with this!"

"We'll have to do it slowly," said Myde. "I can go first, and support you in case you slip."

"Yeah? What about you, then?" asked Ayla.

"I have no difficulty climbing," said Myde. "I only pretended when we were on our way up to keep the morale high, as mutual suffering is always a comfort."

"You've a screwed up view on life, you know that?" asked Ayla.

"Yes, Thea has informed me of that on several occasions," said Myde. He fell silent, thinking about his sister, wondering what became of the party of soldiers that had been led to the infirmary.

"She'll be alright," said Ayla, apparently standing up as her voice suddenly came from much higher up. "Can we please get a move on? If I'm going to climb this thing, then I want to do so before I start fainting from blood loss." She made a huffing sound. "Hey, do you still have your potion? Maybe it would—"

"No, that would make the wound heal around the arrow, and that is not a good thing," said Myde, having thought of the exact same thing five seconds before. "I can remove the arrow for you, but not until we get out of this damn tube."

"Fine, fine, let's just go," said Ayla. "Here, I found the edge and the notches. After you."

As Myde let his legs swing over the edge before slowly beginning his descent, he came up with one positive thing about the whole ordeal. "At least we don't have the guards swarming down upon us."

"Given a choice between a legion of guards and this fucking tube again, I'd pick the guards any day," said Ayla.

* * *

It was slow—and awkward, as the only part of Ayla that Myde found he could support was her rump—but it worked. Inch by inch, the two infiltrators climbed down both vertical parts of the pipe, taking a few minutes to breathe out in relief at the bottom of the second shaft. Up ahead, they could see something glowing, and Myde knew that it was the crystal he had lost during the unpleasantness that had occurred on the way into the city. He told Ayla to wait here as he went to fetch it, knowing that she was far more tired than he was.

It was buried in a pile of…something he'd rather not know what was, and grimaced as he dug it out, brushing off the offending material, revealing the glowing coral. It took his eyes a few minutes to get accustomed to light again, but he found that his spirits was lifted slightly. At least they wouldn't have to navigate their way out of here blind as bats.

Ayla was still panting when he returned. He crouched down next to her and inspected the arrow wound. From what he could see, and from what he knew of human physiology, it had hit her directly in some rather critical nerve paths and most likely severed a tendon or two. The arm was, for all intents and purposes, ruined, and she'd be lucky if she got to keep it. He refrained from telling her this, only smiled and helped her up.

"Come on," he said. "If we keep our pace up, we should we out of here in an hour."

"I hope so," she said. "And when we get out, I'm sealing this end of the tube with _my_ bomb."

"If that is your wish," said Myde.

"It is," said the Gerudo. "This pipe has offended its last nose."

He laughed, finding her expression of utmost seriousness quite comical. Ayla only glared at him, grabbed the coral from his hand and began to walk, silently fuming. Myde followed a few paces behind, knowing better than to poke the sleeping bear, or however the Hylian saying went. The anger would keep her from succumbing to blood loss, at least for a little while.

Now that they knew which way to go, and that there were no other dangers ahead, they were able to keep a much higher pace than they had on the way in, and they soon reached the T-section they had struggled with. At some point, they began to jog, despite their limbs aching and protesting. They both just wanted to be out of there. Ayla let out a sigh of relief when light appeared at the end of the tunnel. By his reckoning, they were still a few hours away from dawn, but the sky was lightening considerably. The comforting roar of a waterfall greeted them as they emerged from the pipe, falling to their knees on the small ledge. The rope still hung there, thankfully. Once again, the two settled against the wall, sitting close.

"We should have gone back for him," Ayla suddenly said. She looked at Myde, who realised that she was silently crying, tears flowing down her cheeks. At first, he thought it was a hysterical reaction to what they had just been through, or a delayed shock. But when she laid her head on his shoulder, a sob escaping from her lips, he couldn't help but feel a strong sadness welling up inside him as well.

"There was nothing we could do," he said, a pang of regret stabbing him in the chest. "We would have been captured." It did not sound very convincing, even though he knew that he was right. The portcullis could only be opened from inside, and trying to find a way around… And even if they did manage to reach Sheik again, they'd have to fight an entire battalion…

"We could've taken them," Ayla said.

Myde only shook his head. "He told us to go," he said. "He wanted us to get out of there. We can only hope that he was…able to finish it…" He cleared his throat. "I saw him pull out a dagger…"

"You think he's dead?" asked Ayla.

"I hope so," said Myde. "If not, only an existence of pain, suffering and torment awaits him…"

They lost track of time as they sat there, both trying to calm down. After a while, Myde made good of his promise to do something about the arrow, cutting off the feathered end with his arm fin, pulling it out on the other side. It was a clean wound, at least, no messy hooks or barbs. Or poison. Ayla requested the potion again, but he firmly told her that the wound had to be washed first, or else she would risk an infection. As he said this, he went over to inspect the rope, knowing that they had one last obstacle to overcome before they could finally relax again.

"How the hell am I supposed to climb a rope with one arm?" the Gerudo asked as she stood next to him. "I can barely do it with two."

"I think I have an idea," said Myde. The rope terminated just a foot or so below the ledge. He pulled up the end and made a knot, creating a sort of loop at the end. "I can climb up there," he said, pointing at the edge of the cliff. "You place a foot inside this and hold on to the rope, and I pull you up."

"Are you sure?" asked Ayla, looking sceptically at the loop. "'Cause I'm not."

"I may not look physically imposing," said Myde. "But I can assure you that I am strong enough."

"Alright, but if you drop me, I'll haunt you to the end of your days."

"Deal."

It took him little time to reach the top of the cliff, taking a small breather before signalling for Ayla to step inside the loop. Taking a firm grip on the rope, he braced his feet against the edge and pulled. She was quite light, and it did not take long before he was pulling her over the edge. For his efforts, he got a relieved "thank you" and a kiss on the cheek from Ayla before the Gerudo sagged against him, half-asleep. He was quite tired himself, but knew that they couldn't just settle down here. He had been expecting the army to be marching past them by now, but the trail was completely empty, and there were no tracks that gave any evidence of them passing.

"Hmph, they're off-schedule," he mumbled as he helped Ayla over to the small alcove-like wall around the bend.

"Unlike us, huh?" asked Ayla weakly.

"Guess there's nothing to do but…wait here," he said, sitting down next to her.

"Yeah…" said Ayla, her head resting on his shoulder once again.

Somewhere, some mountain animal howled. A sad, mournful sound. And dawn slowly came.

* * *

"Damn that rockslide!" Zelda half-yelled for the umpteenth time.

Link could only sigh and stare at the road ahead, wanting the ravine to appear around the next turn, wanting so badly to see Sheik, Ayla and Myde waiting there, waving at them.

They had been significantly delayed by a heavy rockslide a mile or so back. It had not been there when Link had returned from wishing Sheik and others luck, but had occurred between supper time and the beginning of the march. Zelda, who had carefully planned and timed this march to have the army emerge into the fields just an hour before dawn, had lost it, cursing and screaming for the engineers to remove the rubble.

They had not been successful, however, and they eventually had to call Vorpheus in to clear the path. The warlock had taken one look at the blocked path, mumbled something and blown the rubble away. He only shrugged when Zelda asked him why he hadn't come at once, claiming that he had been asleep in the back of one of the medical carts.

But at least they were on the way again, though Zelda kept mumbling that their plans were ruined. Link understood her anger, to a degree, but they had only lost an hour at the most, which he doubted would matter much when they stood in front of Castle Town, preparing to storm it.

The army was not chanting anymore, a hushed silence having fallen upon as they left the comfort of their camp. They knew they were marching towards either victory or certain death, and that there was nothing in-between. It was a sobering experience, but Link had a feeling that many of them were sort of…relieved. Seven years of constant fighting were coming to an end, at last, and the war would be over. The only question was: which banner would be flying over the walls by the end of the day, Zelda's or Ganondorf's?

Aveil was doing an admirable job at keeping Zelda somewhat calm, at least. She had an occasional outburst, but the Gerudo princess' calming voice helped a lot.

Soon, Link began to recognise the rock formations along the path, and he knew that they were getting close to the ravine. He looked at Zelda, who, after a few seconds of confused staring, sighed and nodded. Without a word, Link urged his mount on, galloping along the path, his heart beating wildly, desperate to see the blond hair of his lover.

He saw the bridge appear further ahead in the darkness, but saw nothing of the three infiltrators. His heart sunk, and he slowed down to a trot, slowly approaching the bridge, frowning. But then a dark shape appeared from the small outcropping, waving its arms. He recognised the thin shape of the Zora, General Myde, as he steered towards him. Then Ayla appeared next to him, apparently injured as she had to lean on Myde for support. He was halfway out of the saddle when he reached them, his boots hitting the ground just a few feet away.

"Sheik?" he asked, looking around, hoping to see the Sheikah suddenly come out from behind the outcropping as well.

Slowly, Myde shook his head. "I'm sorry, Hero. They ambushed us, and…"

Link couldn't hear the Zora's words as he continued to speak, his heart beating so hard that it blocked out any other sound but that of his blood rushing around his body. He couldn't breathe. His weapons became heavy.

Not again, he thought. Not again!

He felt Myde's hand on his shoulder, saw their sympathetic faces, but could not find it in him to respond. He shook off the Zora's hand, ignored their worried inquiries as he slowly walked to the bridge. He stared down at the river, at the ledge, at the rope, at the pipe. It began at the pit of his stomach and worked its way upwards, finally emerging from his throat as a scream that drowned out the sound of the waterfall.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 128**

* * *

Sheik was aware of the fact that he was being dragged through the streets, feeling his boots (well, one of them, at least. The right one had fallen off somewhere) scrape along the cobbles, then dirt as they got closer and closer to what remained of the castle. Or that was what he thought, at least, as he couldn't get himself to concentrate enough to actually see anything, his vision still swimming from Nuviro's punch. He was nauseous, certain that he was going to vomit any second. His bare foot scraped against something sharp on the ground, definitely drawing blood. He hissed, and the ones dragging him only laughed.

The air began to grow hot, almost like a furnace, and the smell of sulphur and other noxious fumes could be detected. If he hadn't known better, Sheik would have thought he was back in the caldera of Death Mountain, where he had taught Link the Bolero of Fire. The procession stopped, the heat growing unbearable now. Someone shouted from somewhere far away, their voice barely penetrating the haze the vacuum that had suddenly enveloped his head.

"Lower the bridge!" shouted the voice of Commander Nuviro. "We bring the King a prisoner of great importance!" Nuviro then sighed, muttering. "Incompetent fools," he whispered.

There was the sound of rusted metal plates scraping together, as well as the rumble of heavy machinery. Something slammed into the ground not far away, vicious dust getting into Sheik's eyes. He tried to get rid of it, but his hands had been bound behind his back, the action having almost dislocated his shoulder. Then he was dragged forward again, his knees crashing into what felt like solid stone. But he didn't make a single sound, even as his knees flared up. No way in hell was he going to give these people the satisfaction of hearing him in pain. This was the bridge, apparently, its surface somewhat smoother than the rough dirt ground on the other side. Had Ganondorf expanded the moat? Because there was no way it could have accommodated a bridge this long in its original state. And where _was_ the acrid smell of volcano come from?

They stopped again, Nuviro exchanging some quick, hissing words with whoever was in charge of the bridge, and then they were off again. Cobbles again, Sheik felt, and a doorway…no, a gate. The sounds of his captor's footsteps echoed in the hallway that followed. He was finally able to blink the irritating dirt out of his eyes, and could at last see, if only a little. Torches burned along the walls, the volcanic smell intermingling with heavy incense and other odours, which was a horrendous mixture almost as revolting as fresh manure.

Carpet. He looked down, realising that he was now being dragged along a fine, richly woven, purple wall-to-wall carpet, decorated with silhouettes of…he couldn't exactly see what they were supposed to be, but it was not an uplifting sight. He almost let out a hiss when downward steps suddenly appeared, and the cut on his foot was slammed into them again and again. There was a door at the end of the stairway, which two…were those a pair of Beamos? He blinked, realising that there were indeed two of the statue-like creatures were standing on plinths, their rotating eyes guarding the door. Nuviro gave some sort of signal, and the creatures closed their eyes.

 _How the hell did they manage to tame them?_ Sheik wondered as he was dragged through the door. The guards that had been doing the dragging then let go of his arms, letting him fall flat on his face. He took the opportunity to observe this new room.

It was large and circular, doors lining the walls. Curiously, each door had the symbol of one of the temples above it. That, coupled with the tingling of raw, magical energy that could be felt in the room, led Sheik to believe that this was somehow connected to the veil that Ganondorf had cast over Hyrule that prevented the sages from interfering. If only he could find a way to get free and—

"Are you awake?" asked Nuviro, his face suddenly appearing in Sheik's field of vision, crouching next to him. Once again, he grabbed Sheik by his hair and pulled his face up to his level. "You are about to meet the King himself. I trust you to be on your best behaviour." With that, he grabbed Sheik's arm and pulled him so he could stand on his feet, albeit rather shakily. "Stop swaying," the commander hissed.

"Go to hell," Sheik said, struggling to focus on the commander's face. That punch had really done a number on him. He could feel bile starting climb his throat, recede a little, climb a little, recede a little… He tried to focus on something else than the ugly face of the commander, staring straight ahead. There was a central construction in the room, he realised. Almost like a…room within the room, a richly carved stone bridge leading to a singular door. Around the column (that's what it looked like, really, just gigantic), a magical field surged, shifting and dancing as if it was liquid. If it hadn't been for his current predicament, Sheik would probably have described it as beautiful. But there was something sinister about it as well, something he couldn't quite place his finger on.

His stomach gave another lurch, and he turned his in Nuviro's direction, fully intent on covering the man's armour in bile if he _was_ going to vomit. Nothing came. There was the sound of a door opening, and he looked back at the column. And choked.

He had been mentally preparing himself for seven years, wanting to be ready for the moment he would once again be in the Evil King's presence. But now…it was as if he was back in the Temple of Time, nine years old, being choked by the Gerudo. He had barely been able to escape then, and now…well, he didn't have a plan.

Ganondorf stepped out of the door, his black armour's edges shining in the light from the magical field, a sour expression on his face. His golden eyes held such intensity, such hate…it was impossible to look away. His imposing figure, twice as tall as any normal man, was enough to have one of his captors shiver slightly. His hair, having been allowed to grow and groomed into a wild, fiery mane, looked like it had been set aflame. A cape flowed from his shoulders, spreading out behind him like a massive pair of wings. He walked across the bridge, passing through the field with barely a shrug, his steps loud and echoing. Nuviro subtly placed himself in front of Sheik, obviously wanting to milk this "victory" as much as possible.

"Commander," said Ganondorf, his voice deep and reverberating, yet smooth and oddly beguiling. "This had better be about the intruders, and it had better be good news."

"Yes, my lord," said Nuviro, his voice suddenly smooth as silk. Sheik felt the urge to vomit all over again. "In fact, I believe you will be rather pleased."

"Given your recent performance as overseer of this city, I have my doubts," said Ganondorf. Sheik could _feel_ his gaze upon him, though he stubbornly looked at the ground. "Why have you brought this slave?"

"This is no mere slave, my lord," said Nuviro, stepping away from Sheik. "This boy is one of the intruders who have caused so much trouble tonight."

"Is that so?" asked Ganondorf, stepping closer. He grabbed Sheik's jaw in an iron grip and forced him to look at the Gerudo. Surprise tinged the Gerudo's features at first, then delight. "He…he…he," he slowly laughed. "So, we meet again, young Sheikah."

Sheik clenched his jaw, not intending to speak a word to this man, only glaring at him.

Ganondorf grinned. "Still as silent, I see. Old habits die hard, do they not?" He turned to Nuviro. "The other intruders?"

It was almost a pleasure to hear the commander stutter slightly. "I…I have set up ambush points all over the c…city, my lord," he said. "We will have them soon."

"Who were they?"

"A male Zora, and a female Gerudo, my lord."

"So, the rumours are true," said Ganondorf, sighing. "Zelda has managed to turn my own people against me." He looked back into Sheik's eyes. "And if I am not mistaken, you had a hand in it." His gaze travelled downwards to his right hand, undoubtedly having noticed the upside-down triangle there, but he said nothing.

Sheik remained silent.

"While I am impressed by your perseverance and loyalty to your duties," Ganondorf said, "I am afraid that I must request that you tell me everything you know about the Hyrulian Remnant. I am going to give you a choice: you can tell me everything now, voluntarily and by your own free will, or you can cling to that pathetic oath you have sworn to the princess, and face my torture chambers." He stepped back, trying to gauge Sheik's reaction. "No?" he asked after a few minutes of silence, grinning. "I expected nothing less of you, Sheikah. I am impressed yet again by your tenacity."

He turned his back on them all and slowly began to walk back towards the column. "Commander, have him interrogated immediately." Without another word, he disappeared back inside the column, leaving Nuviro, Sheik and the two guards alone.

The commander sniffed, looked at Sheik with a grin. "He likes you. I could see that." He then sighed and placed a cold gauntlet on Sheik's shoulder. "As much as I would like to oversee your torture—I mean interrogation personally, I have a city to pull back from the brink of chaos. It will be just a matter of time before your accomplices are brought in as well." He sniffed. "Good luck, Sheikah. You will need it." He looked at the two guards, barked orders: "Take him to the dungeon, and send for the Inquisitor. He will know what to ask for."

"Yes, commander!" the guards shouted at the same time. One of them kicked Sheik in the hollows of his knees and they began to drag him away, toward one of the doors in the wall. He hadn't noticed it before, but this one did not have a temple symbol above it. Behind the door, a spiral staircase waited, leading downwards.

The staircase seemed to go far below the ground, cliff walls jutting out. While the rest of the castle—at least the little he had seen of it—had had a somewhat comfortable temperature, the heat from the outside returned the farther they got down. At the bottom, there was a gate. A massive, steel construction of some sort, dozens of locks covered every available spot on the surface. One of the guards knocked on the gate, and someone on the other side spent half an eternity opening the locks, the clicks and chinks grating on Sheik's nerves.

It was strange. He knew he was going to be tortured, yet he felt oddly calm. Perhaps he had passed the point of fear. The only thing he regretted right now was that he had been unable to kill himself at the gatehouse. But that only served as further incentive to remain silent. They were not going to get a _single_ piece of information out of him.

The gate finally swung open, revealing a large, fat man clad in an executioner's outfit, his head covered by a hood. He gestured for the guards and Sheik to enter, and Sheik shrugged their hands off his shoulders, defiantly deciding to walk on his own.

The dungeons were horrific. Cells lined the walls, all filled with either dead or dying people, their forms mutilated and broken. Some had been shackled to the walls, their feet dangling an inch off the floor. The heat was unbearable in here, and the stench was even worse than inside the pipe the three infiltrators had used to enter the city. He was led past the cells, into a central chamber. There was a room, at the very end, which he was forced to enter. With a grunt, one of the guards loosened the rope that bound his hands together, pushed him forward and left without a word, locking the door behind him, leaving Sheik alone in this new room.

Unlike the rest of the dungeons, this room was well lit, and the temperature somewhat comfortable. But the furnishing was anything but. A solitary chair stood in the middle of the room. It had braces on both armrests, clearly to restrain someone, as well as on its legs.. That, by itself, was not very scary, but the bloodstains on the floor beneath it…

A small table stood in a corner, seemingly serving no purpose at all. If this was a torture chamber…well, Sheik was not impressed. He had seen far worse. He rubbed his wrists, the skin there raw and almost bleeding because of the rough rope, his hands throbbing as blood was finally able to return to them. He took a step forward, wondering if this was actually some sort of trap, that there would be some sort of mechanism for a horrible torture machine somewhere.

There were voices on the other side of the door now. The guards were arguing with someone. The door opened, and one of the guards entered the room, fuming. He forced Sheik to sit in the chair, and then fastened the braces around his arms and legs, locking Sheik in place. Then the guard left the room again.

 _Well, that was not entirely unexpected_ _,_ Sheik thought, looking around. Tapestries covered the walls, he realised. _What kind of a torture chamber has bloody_ tapestries _on the walls?_

He lost track of time as he sat there, certain that his captors were playing some sort of trick on him, that they were trying some sort of psychological tomfoolery. They would have to get up pretty early in the morning to get the drop on him, though.

There was a rustle from the door yet again, and it swung open. To Sheik's surprise, a young man entered the room. He couldn't have been much older than Link, perhaps a few years older. His ears gave him away as a Hylian. He had a pleasant face; if slightly plump, though this did not reflect on his general physique, which was slim and fit. A pair of blue eyes looked at him, so light in colour that they almost appeared to be grey. His black hair reached his shoulders, though the lengths were highly irregular. He wore a set of plain, red robes, clearly designed for comfort and practicality rather than flashiness. He carried a bag in one hand, which looked quite heavy. He smiled at Sheik, clearly attempting to be a soothing presence.

"I am sorry for the delay," he said calmly. "But I was fast asleep, and trying to wake me at this time of night…heh, it is quite a challenge." He set the bag down on the floor and held out a hand. "My name is—ah, they've already settled you in, I see," he said and let his hand fall, chuckling. "How embarrassing. Anyway, my name is Hatra, also known as the Inquisitor. You may wonder about the title, and I will not lie to you. I am called so because I am the very best interrogator in all of the legions, with a hundred percent success rate so far."

Sheik only glared at him. Hatra continued smiling.

"Not in a talkative mood, are we? That is quite counterproductive to the business we are conducting here, unfortunately." He went over to the small table in the corner, picked it up and carried it over the chair. Then he put his bag on top of it, opening it. "As I understand it, you have already declined the opportunity to speak."

 _Exactly,_ thought Sheik, looking this _Inquisitor_ person up and down. _And I don't believe for a second that you are a torturer. I think you've been sent in here to unnerve me. Well, that is not going to work._

Hatra sighed when Sheik did not respond. "Well, if you still do not wish to talk, then I suppose there is no reason for me to wait." He stopped fiddling with the bag and crouched down in front of Sheik, staring him in the eyes. "I have always been fascinated by you Sheikah," he said. "And long have I wanted to test my skills against one. Unfortunately, I have been denied that opportunity…until tonight." He squinted, looking Sheik in the eyes. "Hm, would I be wrong in assuming that your left eye is non-functioning?" he asked. Without waiting for an answer, he began to waggle a finger in front of the damaged eye.

"Hm," Hatra said again. "Indeed, you are blind on that eye. Well, that is unfortunate."

"What's it to you?" asked Sheik, deciding to humour this…this _boy_ for a bit.

"So you _can_ speak," said Hatra, smiling. "I was afraid you were mute. That would have made it quite difficult to interrogate you."

"I _know_ you're not an interrogator," said Sheik. "You're not the type."

"What, all interrogators are supposed to look like my assistant out there, the plump one?" asked Hatra, frowning. "Believe me, appearances mean nothing." He clapped his hands together and began fiddling with his bag again, pulling out a leather bundle. He unrolled it, revealing a myriad of small metal tools, the likes of which Sheik had never seen before. "Undoubtedly," Hatra said as he inspected one of the small tools, "you are under the impression that interrogation—or torture, as its also known as in some circles—consists of causing as much physical pain and damage as possible on the quest to extract answers." He put the tool down, looking at Sheik. "That the breaking of limbs and permanent disfiguration is the only way to go about it." He grinned. "Wrong.

"You see," he continued, "I do not believe in doing those things. At least, not on such a large scale." He held one of the small tools in front of Sheik's face, showing that it was a tiny metal hook. "One of my specialties, for example, is teeth. You have no idea the endless amount of pain and discomfort one can cause by…for example, making a tiny hole in a molar and then fill the subject's mouth with ice-cold water.

"Or better yet," Hatra said, putting away the hook and pulling out a scalpel. "Making small incisions in one's skin and filling them with salt. It may not seem like much, but do it for long enough, and the subject will _definitely_ speak."

"I am not impressed," said Sheik.

"I had a feeling you wouldn't be," said Hatra. "You Sheikah are well-known for your interrogation prowess. However, you also rely on…hm, what should I call it, the _violent_ side of the spectrum. I believe it is entirely possible to torture someone without getting violent." He paused, looking closer at Sheik's mouth. "You know, you have taken quite good care of your choppers. You wouldn't believe the hygiene level among the soldiers here, much less _dental_ hygiene. Especially among the younger troopers. It's refreshing to see a youngster like yourself with such an excellent set of teeth."

"How old are you, exactly?" asked Sheik, trying to keep his teeth from view as he spoke, which was bloody hard to do. "To call _me_ a youngster."

"Now, now, we mustn't turn this into a game," said Hatra. " _I_ am the interrogator, _you_ are the subject." He paused again, a fain smile coming to his face. "But I suppose it wouldn't hurt, would it? I passed my twenty-first year of life a month ago."

 _Now I_ know _he's lying. What ruler in their right state of mind would let someone barely out of their childhood be the interrogator of so-called "important" prisoners?_ Sheik thought.

"And," continued Hatra, "if I were to take a guess at _your_ age, I'd say you are somewhere around fifteen, sixteen, am I correct?" He grinned again. "That's quite young to be a high-level operative for a false princess, no? But then again, you have showed your skill just by getting inside the city and assassinating Commander Amel…hm, I really must thank you for that, however. The man was a monster."

"Are you _always_ this chatty with prisoners?" asked Sheik. "I'd think an efficient torturer would have gotten on with it by now."

"Someone's eager," said Hatra, chuckling. "Very well, then I shall not delay any further." He hesitated. "I really don't want to start on those gorgeous teeth, however. I suppose I will start in the even smaller, then." He pulled out a small bottle, uncorking it. "Have you ever wondered about the effects of acid on human skin?"

* * *

"So," said Zelda, looking down on the map of city, where Myde and Ayla had made several marks with a pencil. "You say that at least two armouries have been taken out along with the drawbridge and a large piece of a wall?"

"That is correct," said Myde. "Also, on our way out, we managed to blow up quite a bit of their food supply…or that's what we think, at least, as none of us knew what those barrels contained."

The army had been halted for half an hour or so in order for Myde and Ayla to deliver their report. Zelda had taken the news of the ambush and Sheik's predicament in stride, hardly acknowledging it, in fact. Ayla had been excused from reporting, her shoulder injury brought to the attention of Kaura. The princess and the Zora were standing on the bridge, the roar from the waterfall preventing anyone from hearing information not meant for them.

"Hm, that is good news," said Zelda. "And the…" She hesitated. "The legion commanders?" she asked.

"Sheik was able to assassinate one of them," said Myde. "Commander Amel was his name, I believe."

"Then the second legion has no leader," said Zelda. "That is good. And Commander Nuviro?"

"Still alive, as far as I know," said Myde. He rolled the map back up and handed it to Zelda, who took it. "We hit several snags on our way in, and we began to draw attention to ourselves too soon, in my opinion. The drain pipe, for example, was not just for the water from the moat. It is being used for…sewage." He shuddered to think of the things he had practically been swimming through.

"Is _that_ what that smell is?" asked Zelda.

"Yes, Your Highness," said Myde, nodding. "We were forced to find new clothes once we emerged from the pipe as the smell would give us away. We lost quite a bit of time with that."

"Then I highly suggest you have a wash after this report, general," said Zelda kindly. "For your own sake, I mean. But it worries me that they are pumping raw sewage into this river."

"They are polluting Lake Hylia," said Myde. "Perhaps they decided to go with more…er…traditional means after their plan with the warlocks failed."

"Is there no ends to the devilry those people are willing to stoop to?" asked Zelda, her brow wrinkling with…anger? She then took a deep breath and looked into Myde's eyes, and he knew exactly what she was going to ask. "When Sheik was trapped inside the gatehouse," she said slowly. "Did he…was he able to…?"

"Alas, I am not sure," said Myde regretfully. "I saw him place a dagger at his own throat, but I do not know if he was able to kill himself. But if he didn't, then I can't imagine what he is going through right now."

The princess' hands clenched around the map, wrinkling the paper. "Alright, thank you, general."

"Your Highness," Myde said, bowing. As he walked away, he noticed that Link was standing at the edge of the cliff, looking down at the rope. He wondered if he should say something, but saw that the princess was making her way towards him. Best not to get involved, he decided and headed for where Ayla was being patched up, wondering if his partner was okay.

* * *

Link looked up as Zelda approached him, a neutral expression on her face. He had been contemplating this for a while now, and with one final sigh, he grabbed the rope and tossed it over the cliff, preparing to climb down.

"I'm going after him," he said.

"You can't," said Zelda, calmly regarding him, but making no movement to stop him either. "Myde said that the pipe has been blocked off by the explosion. It's impossible to enter the city that way now."

"Then I'll…" Link said, pausing. The pipe was pretty much crucial. "Then I'll take a horse and ride ahead, see if I can't sneak into the city through the front door."

"Again, you can't, Link," said Zelda, shaking her head. "The gates will be too heavily guarded now, especially since they've lost the drawbridge." She put a hand on his shoulder, attempting to comfort him.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" asked Link, voice breaking. "He's in there, Zelda!" he exclaimed, pointing in the direction of the city. "He's in there, being tortured right now!"

"We don't know that," said Zelda, her calm tone of voice beginning to annoy him greatly. "Myde saw him preparing to kill himse—"

"He's not _dead_ , Zelda," said Link. "I know he's not! I would have felt it if he died!"

"Link, please calm down—"

"Calm down? How the hell can I calm down when I know that Sheik's in Ganondorf's hands?" he said, almost hysterically. "And how can _you_ be so calm? He's your brother, for pity's sake!"

Zelda waited for him to finish, for his breath to level out again. Then she took his hand in hers, squeezed comfortingly. "Link, I am just as upset as you are, believe me. But I can't let this weigh me down. Not now. Not when we are so close to achieving our goal. If Sheik is not dead, then we will rescue him. If he is…there will be more than enough time to mourn later." A solitary tear streaked down her cheek as she said this. "See?" she said. "I'm upset, but if I let it get to me any more than this, I will not be able to fight the upcoming battle. And neither will you. Please, try and set aside your sorrow." She pulled him into a hug, and she smiled when she felt Link cling to her desperately. "Go on, let it out."

And the Hero cried.

* * *

"Hey, be careful with that!" Ayla exclaimed when she saw Kaura's fingers almost plunging into her shoulder. She couldn't feel it, the area having been numbed, but just seeing it…

"Oh, quit your complaining, you stupid girl," Kaura said, glaring at her. "I have performed procedures like this a million times. I know what I am doing."

"Yeah, but—"

"Shut up!"

Myde could only stare uncomfortably as the physician felt around inside the wound, feeling slightly awkward as he stood there. This really couldn't be the best environment for such a procedure, he thought. Lying down on an uncovered cart in the middle of a dusty valley, having only cleaned the wound with alcohol… But then, Ayla _had_ demanded to be fixed immediately so that she could fight.

"Hm," said Kaura after a few minutes. "The tendons seem to be fine. The arrow probably upset the nerve paths to such a degree that they have ceased to send signals to your arm."

"Is that a real thing?" asked Ayla, looking to Myde for the answer.

He shrugged. "I am really not the person to ask," he said. Thea would probably have known the answer, he thought. He wondered if she was okay…

"Yes, it is most certainly a real thing," said Kaura condescendingly. "And easily fixable. You, fish boy, do you still have the potion I gave you?" she asked Myde, who fumbled the vial out of his pocket. The physician took it with a grunt and uncorked it, pouring half of the content into the wound, and then gave the rest to Ayla to drink. "Right, this will heal the worst of it. It will feel a bit strange once you are able to move it again, but continue taking this stuff for a few months, and it will be fine, I think."

"You think?" asked Ayla.

"Fine, I _know_ ," said Kaura, rolling her eyes. "You Gerudo are worse than children, you know that? Hell, you're worse than the _Hero_ , of all people." She bandaged up the wound, not even bothering to stitch it shut and then turned to Myde, looking him up and down. "And you? Do you have any injuries?"

"No, I am fine," he said hurriedly, having no wish to come under that woman's knife.

"Alright, then," said Kaura, closing her bag. "I will be going back to sleep, then." She walked off, disappearing among the ranks.

"What a heartless bitch," said Ayla after a few minutes. Myde helped her down from the cart, steadying her. "She didn't even blink when I told her that Sheik has been captured."

"Again, we do not know if he's been captured," said Myde. "And perhaps she is just trying to remain focused on tomorrow's battle. Princess Zelda did the same."

"So, am I the only who's upset about Sheik?" asked Ayla.

"No, but you're the only one who is letting it get to you," said Myde, attempting to smile gently. "We can't let this overwhelm us. Not now."

"You're heartless too!" she exclaimed.

"So I have been told," said Myde.

"Get off me," the Gerudo said, struggling to get out of his supporting hold. "I can walk by myself." Her hobble told him otherwise, but Myde decided not to argue. She began to head in the direction of her people, leaving Myde at the cart, alone. He sighed. He just did not understand women, neither Zora, Hylian nor Gerudo.

"Er, I'll see you later?" he called after her.

She didn't answer, only turned around and stared at him. Then she said something he didn't expect. "And I'm twenty-three, thank you very much!" With that, she turned around and hobbled off.

Myde found himself grinning stupidly. "So am I," he said quietly.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 129**

* * *

Sheik had been wrong. So very wrong. Hatra was not only an torturer, he was a _skilled_ torturer. In a matter of minutes, he had managed to expose Sheik to some of the worst pain he had ever experienced. He had taken some sort of pipette and begun to apply the acid to various spots on his arms, his shoulders, his back, his chest and his feet, only to wipe it away with a wet rag seconds after, leaving only a small, red blemish on the skin.

"It's not _real_ acid," Hatra said after wiping off his shoulders. "Or, it's real, but much diluted." He put the rag away and screwed the lid on the bottle, placing it back in his bag. "Putting strong acid on human skin will destroy it, and I am saving that for my trump card."

All the while he said this; he still had the infuriating, calm smile on his face, as if he was discussing nothing more harmless than the effects of an extra scone at tea. Sheik glared at him, the exposed areas still stinging heavily. If that was diluted, he hated to think how much undiluted acid would hurt. But he was not going to talk. No way in hell was he going to talk.

Hatra observed him for a few seconds, resting his chin in a hand, clicking his tongue. "You know, I'm afraid I don't really know what to do now." He began to pace back and forth in front of Sheik, as if contemplating a life-changing dilemma. "On one hand, I have been ordered to extract as much information from you by any means necessary. On the other, I find myself unwilling to blemish the perfection that is your body."

 _Perfection? What's he on about now?_ Sheik wondered, preparing himself for any tricks. Hatra gave him another stare.

"You see," the Inquisitor continued, "I have a great fondness for aesthetics. Anything I find beautiful, I immediately form an attachment to. It's a weakness, I know, but not one I am very interested in correcting. Unfortunately, it has once again thrown a spoke in my wheels, as I found myself quite attracted to you."

 _Oh no, not another one,_ Sheik thought, wanting to groan loudly. He couldn't, however, having vowed to clam up completely after Hatra had begun applying the acid to his skin.

"And the funny thing is," said Hatra, coming closer to Sheik, looking down at him. "I have never found other men interesting." He crouched down again, probably trying to seem more sympathetic. "I think it is because you remind me so very much of a girl, even though you clearly belong to the other genital group." He reached up, touching Sheik's cheek lightly. Then he shook his head, stood up and headed back for his bag. "Nevertheless," he said, rummaging around in it, "I have my orders, and I have not survived in a mercenary army since I was five years old just to be felled by _you_."

After a few seconds, he sighed heavily and stopped rummaging, withdrawing a scalpel and another bottle of something. Within the brown distortion, Sheik could see what he had suspected: salt. _Already using his big hitters?_ Sheik thought.

"This is one of my crudest and simplest methods," Hatra said, eyeing the two instruments as if he hated them more than anything. "And not one I am fond of using." He went over to one of the tapestries and pulled it aside, revealing a small hollow in the wall. His body obscured whatever was in there, but Sheik could have sworn he saw something glint in the light from the room. Hatra pulled out a small, backless chair with three legs and set it down beside the chair Sheik was shackled to. He sat down on it, holding the scalpel just above Sheik's wrist.

"Now," he said. "I am going to give you one last chance to speak out before I start cutting you. I can assure that salt is not the only thing I can use to produce discomfort and pain. I can also promise you that this will _hurt_. Judging by some of your scars, you are no stranger to pain, but those are all from battle wounds, no? When in a stressful situation, such as in a battle, the body produces a natural painkiller. Here, in my chamber, it will not."

"Just get on with it," Sheik said, finally unable to take anymore of this idle chatter. "Do your worst."

"As you wish," said Hatra and made the first incision.

* * *

Sheik gritted his teeth, sweating heavily, as the wounds burned. Hatra had made small cuts, no more than an inch or so long, all over his body and poured a generous amount of salt into them all and then squeezed them shut, ensuring that all the nerves were exposed to it. The first cut and salting hadn't been as bad, but as Hatra had added more and more of them…it built up to a horrible, synchronised stinging and throbbing all over his body.

Meanwhile, Hatra was sitting in the chair, just staring at him with an empty, listless expression, occasionally raising an eyebrow when Sheik's muscles tensed involuntarily. Every now and then, he also gave a small sigh. It was…annoying. Coupled with the pain from the salt and wounds, it was almost enough to have Sheik screaming. Just almost, though.

"I must admit that I am impressed by your resilience," said Hatra suddenly, rising from chair. "By now, older men have almost been in tears. Weak men, certainly, but still older." He picked up the scalpel again, probably intending to make more cuts, but just as he was about to make another cut, in Sheik's face this time, there was a knock on the door. Hatra gritted his teeth and put the scalpel down, seemingly having to compose himself for a moment. "If there is one thing I hate," he said, "it's being interrupted in the middle of my work."

He rose from the chair and headed for the door, unlocking it and opening it no more than a few inches, only enough to allow the person who did the knocking see his face. "What?" he asked. There was a hurried whisper on the other side, and then Hatra whispered back, his face growing slightly agitated. Sheik could only pick up a few words: "…just started…why…do it himself?" This continued for a few minutes, and Sheik was struggling to concentrate enough to listen in on the conversation.

"Fine!" Hatra exclaimed after another minute. "But he'll have to come down here himself. I am _not_ going through the trouble—or risk—of letting him out of the chair." He then slammed the door in the interrupter's face. He then went back to his chair, staring at Sheik. "Isn't it fun when the higher-ups just insist on encroaching on one's territory?" he asked. "Apparently, I was just a placeholder. Commander Nuviro has decided to interrogate you himself, meaning that my efforts so far have been all for nothing."

"How sad for you," said Sheik, sweat dripping off his brow. "You have my sympathy, you really do."

"Ah, sarcasm. The defence of the young and foolish," said Hatra, once again reaching for his wet cloth. Slowly, he began to wash the wounds he had inflicted, just like he had wiped away the acid. The marks were still angry and red, but the burning had stopped. Or maybe it had just been replaced by the sting of the salt. "Nuviro may be my superior, but there is no way I am going to let him take advantage of any groundwork I have laid," he said.

Sheik made no comment, as the shock of water in the wounds had frozen his tongue completely. It hurt like hell, but at the same time it was incredibly soothing.

"Hm?" asked Hatra. "What's this?" He turned Sheik's right hand around, exposing the Delta Force. "A Triforce mark? No…that's not it…"

There was another knock on the door, and Hatra stood up, packing away his equipment. "That would be the commander, I suppose," he said. "Believe me, Sheikah, you would have gotten out of this in a much better physical state had I been in charge." He picked up his bag and nodded to Sheik. "It was an honour meeting you, however, and I hope there are no hard feelings between us." Sheik said nothing, only stared at him. The knock continued. "The door is not locked, commander," Hatra shouted.

The door opened, and Nuviro entered, flanked by two guards. "You've had an hour, Inquisitor," the man said. "What information have you extracted?"

"None, so far," said Hatra, staring the man directly in the eyes.

 _An hour? Has it been that long already?_ Sheik wondered. Surely the pain had not been _that_ bad?

"None?" asked Nuviro. "None?!" he thundered.

"None," confirmed Hatra, nodding. "He is a Sheikah, specifically trained to resist interrogation, commander. I have been grinding down his defences, but your…hm, interruption has ruined it all. I wouldn't be surprised if he was even tighter-lipped now."

Sheik had to give the young man credit. He was staring down and scolding a man who had a habit of cutting the head off anyone who dared to even question his orders. And the commander actually looked embarrassed. Hatra hadn't been lying about his status either, it seemed.

"We have little time, Inquisitor," tried Nuviro. "At this very second, an army could be marching on us."

"And?" asked Hatra. "Do you honestly believe the Remnant are in any condition to fight a battle right now, much less a siege? Commander, you told me yourself just the other day that they have been reduced to less than ten thousand men and women now. Also, they are hiding in the Lost Woods, at the other end of this kingdom. Marching from there to here in one night is impossible, especially with three _entire_ legions looking for them." Hatra made another of his little sighs, which seemed to be some sort of personal quirk. "Honestly, Karl, I'm starting to wonder about you."

"Watch your mouth, boy," said Nuviro warningly. "I took you in and gave you food, clothes and shelter. I can just as easily take it away, along with your head."

"Ah, but then King Ganondorf wouldn't hesitate to do the same to you, would he?" asked Hatra, smiling. "I doubt he would appreciate you killing his top interrogator."

"You just be careful," Nuviro said slowly, stepping out of Hatra's way. "One of these days, my compassion will reach its limits." As if to emphasise his point, he tapped the sword handle by his side. "And then…I'll put your head on a pike."

"Cute, Karl, very cute," said Hatra, stepping out the door. One of the guards closed the door. Sheik noticed that they were both carrying his weapons, which had been taken from him back at the gatehouse.

"One of these days, I am going to kill that boy," Nuviro said, mostly to himself. He then focused his gaze on Sheik and grinned. "Ah, he did the salt one on you, did he? Older men—"

"Have cried," finished Sheik. "Yes, he told me that."

Nuviro only nodded and motioned for the men to put his weapons on the small table, after which they were told to leave the room. They saluted and disappeared, leaving Sheik and Nuviro alone. The commander picked up one of the dagger holsters, studying the leather before pulling one of the daggers out. He pulled off a gauntlet and ran a finger along the blade, hissing slightly when the edge bit into it. "Amazingly sharp, these daggers," he said. "No doubt made by skilled Sheikah hands."

 _More like Zelda's experienced and skilled blacksmiths,_ thought Sheik.

"And this sword," continued Nuviro, putting down the knife and drawing Kazuya out of its sheath. "Is unlike anything I have ever seen. Why does it not have a crosspiece? It is almost as if…as if you Sheikah don't consider blocking or parrying important."

 _There_ is _a crosspiece, you blithering idiot,_ thought Sheik. _Just because it is not in the actual_ shape _of a cross doesn't mean it's not there._

"Well, it _is_ an excellent blade, for what it's worth," Nuviro said, giving it a few practice swings, coming dangerously close to slashing Sheik's face. "My, you are not easily fazed, are you?"

"Idle banter got Hatra nowhere, and his topics of conversations were much more interesting," said Sheik. "So where do you suppose that's going to lead _you_?"

The gauntleted fist came out of nowhere, striking across his face like a rock. He was sure he felt the already-loose tooth come just a bit looser. The edges of the gauntlet cut his cheek, blood already flowing steadily. Again and again, Nuviro struck him until all he could hear was ringing in his ears.

"You will address me with respect," Nuviro said, panting. "And I expect you to reveal everything you know at this instant, or I swear I will make your existence a living hell."

"I've been threatened with that by someone before," said Sheik, spitting out the blood that had filled his mouth after biting his cheek. "And they ended up dead."

Nuviro struck him again, this time adding a kick to his stomach, knocking the breath out of him. He grabbed the coughing Sheikah's hair and pulled it up, exposing his neck. He held Kazuya's edge to it, the edge barely touching the skin.

"Hatra may enjoy prolonging physical and mental torture," Nuviro said. "But I am more to the point. You will tell me everything you know." He quickly swiped Kazuya across Sheik's throat, barely cutting the skin superficially. An angry red line was left behind, blood slowly dripping. "Or I will make that cut even deeper."

"As I told the other one," said Sheik, spitting out another mouthful of blood. "Do your worst."

* * *

In retrospect, Sheik would have picked Hatra over Nuviro. At least the young man had a sense of honour, if somewhat misplaced, or that's what he got the impression of, anyway. Despite being skilled at it, he showed no signs of enjoying inflicting pain. Nuviro, on the other hand, was just a violent bastard who liked torturing people. This was the same man who had ordered all military prisoners to be executed, so Sheik hadn't expected anything else.

Nuviro chuckled as he stopped hitting Sheik again, his gauntlets and armour speckled with his blood. He hadn't made good on his promise to cut Sheik's throat yet, preferring to beat him senseless instead, and almost succeeding. For a moment, Sheik couldn't actually see or hear anything. One of his teeth had come loose, which he spat out. His face was probably unrecognisable, having swollen from cuts and bruises Nuviro had inflicted upon him.

"You _are_ resilient," the commander said.

"That's…what…they…tell…me," said Sheik slowly, having to struggle to actually get anything past his lips.

"Well, it's obvious to me that beating you is not going to work," said Nuviro, taking his gauntlets off. He then sat down on the small chair, which creaked warningly, and began to pick at Sheik's hand. "The King told me about this mark," he said. "The Delta Force. A useless piece of artefact, a by-product of the Triforce. One wonders where you got it from."

Sheik could only weakly glare at him.

"It's interesting, because apparently, it chooses its wielders," continued Nuviro. "And it seems to have chosen you, despite the fact that you have no part in any prophecy or legend." He smiled and slowly began to bend Sheik's index finger backwards, stopping just before the join wouldn't move. "But that is of no consequence, is it?" he asked and viciously broke the finger.

For the first time that night, Sheik screamed. He had broken limbs before, several times in fact, but the pain of the broken finger, on top of everything else, was unbearable. His throat hurt as the scream extended, lasting until he ran out of air.

"Ah, finally you show _some_ reaction," said Nuviro, smiling. He let go of the index finger, and then grabbed the middle one. "I am going to continue breaking your fingers until you tell me all you know. How does that sound?"

"You said…you would…slit my throat…too," Sheik panted. "And…that didn't…happen…"

"Yes, well, a functioning throat and windpipe are kind of necessary to talk, are they not?" asked Nuviro, slowly bending the middle finger back. "Fingers, on the other hand, are not." There was a sickening snap as the middle finger broke, and Sheik's scream once again filled the room. The process continued as Nuviro slowly broke every finger on Sheik's right hand along with the thumb.

Sheik twisted in the chair, wanting so badly to fly at this man and rip his throat out, the Delta Force positively _burning_ now. But it hurt so much… Tears of pain, frustration and rage had begun to flow from his eyes. He felt stick to his stomach, his head spinning from the beatings, his mouth continually filling with blood.

As Nuviro slowly reached for his left hand, however, there was a knock at the door. Nuviro looked like he was going to ignore it for a moment, but then the knocking came back, harsher this time, along with Hatra's voice.

"Commander, open the door!"

"You had your chance, Hatra!" Nuviro called back. "He is just about to talk!"

"Then it is even more important that you open the door!" Hatra called through the door. "The King is here."

Nuviro froze, his eyes widening. He slowly got up from the chair, looking around in a panicking way, though Sheik couldn't discern why. "Er…of course!" he shouted and did his best to wipe away the blood covering his armour with a piece of cloth, to no avail as it was only smeared. He opened the door, backing away as Ganondorf strode into the room immediately, easily dwarfing the tall commander, his eyes landing on Sheik.

"My lord," said Nuviro. "The prisoner is _this_ close to talking, if you would just let me—"

"Commander, would you care to tell me why you are not doing your job?" asked the Gerudo slowly, looking at Sheik with…was that a _pitying_ expression? Now Sheik knew he _had_ to be concussed.

"My lord?" asked Nuviro.

"The city is still in complete chaos," said Ganondorf, not taking his eyes off Sheik. "The guards are running around like headless cuccoos, and the prisoners have started some sort of riot on the other side of the wall. They are led by that strange half-breed. I want you to stamp it out immediately, or I will find someone else who can."

"But my lord, I have loosened this one's tongue considerably—"Nuviro began.

"Which was not your job to begin with," said Ganondorf. "You sent for the Inquisitor, who, in matters of interrogation, are above you in rank." He placed a large hand on Hatra's shoulder, as if to show the blatant favouritism even more clearly. "And yet you send him away before he even had a chance to properly start."

"I'm sorry, Karl," said Hatra. "But I had to go to higher authorities."

"You snivelling little—"

"Commander, you have a job to do. I highly suggest you go about it," said Ganondorf, stopping the argument before it could begin, staring the commander into submission. Nodding, Nuviro went for the door, throwing one last glance at Sheik. Then he was gone.

"Thank you, my lord," Hatra said after a couple of seconds. "I wasn't able to stop him. I can only hope he hasn't damaged him too much." He gestured towards Sheik, who stared back at them.

 _I've been caught up in some kind of power struggle,_ he thought faintly. _Or maybe a sycophantic battle for Ganondorf's appreciation…_

"You need to be more assertive, Inquisitor," said Ganondorf, stepping forward to look down at Sheik. "Well, Sheikah, how do you enjoy your stay in the dungeons so far?"

"Quite…agreeable," said Sheik.

"Hah, a sense of humour, I like that," said Ganondorf. He turned back to Hatra, placing another giant hand on the young man's shoulder. "Break him, Hatra."

"I will do my best, my lord," said Hatra, bowing slightly.

Ganondorf nodded. "Remember, if he does not respond to pain, there are…other ways to do it." The last part was said with a suggestive tone of voice which made Sheik shudder.

After the King had left, Hatra once again set up his equipment on the small table, a small bounce on his step, almost. "Dear, oh dear," he said. "I do believe he just suggested I use rape as a means…" He looked at Sheik, cocking an eyebrow. "Have you ever heard a more vulgar suggestion?"

"I wouldn't know," said Sheik, finally able to draw a bit more air into his lungs. "I'm not the torturer."

"Hm, good point," said Hatra. He withdrew another wet cloth from his bag and slowly and gently began to clean the cuts and bruises on Sheik's face and body. "Believe me, I would never have done this to you," he whispered. He gently probed Sheik's hand, grimacing when Sheik hissed. "He broke your fingers, didn't he? A shame you weren't able to kill _him_ as well."

"What's the matter with you?" asked Sheik.

"Pardon?"

"Why do you behave like you are anything but a sadist working for the most evil man in the world?" Sheik turned his head away. "And why are you being so friendly?"

"Friendly?" asked Hatra. "I wouldn't call putting acid on your skin and filling your wounds with salt friendly." He smiled faintly. "I just like to uphold a certain level of civility with my prisoners." He winced when he ran a finger over Sheik's nose. " _And_ he broke your nose. That bastard."

 _All things considered, I prefer this one over Nuviro,_ thought Sheik.

* * *

They had been too late to reach the plains before dawn. The sun had just started to creep over the mountains as the last of the marching army cleared the valley entrance. The ashen-grey land stretched in front of them as they steadily made their way toward Castle Town, their spirits dampened somewhat by the death of the land around them. Trees crumbled into ash, grass dissolved beneath their feet and there was not a single sign of life in sight.

After an hour or so of steady marching, they reached the bottom of the last hill, from the top of which they would be able to see the city. The army stopped here, however, and scouts were sent in all directions to see if the coast was clear. A messenger bird was also dispatched to the scouts at the Lost Woods in order to confirm that the three legions were still busy searching through the forest.

In the meantime, the headquarters were set up along with the field hospital. Zelda, Aveil and the rest of the high command were already discussing possible strategies for the upcoming battle, while Link sort of lingered in the background, knowing that he wouldn't understand anything they said.

He felt a prick on his shoulder and turned around, coming face to face with an angry-looking Kaura. "Er, is something wrong?" he asked.

"I don't know, you tell me," said Kaura, grabbing his arm and pulling him toward the field hospital. "Care to explain what _he_ is doing here?" she asked, gesturing towards a stack of crates, on top which Tao was sitting, eating a bar of chocolate, probably pilfered from the physician's private stash. He waved at them. Link and Kaura waved back. Then the physician glared at the Hero. "I found him in the back of the cart of supplies," she said. "I thought he was going to remain behind, in safety."

"Er…" said Link slowly. He _had_ been intending to tell Kaura that he had smuggled Tao with them, but the look she was giving him…frightened him. "It wasn't my idea," he said.

"I figured that out," said Kaura. "But whose was it?"

"Sheik didn't want Tao to stay behind with the Gerudo in case they try to pull a fast one," he said.

"So you decided to bring him to a battlefield instead," said Kaura, staring at him in disbelief. "Where people will die, and blood and guts will flow like rivers? Yeah, that's a better idea."

"Get off my back," said Link, annoyed. "I'm doing my best. He won't be in the way, I promise."

Kaura sighed, smiling in Tao's direction. "If he gets hurt, though, it's on your head," she said. They heard someone yelling about being careful along with something crashing to the ground. Looking around, they saw that several medics were struggling with unloading one of the carts. Link heard the physician's knuckles crack as she tightened her fist. "Excuse me," she said and strode over to the cart.

Link decided not to view the onslaught and went over to Tao instead, trying to smile. Sheik had wanted this, right? Link hadn't been sure what to do about looking out for the boy without taking him with him to the battle, but it was better than leaving him with the Gerudo, surely? He seated himself on the crates next to Tao.

"How're you doing?" he asked.

"Fine," replied Tao. "I got chocolate." He broke off a piece and gave it to Link. The Hero smiled and ate it, wondering why he hadn't had some before. "Where's Sheik?" the boy asked after a while.

Link felt his stomach give a lurch. He was trying to take his mind off the Sheikah, but everywhere he looked something or someone reminded him of his lover. "He's…he's not here," said Link.

"Why not?" asked Tao.

"He...was captured last night, in the city," said Link. "But I'm gonna get him back, though," he said hurriedly.

"You'd better," said Tao, finishing the chocolate. "Or he's going to be mad at you."

"Yeah, I'm going to get a tongue-lashing the second I see him again, I think," said Link, finding himself smiling at the boy's comment. It was true, too. Sheik would probably admonish him for taking so long to get back into the city. At least he wasn't the only one who knew that Sheik was still alive, that he didn't kill himself at the moment of capture.

"And you're going to tell _him_ off for getting captured," said Tao. "It's gonna be hilarious."

"Yeah," said Link, staring at the rising sun. "It'll be fun."

* * *

Sheik screamed one last time as Hatra shoved the piece of metal underneath his fingernail, the pain unlike anything he had ever felt before.

"Hm, five plates and still nothing," said Hatra, gingerly touching the flat metal. "Good thing they don't make you bleed, eh? Yet again you impress me."

"Fuck you!" Sheik managed to press forward between his clenched teeth. "Go to hell!"

"Believe me, I have no misconceptions of going anywhere _but_ there," said Hatra, grinning. "Considering the environment I grew up in, it's a given." Without warning, he ripped one of the plates out, the nerves underneath Sheik's nail flaring up. One after another, he ripped them out, leaving Sheik panting and sobbing, unable to control himself any longer. It was just too much, the acid, the salt, the beating from Nuviro… Hatra waited for him to calm down again, and smiled at him. "Now, are you going to tell me?"

"No."

"Then I suppose I have no choice but to go directly to my specialty," the Inquisitor said, unrolling the bundle of leather with all the horrible tools. "Unfortunately, Nuviro seems to have knocked one of your gorgeous teeth out already, which is a shame. But I suppose that's…heh…one less tooth for me to destroy. Would you like some water?" He held out a flask, offering to tip its contents into the Sheikah's mouth. "It will make you feel better," he said in a tempting voice.

"No thanks," said Sheik, spitting out more blood.

"Well, it would be very helpful to _me_ if you took a drink of water," said Hatra pressingly. "It would make it easier for me to see what I am doing."

"Why the hell would I want to help you with that?" asked Sheik.

"Good point," said Hatra, putting the flask away. He picked up a pair of tools, one of them the little metal hook he had shown Sheik hours before, and then what seemed to be a tiny mirror on the end of a long handle. "Now, one last chance before I begin: will you tell me what the Remnant are up to?"

Sheik didn't even dignify it with an answer.

"Oh well, your choice," said Hatra. Sheik clamped his mouth shut just as he was about to put the instruments inside, making the Inquisitor chuckle. "Oh, how cute. You think closing your mouth is going to help…" Still chuckling, he put the instruments down and picked out another tool from the bag, a vicious-looking, mousetrap-like instrument with adjustable screws of some kind. "Open wide," said Hatra as he made a few adjustments. When Sheik only responded by glaring defiantly at him, the Sheikah saw something flash in Hatra's eyes.

Without warning, he grabbed Sheik by a very sensitive area and squeezed hard, twisting. Sheik opened his mouth immediately, a silent, anguished scream screwing up his face. Hatra took advantage of it by shoving the toll into Sheik's mouth, adjusting it until the bars prevented him from moving his jaw.

"Ah, a cheap trick, but effective," said Hatra, smiling apologetically. "It fills me with regret having to do it against a fellow male, but you gave me no choice." He picked his tools up again and smiled. "Now then, let's see the damage."

Still reeling from the squeeze, Sheik barely registered the tools entering his mouth. This was a whole new level of violation he had yet to encounter. Even Speil's tongue would have been preferable to this. He felt the hook scrape at the teeth at the very back of his mouth, poking at the crevices and gaps between them.

"Hm," Hatra said after a while. "You've lost a molar." He looked down at the floor, probably spotted the missing tooth. "Ah, there it is. I am afraid there is nothing I can do to reattach it." He put the two tools back on the table, smiling. "I really must voice my pleasure at seeing such well taken care of teeth again." He picked up another tool, a terrible-looking thing with more edges and hooks than Sheik cared to see. "Too bad I have to…ruin them." Sheik felt the horrible thing start scraping against one of his teeth, felt it move downwards…

He had never been so relieved to hear someone knocking on a door. Hatra paused, sighing. Slowly, he withdrew the instrument from Sheik's mouth, eyes narrowing in a glare directed at the world in general. "I _hate_ being interrupted," he said.

He ripped the door open, revealing a soldier who only handed him a piece of paper before turning around marching away, not saying a word. Hatra cursed quietly after him and slammed the door shut, reading the paper. His posture changed from angry, to relaxed and back to angry, tensing up.

"I have some good news, and some bad news," he said slowly, approaching Sheik again. "It appears that an army has appeared on the plains, setting up a camp less than a mile away from the walls."

 _The Remnant,_ Sheik thought. _That means Ayla and Myde made it out._ He was filled with relief.

"Ganondorf believes that the princess is practically offering herself willingly," Hatra continued. "And that your interrogation is no longer necessary." He looked up from reading, grinning. "I guess that means you get to keep your teeth somewhat intact."

 _Oh, I'm so happy,_ Sheik thought sarcastically. The device holding his mouth open was painful, but the worst part was that he couldn't insult anyone like this.

"Unfortunately," said Hatra. "That means that you are no longer of use to the King, and are therefore to be executed immediately." His shoulders sank. "Hm, a pity." He carefully removed the device that held Sheik's jaw in place and put it away.

Sheik opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, stretching the muscles which had gone sore. He then looked at Hatra with a neutral expression. He was beyond hating the man now. It had evolved into something more…universal.

"Nothing to say to your own execution order?" asked Hatra, holding the paper up to Sheik's face. Ganondorf's surprisingly elegant handwriting covered it.

"Not really," said Sheik.

"Hm, sometimes I wonder what it's going to take to get anything but sarcasm out of you," said Hatra, picking up one of Sheik's daggers from the table. "Well, if I am going to kill you, then I might as well do it properly as well as give the choice. Dagger or sword? Throat or heart?"

"Surprise me, why don't you?" said Sheik.

"Heh, why not?" said Hatra.


	9. Chapter 9

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 130**

* * *

"Hm, we have a problem," Myde said slowly. He had changed into the usual blue tunic after having a wash, satisfied that he had finally cleared himself of the stench from the sewer pipe (there was no point in calling it a drainage pipe anymore).

He and Link were standing at the top of the hill, looking down at Castle Town and its walls. Or, its half wall. More of it had collapsed in the aftermath of their sabotage run. The entire western part of the wall had more or less crumpled into dust, and the eastern part seemed no better, large cracks having spread all over the stone. The catapults on top of it had been seemingly abandoned, standing unmanned.

"How?" asked Link. "We could practically walk into the city."

"Not so," said Myde and pointed at the collapsed wall. Banners were moving back and forth behind the rubble pile. "See those flags?" he asked. "Those indicate troop movements. Most likely, they're mobilising behind it, setting up an impenetrable shield wall." He shook his head. "But that's not the main problem. Our battle plan relied quite a bit on the first legion engaging us down there." He pointed at the big, flat expanse of field just in front of the city. "If we have to breach the city itself _before_ starting to fight them...well, we will have considerable difficulties in establishing a foothold."

"Then what are _our_ catapults for?" asked Link, jerking a thumb behind him, where large teams of engineers were assembling all manners of weapons of destruction, annihilation and fiery death. "Just for show?"

"Well…yes," said Myde, grinning crookedly. "In case you haven't noticed, we don't have a lot of ammo. We were supposed to bring large amounts of rocks and other missiles with us from the valley, but it was…forgotten during the cleanup."

Link slowly turned to regard the Zora with a look of disbelief. "We… _forgot_ to bring ammo?"

"Logistics are…boring work, Hero," said Myde. "Something is bound to slip through…though I too agree that it is rather silly to forget something vital to the reason we left the camp in the first place." He sighed and unfurled his spyglass, looking closer at the walls. "But there's a quarry near here, and men have been dispatched to at least try to establish a permanent supply of missiles."

There was something else that bothered him. There was a lot of commotion going on behind the walls, which was just to be expected since an enemy army was preparing a siege on them, but there seemed to be…some sort of conflict. He could hear people shouting and screaming, as if in a battle, and swords clashed continually.

"There seems to be some sort of conflict within the city itself," he said after a few minutes.

"They're fighting each other?" asked Link, holding his hand out for the spyglass. Myde gave it to him.

"As much as I wish they were, I believe this is something else," said Myde, suddenly getting a pretty good idea of what was happening. "And if I know her correctly, Thea's most likely in the very centre of it."

"Thea?" asked Link.

"My sister."

"I didn't know you had a sister," said Link, still looking through the spyglass.

"There's a lot you don't know about me," said Myde.

"Fair enough," said Link. He handed the spyglass back to Myde. "You think we're going to win this?" he asked.

"Too early to tell," said Myde. "But I believe we have a good chance." He turned around to regard the assembled army. "They may outnumber us, but we have more to lose than them. We have a bigger incentive to give it our all." He looked at Link. "And I believe you have the biggest incentive of all."

"Because I'm the Hero of Time," Link said, sighing. "I'm destined to win the ultimate battle between good and evil and blah, blah, blah…"

Myde blinked, smiling uncertainly. "I was referring to the fact that your lover is trapped inside the city, but yes, that too."

"Oh, right," said Link, blushing slightly. Then he stared at Myde, eyes widening. "Sheik told you about us?" he asked.

"No, but I do have eyes in my head, Hero," said Myde, pointing at said organs. "Your reaction to the bad news told me everything."

"You got something against that?" asked Link, his fists clenching slightly.

"No, of course not," said Myde, backing away, slightly alarmed. "When did I say that?"

Link relaxed his posture, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, it's just…I keep hearing people whispering about Sheik, about how he's bad for being a Sheikah, how he sleeps with other men…"

"Well, the last part _is_ true, isn't it?" asked Myde.

"Well…yeah," said Link, blushing. "But they say it like it's a bad thing!"

"Hm, that's where they are wrong, then," said Myde, smiling. "As far as I'm concerned, gender means nothing when love is involved." He thought for a second. "Nor does species," he added. He began to walk back to the camp. "We are far behind schedule," he called to Link. "Command estimates we will engage in one hour. Don't be late."

Link stared after him, feeling slightly vulnerable on top of the hill, in plain sight of the legions inside the city. "Species?" he asked.

Half an hour later, a messenger emerged from the city gates, hooves thundering across the remains of the drawbridge. He was welcomed by the drawn swords of an entire battalion and escorted to Zelda.

"…and that is my lord, King Ganondorf the Great's, terms," said the soldier, punctuating his sentence by slamming a mailed fist into the desk that Zelda was sitting behind.

The princess unfolded her hands, which had clenched considerably as the foolish soldier had prattled on and on, and gave him a horribly fake smile. Link could almost _see_ what she was thinking about. "So," she said slowly, "what your lord is demanding of me is my unconditional surrender, the disbandment and retreat of my army as well as the Hero of Time served on a platter?"

"That is correct," said the messenger, his chest puffing out as if he really expected Zelda to accept and make him part of history. "My lord says he only wishes the bearers of the Triforce pieces to become his prisoners of war."

"Interesting," said Zelda, winking to Link, who was standing behind the soldier. He nodded and put a hand on the Master Sword's hilt, ready to do away with this bastard at any time. "And…are there any guarantees for the safety of the army itself?" she asked.

"The Hylian army will be left alone, but treasonous Gerudo and the nonhuman races shall be put to the sword," said the soldier. "As per his original plan for this land."

"What, killing it slowly?" asked Zelda. "Because that is the only thing he is doing."

"I am not to negotiate with you, m'lady," said the soldier, giving her a mock salute. "Only deliver my lord's terms."

"Well, they are not in any way, shape or sense acceptable," said Zelda. "I will not surrender, nor will the army disband. And if anyone is going to be put to the sword today, it will be you and your legions."

"I am sorry to hear that," said the soldier. "I shall take my leave then—"

"In fact, why don't we start right now?" continued Zelda, smiling.

That was Link's cue. He drew the Master Sword and put it against the soldier's throat from behind. "If you will please step outside," he said quietly.

"What is this?" asked the soldier. "The rules of parlay—"

"I know what the rules of parlay say," said Zelda, rising from her chair, glaring at the soldier. "But I have decided to ignore them when the enemy who has destroyed my kingdom and murdered my people invokes them. Did you ever give _my_ side the benefit of parlay? I do not think so."

The soldier was quickly disarmed by the other soldiers in the room and escorted outside. Link disengaged himself from the messenger as other soldiers took over and walked with Zelda. The messenger was paraded through the assembled forces and up the hill. There, he was forced down on his knees.

"Hopefully," Zelda told the messenger, "this will send a message to your king, and he will surrender while he's still got a chance."

"You can't do this!" the messenger shouted.

"I beg to differ," said Zelda, stepping back. "General Kato, if you would…"

"Yes, Your Highness," said the general, drawing his sword. In one, quick motion, he neatly decapitated the messenger, to the triumphant shouts of the gathered.

Zelda didn't, only stared at the ground, ashamed of herself for what she had just done. Link placed a hand on her shoulder, nodding. He had no sympathy left for the enemy. He only wished she had asked about Sheik before having him executed. They left the body up on the hill.

* * *

Sheik looked wearily on as Hatra slowly picked up Kazuya, testing its weight.

 _So, you're going to kill me with my own sword,_ he thought. _I swear, there is some sort of ironic statement to be made here, but I can't for the life—soon death—of me come up with one?_

"Yes, this will do," the Inquisitor said, nodding to himself. There was something wrong. Sheik noticed that his hands were shaking, and he had begun to sweat heavily, even though the room's temperature had not changed, and was quite chilly to begin with. "Could you please…lower your head?" he asked hesitantly.

"Is this making you uncomfortable?" asked Sheik, grinning.

"Shut up!" Hatra all but bellowed, his face red. "Lower your damn head!"

 _Hit a sore spot, did I?_ Sheik wondered, doing as he was told. If he was going to come up with a plan, he decided, it had better be now. No plan was forthcoming. And strangely enough, he did not feel much regret. Sure, he wished he'd have gotten to see Link one more time…but at least he hadn't told the enemy anything. The Delta Force had gone beyond itching now, having begun to sting minutes before, surely trying to force him into escaping this life or death situation. _Let's see you try and keep me alive this time,_ he thought.

He felt Hatra lower the sword to his neck, hovering there for a few seconds. The Inquisitor's breath was quickening, the light reflected from Kazuya dancing around the room. Then Hatra raised the blade, and Sheik closed his eyes, waiting for the blow.

"Argh!" Hatra exclaimed, chopping downwards. Kazuya cleaved neatly through the table, destroying the torturer's tools and bag, sending the entire thing crashing to the floor. "Damnit!" Hatra shouted, flinging Kazuya clatteringly to the side. Sheik opened his eyes, carefully looking up, seeing the young man tear at his hair, face red as tears flowed down his eyes.

"You can't do it, can you?" asked Sheik carefully. "Have you ever killed anyone?"

"No!" Hatra shouted. "I have _never_ killed anyone, and I can't bring myself to do it either!" He punched the stone wall in his frustration, again and again. "Damnit!"

 _Hm, this is an interesting development,_ Sheik thought, noticing that the Delta Force had suddenly fallen still, no itching or stinging felt whatsoever. _A torturer who does not have the guts to kill anyone, despite having no problem with maiming them beyond recognition…_

"Go ahead," said Hatra. "Laugh all you want."

"I don't really find this a laughing matter," said Sheik, spitting out more blood to prove his point. "But I do see the irony, however."

Hatra stared at him, every emotion known to humanity passing through his eyes as he seemed to be thinking heavily about something. Slowly, he walked over to the chair, crouching down in front of Sheik again. "Get me out of here," he said.

"Pardon?" asked Sheik. Despite the pain the torn skin around it offered, he could not resist raising an eyebrow.

"I said: get me out of here," said Hatra, already starting to loosen the braces that held Sheik in place in the chair. "I'll let you go, and you'll get me out of this castle. I know you can do it."

Sheik said nothing, only waited until his hands and feet were loose. Hatra stood up, obviously expecting him to show some sort of gratefulness, or whatever. Too bad he had never met a Sheikah, who can hold grudges until the end of time. Sheik was out of the chair, left hand at Hatra's throat, pressing him up against the wall within seconds. It was painful to be on his feet again, but Sheik was too focused in his rage to bother with it. He clenched his fist harder around Hatra's throat.

"That was quite a beginner's mistake you did there," Sheik hissed. "And now you'll pay for it!"

"Wait…wait…" Hatra was able to choke out, eyes wide. He tried to push Sheik away, but found that trying to move the young man was like trying to move a mountain. "Please…" he choked out.

For some reason, Sheik found himself loosening the grip around his throat. _Did he do something to my nerves?_ he wondered. "Speak," he said.

"Please…I didn't…kill…you…" Hatra choked.

"Only because you don't have the guts to do it," Sheik growled in his face. "But I _do_."

"No…because I…don't….want to…"

"But mutilating people is okay, is it?" asked Sheik. "Leaving them as broken and battered shells, no doubt, chuckling about it while going to sleep, am I right?" he hissed.

"You…you…" Hatra tried to say, more tears leaking out of his eyes. Sheik loosened his grip even more, still making clear that he could crush Hatra's throat without even thinking about it. "Do you think…I enjoy this?" asked Hatra. "Do you think I _want_ to hurt these people?"

"I didn't notice any hesitation while hurting _me_ ," said Sheik.

"Because…I had to!"

"Give me one good reason!"

"Otherwise…they will kill _me_!"

Sheik sighed and threw Hatra to the floor, crouching down to pick up Kazuya. Hatra looked up at him fearfully as he slowly lowered the blade to his face, letting him see his reflection. He whimpered, closing his eyes.

"You're just another coward," said Sheik. "Someone who only looks out for themselves, willing to let anyone suffer as long as they make it out safely. People like you disgust me!"

"Please…" Hatra said.

"I should kill you right now!" shouted Sheik. "For everything you have done, for all the people you have hurt…for everyhing you have done to me!" He almost decapitated the Inquisitor right then and there, feeling such strong hatred for the man. "But I won't," he said, moving Kazuya away.

"Wh…why not?" stuttered Hatra.

"Because I do not know the way out of here. Sure, I could wing it and just go out this door, killing everyone in my way until I find the front door, but I can't do that because my right hand is useless, and I'm right-handed," said Sheik. "I am more or less useless in a fight. Your friend Nuviro made sure of that." He made it a point to raise his right hand to show it to Hatra, making sure that the young man could take in the twisted, clawed shapes his fingers had curled into. "But you weren't planning to go through that door, were you?" he asked, pointing at the only door in the room.

"No," said Hatra after a few minutes of terrified silence. "I wasn't. There's…there's a door, and a tunnel, behind the tapestry."

"A glass door, if I'm not mistaken," said Sheik. "I saw the reflection of the light when you took out the chair."

"Please," said Hatra. "I can…show you the way out."

"Why?" asked Sheik. "You could just have had someone else come in and kill me and still be on Ganondorf's good side. Why would you risk your standing in the legion as the number one interrogator?" He once again lowered Kazuya to Hatra's face, intending to get some answers now. It had been some time since _he_ had interrogated someone, but Hatra had no true backbone anyway.

"Because…because…because I don't want this anymore!" Hatra shouted, crying openly. "All my life, it has been war after war after war! I've seen nothing but death and destruction! I'm sick of it! I'm sick of hurting people! I want to help them instead!"

"The legions are mercenaries," said Sheik. "You're on their payroll. You could have left at any time."

"No, I couldn't!" blubbered Hatra. "I am in Nuviro's debt! He won't let me go until I've paid it off!"

Sheik was pretty sure, in retrospect, that it was this that killed any desire he had left to kill Hatra. Someone so utterly pathetic…it wasn't worth the effort. "Would this debt…be for food, shelter and protection since you were five years old?" he asked.

Hatra nodded. "The bastard destroyed my village, killed my parents _and_ made me his slave," he said.

"Save the life story," said Sheik. "I'm not interested."

"Right, right, I'm sorry," said Hatra, slowly and hesitantly standing up, still worried that Sheik was going to slice his head off. "What…what do we do now?"

"The first thing we're going to do," said Sheik, not wishing to waste any more time. "Is to find me some clothes. You're not expecting me to escape this castle in my underwear, are you?"

"No, of course not," said Hatra, obviously relieved that Sheik was going to help him after all. "I have some clothes here," he said, pulling aside another of the tapestries. There was another, exact copy of the outfit the Inquisitor himself wore, except that this robe had some black, floral detail work stitched into the fabric. He held it out for Sheik, who snapped it out of his grip and began to put it on, hissing whenever the fabric made contact with his many open wounds.

"You've obviously been planning this escape for some time," said Sheik, looking pointedly at Hatra, who nodded.

"I was planning to escape tonight," he said. "But your…capture ruined it all. I was going to release you and get out of here as soon as the opportunity arose, but my timing was thrown off."

"Sometime _after_ you had started to put acid on my skin, presumably," said Sheik, trying to tie the belt of the robe into a knot and failing miserably. He had never been able to figure out robes in general, really. He cursed under his breath.

"I couldn't be sure when Nuviro would return, and if he caught us in the middle of escaping…" said Hatra.

"Bullshit," said Sheik. "You could have told me at any time and I would have been able to kill Nuviro the second he entered the room. But you had to wait until he crippled me, didn't you?"

"Please, I know you are angry, but can't you save it for when we are out of here?" asked Hatra, apparently calming down from his hysterics minutes before. "Do…do you need some help with that?" he asked, pointing at the lump of fabric that Sheik had tried to make into a knot.

"No!" exclaimed Sheik and tried to tie it again, only to curse louder and louder as he failed again and again. He sighed, letting go of the belt. "Yes," he admitted.

Hatra then smiled gently, a horrible reminder of the same smile he had given Sheik just before cutting him, and went to tie the belt for him. The entire time, Sheik felt an urge to plunge one of his daggers into the man's back. Hatra then offered to fasten Kazuya's Sheath to his back along with the one dagger holster that had not been cut in half when Hatra had cleaved through his table earlier.

He was getting warm again, at least. The robes were soft and comfortable, while still conservative and straightforward enough to serve as nothing but regular clothes. He supposed he could wield a dagger well enough in his left hand, but not Kazuya. The sword was light, but not light enough. He gave the blade a lingering look, and then observed the destroyed bag on the floor. "Tell me," he said. "Do you have any bandages?"

* * *

"Are you kidding?" Myde asked, staring horrified at Ayla as she tightened the buckles holding her scimitars to her back. "You can't go back into battle now! You're injured!"

"Don't see why not," said Ayla, grinning at him. "I can fight well enough with my right arm, and I'm already getting the feeling back in the left." She demonstrated this by twisting and turning her arm in Myde's direction.

"Do I have to get Dr. Kaura?" Myde asked. "I'm quite sure she won't think highly of this."

"I already asked her, actually," said Ayla, grinning. "And while she wasn't happy about it, all she said was something like: 'your life, your funeral'. I took that as a message of not caring what I did, and that's good enough for me!"

She passed him, striding out among the assembled Gerudo warriors. "And I don't see why you care," she said all the while. "I mean, we were good partners and all, but you Zora aren't exactly fond of us Gerudo."

"That's where you're wrong," said Myde, stopping her with a hand on her (uninjured) shoulder. " _I_ am fond of you," he said.

"Aw, isn't sweet?" said Ayla, grinning at him. "What do you say, girls?" she asked the other warriors around them, who all responded with catcalls and whoops.

Myde gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw. "Forget it, then," he said. "Go and get killed in battle, see if I care!" he exclaimed and strode off. "Why do I even bother?" he mumbled to himself. He was a good distance away from the Gerudo when he heard someone running up to him from behind.

"Oh, come on, Myde, can't you take a joke?" asked Ayla, stopping him in the exact same way as he had her. "That's the way we Gerudo are."

"Why did you kiss me?" he asked, finally unable to keep the question in anymore. "Back at the river?"

"What, the one on the cheek?" asked Ayla innocently.

"Yes, that one."

"A girl can't give a boy a token of her appreciation anymore?" the Gerudo asked, smiling innocently. "It was a thank-you, Myde."

"Are you sure?" asked Myde, looking suspiciously at her. "It didn't feel like that…"

"Myde, what are you saying?" asked Ayla. "That you…felt that I was something more than just a fellow saboteur?"

"I don't know!" exclaimed Myde. "You could have just said 'thank you', you know! You didn't have to go and…do that!"

"Aw, you're adorable when you're embarrassed, did'ya know that?" asked Ayla, grinning at him. "But maybe I _did_ mean more than just 'thank you' with that kiss." She winked at him.

"Did you?" asked Myde.

The officers of their respective Goron, Zora, Gerudo and Hylian units began to shout them into order. They were just about to march into the field accompanied by a hail of catapult missiles. He was supposed to lead one of the forward chevrons of spearmen. Ayla nodded at him.

"Tell you what," she said, placing a hand on his cheek. "If we both survive this, I'll tell you afterwards, eh?" She smiled. "I'll see you later, Myde." She turned around and ran back to her own unit, which was beginning to march forward already.

"Why me?" Myde asked himself as he ran toward his own unit.

* * *

Kaura looked at the army as it marched by; preparing herself for the bloodbath that was to follow—and the wounded she would have to take care of. She shook her head, not even wanting to _guess_ at how many of them would be dead by the day's end. She turned around and went back inside the hospital tent. Tao was sitting on her desk, eating yet another piece of chocolate he had found, despite Kaura's best attempts at hiding it. She considered stuffing the candy down her bosom next.

"So, enjoying raiding my one refuge from this horrible world?" she asked jokingly.

Tao nodded, smiling.

"Huh, capitalise on my bad mood, yeah, that's people for you," she said. She looked at the passing army again. "Promise me one thing, Tao."

The boy looked up at her questioningly.

"Promise me that you'll never join an army, eh?" she said, patting his head. "In fact, once this is over, I want you to take the Hero and that blasted suicidal Sheikah with you to some peace-filled land, and never get involved in fighting again. Can you promise that?"

Tao smiled broadly and nodded, shaking her hand.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 131**

* * *

"There, I think that should do it," said Hatra, stepping back to admire his handiwork. "Is it too tight?"

If they were going to get out of the castle, then there was a huge risk that they would run into enemy soldiers. Sheik was certain that he could take on one or two guards with his dagger alone, but any more than that, and he'd be in trouble. He looked down at his right hand, wincing at the slight ache that lanced through it as he lifted his arm. Kazuya shone in the light from the torch, the bandages around Sheik's hand holding it firmly in place. He gave it a few test swings. It hurt like hell, but he covered it up with a cough.

"Hm, seems okay," he said. "The swings are a bit stiff, but at least I'll be able to fight with it now."

"Alright then," said Hatra, pulling the tapestry aside to reveal the door behind it. Sheik had been right; it was indeed made of glass. Why, he didn't know, but he didn't particularly care since he had been given yet another chance. He had started a tally of how many favours he owed to karma in general, and it was up to three now. "I'll just grab a torch," the Inquisitor said. "It's dark in there." He lifted one of the torches on the wall down. He then opened the door, the handle turning with a loud creak. Sheik gave the other door, the one leading to the other prisoners, a worried glance. "Don't worry," said Hatra. "It's firmly locked."

The minute the glass door was opened, a gust of cold air washed over them, making the already quite chilly room even colder. Sheik shivered, the robe doing little to block out the draft. It still beat walking around half-naked, though. Hatra looked hesitant for a second, then took a deep breath and stepped inside the tunnel, beckoning Sheik to follow him. Before he went inside, however, he pulled the tapestry back in front of the door. "Hopefully," he said, "it will confuse anyone who smashes it down later."

"Hopefully," echoed Hatra, looking at him with a slightly worried expression. Then he turned around and began to lead the way. From the looks of it, it was a mostly straightforward tunnel dug into the rock surrounding the basement itself, leading slightly upwards as it twisted and bent around and around. For a second, Sheik felt like he was with Link again, exploring a temple or something similar. He shook his head, reminding himself that this was nothing like it. Hatra was an enemy, an enemy who just happened to have a quick way out. At least the young man seemed to know the way, and led Sheik confidently.

Until they reached an intersection, however. Sheik understood that something was up by the way Hatra just suddenly froze mid-stride, staring wide-eyes at the paths that branched off in three different directions. "I don't remember this," he whispered.

" _You don't know the way?_ " Sheik hissed, again sensing an urge to shove his blade into the Inquisitor's spine and twist it until Hatra lay shaking on the ground. "What's the matter with you?"

"It's not my fault," said Hatra, turning around. "The last time I explored this tunnel, it was only a one-way path. There were _no_ branches!"

"Well, either you went through with your eyes closed, or they're just for show," said Sheik bitterly. "Either way, you're an idiot for not drawing up a mental map…"

"Give me a break," said Hatra, looking up and down the paths. "This doesn't make sense!"

"Who built this tunnel anyway?" asked Sheik. "I don't remember this being part of the old castle…"

"That's because Ganondorf had it torn down, and rebuilt it using his magic," said Hatra. "And this tunnel…I think it changes, depending on his mood."

"A mood tunnel?" asked Sheik, wanting to throttle the young man for even making such an incredibly stupid claim. "Honestly, I think you're insane."

"Believe what you will," said Hatra, gritting his teeth. "The fact still remains that I have no idea where to go right now."

"Then we will have to do it the old-fashioned way," said Sheik, using his dagger to carve a large X into the stone. The rock was soft, and Sheik felt it pulsate slightly. The magic here was strong. "Tell me," he said. "Are we directly below that column-thing I saw upstairs?"

"I think so," said Hatra. "That's Ganondorf's inner sanctum. Only his personal guards and invited people are allowed in there."

"And this tunnel," continued Sheik. "Where does it lead?"

"I know what you are thinking," said Hatra, shaking his head. "But no, it won't lead us inside the sanctum. It leads to a hidden door on the other side of the tower."

"Hm, that's a shame," said Sheik. "But we could always hope that Ganondorf has a mood swing and the tunnel changes and leads us there, eh?"

* * *

"The right line needs to be tightened," noted General Kato, his face completely neutral. "They're going to be crushed unless they move in closer together."

"Right, give the order," Zelda told the signaller, a bright-eyed young lad who waved flags in order to convey orders to the section commanders, who began his routine.

Link felt his insides squirm. The Remnant army was slowly but surely moving forward towards the walls, hesitating slightly because of the little enemy activity they could see. Every now and then, a salvo from the trebuchets and catapults rained thudded into the walls, taking huge chunks of it off with every hit. The Remnant archers—from all the peoples, even Gorons with their gigantic, ballista-like constructions easily wielded with one hand—let loose into the breach in the eastern side of the gatehouse, where enemy troops had—as predicted—formed a shield-wall.

Throughout all this, he had a gnawing feeling that he should have been down there, among the troops, doing his part instead of staying up here on the hill, merely looking down at them. Zelda, however, had told him to stay here, and that's what he would do.

"Hm, they don't seem fazed by our bombardment," said a Zora general, his fins unusually rigid. "Perhaps it is time for the firebombs."

"Not yet," said Aveil. "We don't want to set fire to the city until we absolutely _must_."

"The princess is right," said Kato. "We want to be able to use Castle Town afterwards if we are to fight the remaining legions."

Link sighed quietly, tuning out the tactics discussion. Not that he didn't find it interesting or that he didn't understand it. Even _he_ understood the idea of throwing heavy rocks at the enemy while hoping they didn't do the same. It was a pretty simple concept, really. There was something that just didn't make sense here. Why weren't the enemy troops making a move? At this pace, the Remnant only had to place one well-aimed missile in the centre of the shield wall, and they would be inside the city itself. He _supposed_ that the legion was already too busy with the possible internal revolt involving—of all people—Myde's sister, but to just ignore the army outside their walls?

"I know what you're thinking," the voice of Zelda suddenly said right next to him. He regarded her with quiet interest. "You're wondering why Ganondorf isn't doing anything to stop us," she continued, staring at the walls. "I'm worried too."

Fast, clanging footsteps came up to them from behind along with a panting breath. Link already knew who it was, so he didn't turn around.

"Sorry…I'm…late…" Vorpheus said, drawing deep breaths between each word. "I was…held up…by…a…physician…"

"Goddesses," Link whispered to himself, slapping his forehead.

"Good to have you with us," said Zelda, smiling at the warlock. "Have you given my suggestion any more thought?"

"I have, Your Highness," confirmed Vorpheus. "And I agree with the idea fully. Was it the western wall you wanted removed?"

"That is correct," said Zelda. "The entire section, if possible. Don't leave them with anything to hide behind. Oh, and mind the prisoners in the western part of the city."

"Certainly," said Vorpheus, cracking his knuckles.

"What's going on?" asked Link, finally turning around to look at the positively ancient man. He had changed his appearance again, appearing even _more_ youthful this time, not a single wrinkle anywhere on his face, his golden hair shining in the dawning sun.

"Isn't it obvious, Hero?" asked Vorpheus, grinning. "I am going to destroy the rest of the wall."

"But why?" asked Link. "We've got catapults for that."

"It's more to…draw the attention of any magic users in side the city," said Zelda. "Ganondorf still has a sizeable garrison of warlocks with him, and Vorpheus is going to…get rid of them."

"All by yourself?" Link asked, staring incredulously at the old man.

"Sure, why not?" said Vorpheus. "Compared to me, those 'warlocks' are mere novices. I was in charge of them back when still served Ganondorf." He cleared his throat. "Also, I have some personal business to attend to today as well," he added.

"Dehl, right?" asked Link. The warlock nodded. "Are you sure you'll be fine on your own? Maybe I can help—"

"No, this is family-related, Hero," said Vorpheus. "No outsiders are to be involved. Besides, your princess is going to need you more than I, if I remember the plan correctly."

"What plan?" asked Link.

"Not now, Link," said Zelda. "Vorpheus, you are authorised to destroy that wall." She nodded to the warlock. "But once this battle is over…no offense, but I don't want to see you ever again. I hope you understand."

"No worries, Your Highness," said Vorpheus, snapping off a salute—no one knew if it was genuine or not—that sent his entire set of armour rattling. "Once I've taken care of my business here, I will leave Hyrule forever."

"Alright, goodbye then," said Zelda.

"Fare thee well," said Vorpheus, giving Link another nod before slowly setting off down the hill, heading for the left flank of the army.

"Why are we sending him away, exactly?" said Link, scratching his head. "He's been really useful…"

"Useful, yes," said Zelda, eyeing the Hero wearily. "But I don't want someone so powerful and in possession of such loose morals anywhere near this kingdom after this war is over."

"Loose morals?"

"He switched sides almost with a snap of his fingers, Link. Sure, he is working for us now, but how little will it take for him to turn against us as soon as he has concluded his family affairs?" Zelda shook her head, sighing.

Vorpheus had begun to make the left flank move more to the right, apparently to give him more room. Already they could feel the energy building up as the old man prepared to take down the massive walls, electricity crackling along his armour's ridges and nooks.

"He has been richly rewarded, of course," she added. "There's a whole cart filled with gold waiting for him in the valley."

"Huh," said Link, staring at the warlock. "What was this plan about, then?" he asked. "Aren't we going to fight?"

"Of course we are," said Zelda, touching the hilt of her sword. "But not on the frontline."

"Where, then?"

"You'll see."

* * *

Myde looked around, wondering why they had suddenly been ordered to stop. The soldiers around him were all murmuring and complaining about the lack of action. They were about two hundred yards away from the walls now. They could clearly hear the shouting, screaming and clashing of blade on the other side. There was definitely something going on behind there. The shield wall was in plain view as well, spears poking out between the gaps. That would offer quite a bit of trouble.

"Sir, what are we doing?" one of the Zora sergeants asked.

"I am not sure, sergeant," said Myde, looking back at the hill on which the commanders stood. "It seems we are not entirely certain as to how to make this assault."

"The wall is _right there_ ," insisted the sergeant. "We could easily take them."

"We will hold here until told otherwise, sergeant," said Myde firmly. "We cannot afford to be reckless in this battle."

Another ripple of murmurs went through the soldiers, and everyone's attention seemed to be drawn towards the warlock, Vorpheus, who seemed to be doing some sort of…spell at the left flank. Myde nodded to himself.

"So that's what they're doing," he whispered.

"Sir?" asked the sergeant.

"I believe it would be in everyone's best interest to duck, sergeant. Give the order," said Myde, crouching down.

The sergeant barely had time to give the order before Vorpheus made a sudden movement, throwing a punch into the air, directing it against the wall. There was the sensation of the air being sucked out of everyone's lungs as the wall suddenly exploded inwards, crumbing in on itself. The abandoned siege equipment on top toppled down, smashing to bits on the rocks below. The noise was unbelievable, several tons of rock crashing to the ground. And with that, Castle Town no longer had any walls.

The Remnant army slowly stood up again, staring at the gigantic hole that remained. Dust and smoke covered the city, making it impossible to see beyond. Myde turned around, looking up at the hill. The signaller was waving for the attacked, the horn blower joining in shortly thereafter, sounding the attack.

Before the army could make a move, however, the shield wall exploded, legion soldiers pouring out of the breach, charging towards the Remnant line.

"Brace for attack!" Myde shouted, the section commanders joining in.

* * *

"I'm telling you, this was supposed to be one, long tunnel, not a maze," said Hatra for the thirteenth time. Despite his insistence on the straightforwardness of the place, the fifth junction ahead of them begged to differ. Sheik could only roll his eyes as he marked this wall with a large X as well.

"You're obviously wrong," the Sheikah said. "But we _are_ getting closer, at least."

"How do you know that?" asked Hatra.

"It's hard to explain," Sheik said, the pulsating walls filling him with both a sense of dread as well as one of comfort. "But I can…feel the magic growing stronger, which can only mean we are getting nearer and nearer to the field."

"I can't feel anything," said Hatra, touching the walls as well, obviously getting nothing out of it.

"You're a Hylian, yet you do not feel magic?" Sheik asked in disbelief.

"I wasn't born in this land, you know," said Hatra, subconsciously touching the tips of his ears.

"That does not matter," said Sheik. "Your race is predisposed to—"

He was interrupted as a tremor passed through the ground around them along with a wave of energy that set Sheik's fingers tingling. He looked around.

"I believe the battle has started," he said.

"Battle?" asked Hatra. "The Remnant is attaking?"

"That's the idea, yes," said Sheik. "Now come on, I want to get out of here before the situation escalates."

They walked along the tunnels for another few minutes, always taking the middle branch, always marking their path with an X. To Sheik's wonder, they never came across one of these marks, meaning that all the tunnels went off in direct directions, never intersecting with each other. Just how long was this system?

* * *

Myde ripped his sword out of the legion soldier's chest, the man collapsing with a soft sigh. His body toppled over, falling into the moat with a splash, the sound drowned out by the sounds battle around them.

The lines had clashed with great force, the soldiers greeting each other with cold steel, arrows and clubs. The very first line of the Remnant was a mixed company, consisting of Zora, Goron and Hylian soldiers. The Gorons, not an easily angered or combative race, cut down swathes of enemy soldiers with each blow, their physical strength easily outmatching the enemy, who were puny in comparison. Zora, lithe and agile, darted in and out between their opponents, stabbing and puncturing their enemies' armours with their spears and razor-sharp fins.

The barricade that had been built up in the gatehouse of the drawbridge had suddenly collapsed as well, another group of legion soldiers rushing out, trampling across the broken bridge and launching themselves at their opponents.

Myde and his unit were steadily fighting their way closer to the breach, the moat quickly filling up with dead soldiers of both sides, blood turning the water red. The sounds of screaming and fighting filled the air, punctuated by the roars of catapult missiles crashing into the city ahead of them. Myde cut down another soldier and noticed that the steady stream of soldiers coming out of the breach seemed to be slowing down, as if they were running out of fresh meat for the grinder. He heard a loud, bass-like scream, and saw a Goron collapse to the ground, legion soldiers swarming over him like flies over rotten meat, cutting and stabbing at whatever patches of skin that wasn't covered by their natural armour plating they could reach. Several Hylians made to help the fallen Goron, but they were cut down by a volley of arrows from beyond the breach.

Both sides had come to a standstill now, neither line losing nor gaining any ground. The left flank, to Myde's surprise, hadn't moved in to join the battle, keeping a respectable distance behind the warlock, for some reason. He was about to send a runner to find out why when something exploded behind the wall, and a small group of men rushed out, seemingly floating across the moat towards the Vorpheus, who only held his arms out, as if greeting long lost friends.

"General!" one of his men called, bringing his attention back to the battle at hand. "There's a hole in their line!"

Myde looked, and saw that there was indeed a sizeable gap in the legion's defences. He ordered his company to push forwards and fill it. A bit further now and they would be able to not only see the inside of the city, but also walk right in. He could hardly believe that it would be so easy…

* * *

Vorpheus chuckled at the floating manoeuvre his former comrades in arms were pulling, floating across the moat as if they were anything other than murderers and pathetic dropout apprentices to real magic users. He took a firmer grip of his mace, giving it just a little electric charge. That would be a fun surprise for them.

"Hello, boys!" he called over the din of battle. "It's been a while!"

"Vorpheus, you traitor!" one of the warlocks shouted back, glaring at him. "How dare you show your face around here again after what you have done?!"

"Quite easily, actually," replied Vorpheus. "Just as easy as killing all of you will be."

"That's quite a claim, old man," said another warlock. "Don't forget that we outnumber you."

"And?" asked Vorpheus. "Quality above quantity has always been my motto."

"You're a fool, Vorpheus!" shouted the first. "Surrender now, and we might just let you live!"

"Hm," said Vorpheus. "Interesting prospect, but that wouldn't give me the opportunity to test out my newest spells, would it? Don't you remember, Jorrah, that I was the head warlock for a reason?"

"Enough!" shouted Jorrah. "Kill him!"

Vorpheus grinned and held his hand out front of him. "Before you do, why don't we make sure we won't disturb our friends' little shindig over there?" he asked. The air around them shimmered and warped as he put up a forcefield around them.

Jorrah and the warlocks stared at the shimmering air before focusing back on Vorpheus. They glared. "You may be strong; Vorpheus, but you can't defeat us all!"

"I beg to differ," said Vorpheus, deciding to try out a new trick he had been developing these past few months. Focusing energy to his hand, he brought his fingers together, quickly superheating the air around it. Jorrah and the others were warming up spells of their own, a myriad of fire and water-related tricks, all consuming far more energy than they should. It was all too late, of course, as Vorpheus brought his hand up to his face before cutting it through the air, drawing an imaginary horizontal line across his vision.

The warlocks hesitated for a second as they felt something ripple through them. Jorrah's eyes widened, as his spell fizzed out in mid-air. He opened his mouth, undoubtedly to shout at Vorpheus, but nothing came out…except a mouthful of blood. A silent gasp went through the warlocks as they fell apart one by one, all bisected at the waist, exactly where Vorpheus had drawn the line. Vorpheus' grin remained as he dispelled the forcefield, slowly stepping forward to the remains of the warlocks. Jorrah's top half stared up at him, eyes face frozen in an expression of perpetual surprise.

"I couldn't kill you all, Jorrah?" Vorpheus asked, closing the man's eyes. "I did it in less than a second."

* * *

"We're entering the city, Your Highness," Kato said, handing Zelda the spyglass. "They're through the breach."

"And the warlock seems to have eliminated all the other magic users," noted Aveil, pointing toward the area where Vorpheus and the other warlocks had conducted a very short and quickly resolved battle.

"He beat them?" asked Link, tearing the spyglass out of the Gerudo's hands, immediately focusing on the area.

"Into pieces, even," said Aveil, nodding to Zelda. "I suppose it is time for your plan, Zelda?"

"Yes, it is," said Zelda, nodding back. "I can trust you to take good care of the army in the meantime?"

"Of course," said Aveil. "I won't lose the battle, I promise."

"Alright, then." Zelda turned to the other battle commanders. "Gentlemen, I hereby turn the command of the Remnant temporarily over to Princess Aveil. You will do as she tells you. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Your Highness," the commanders said.

Link felt a finger pricking him on the shoulder, and he looked up. Zelda was nodding at him. "We're going into battle?" he asked.

"Indeed, Link, but there's something I need from you," she said. "Follow me."

They walked down the hill, back towards their new camp. A group of soldiers from all the peoples stood at the bottom, looking expectantly up at her. They were about thirty together, armed to the teeth.

"Link, I need the Ocarina of Time for this," said Zelda, holding out her hand as they walked.

"Why?" asked Link as he fished the flute out of his pocket, handing it to her. "Who are those people?"

"Some of the most skilled warriors in their respective armies," said Zelda, inspecting the ocarina. "You've taken good care of it, thank you."

"I wasn't really asking _who_ they were…" said Link, wondering if he was ever going to understand how to imply things in his questions.

"I know what you meant, Link," said Zelda, smiling at him. "But wait until we reach them. I will hold a quick briefing."

The warriors quickly assembled in a loose half-circle in front of the princess when she came close, their attentions focused completely on her. Judging by their poses and appearances, they were all skilled. At least, that's what Link could gauge from them. He recognised a couple of them from the briefing about the sabotage run…which they had not gone on. He wondered why neither Myde nor Ayla was here, as he knew they were quite skilled as well…but they were down at the walls fighting. He hoped they were okay.

"You all know why you're here," said Zelda, elbowing Link in the ribs when she saw that he wasn't paying attention to her. "You've volunteered for a deep strike into the heart of the enemy fortress."

"Deep strike?" Link whispered to himself.

"With this," Zelda continued, holding the Ocarina of Time for all to see, "we will warp inside the Temple of Time in the middle of the city. From there, we will move north towards Ganondorf's citadel. We will go inside, kill the guards and then the man himself, ending the war once and for all!"

There was a ripple of excitement going through the gathered. Link slowly raised a hand. "Uh…I thought there were several thousand soldiers in there," he said. "Won't we be kinda…outnumbered?"

"That is correct, Hero," said Zelda. "But with the legion locked in battle with our army at the gates and walls, they will be too busy to notice a small band of Remants heading in the opposite direction."

"Alright, good enough for me," said Link.

"I need you all to form a circle and join hands, otherwise the spell won't work," Zelda then announced. As they did so, she told the two closest to her—Link and an unnamed female Zora—to touch her shoulders. "Contact with the caster is absolutely necessary."

"I thought multiple people couldn't teleport with the songs," Link whispered to her.

"Not usually," said Zelda. "But I'm using my powers as the seventh Sage to…tweak the rules a little." She winked. "Is everyone holding hands? Then let's go." She put the ocarina to her mouth and blew.

The song was unlike anything had ever heard—or thought possible to be—played on an ocarina. It seemed to be a conglomeration of every teleport song Link had heard—Minuet of Forest, Bolero of Fire, Serenade of Water, Nocturne of Shadow and Requiem of Spirit—all with a general feeling of the Prelude of Light. The tempo changed from fast to slow to fast again all throughout. While she played, the air around them began to glow, just like it did when Link played a teleport song, only it surrounded not only Zelda, but the entire group. Then Link felt the familiar hook-and-twist in his head, his vision blackened, and they were on their way.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 132**

* * *

Sheik wanted to throttle Hatra. There was no particular reason, but there were just so many problems the young man had caused for Sheik ever since their first meeting that he felt there was some poetic justice in it. Again and again, he found himself starting to raise his dagger, preparing to stab Hatra in the back, and was barely able to stop in time. The young man didn't seem to notice, however, only muttering nervously to himself every time they reached another infernal junction. Sheik had lost count of how many marks he had carved into the walls, but he was sure they were up in several dozen by now.

"So, how did you end up in Ganondorf's capitivity?" Hatra asked suddenly, not turning to look at Sheik, his tone just one notch above fearful. "I thought Sheikah were practically invisible when they put their minds to it."

"I fail to see how that is any of your business," said Sheik, glaring at the back of the man's head. "And for the record: yes, we are invisible, and that is why our enemies fear us so."

"Yet you were caught here," Hatra mumbled to himself.

 _Oh, if I could only sink this dagger slowly into your throat and watch you squirm and wriggle until your exhale that one, sweet last breath and the light slowly disappears from your eyes,_ Sheik thought. His eyes widened. Where had that come from? The Delta Force was making its presence quite well-known again, surely trying to influence him once more. Was it really able to change his thoughts now? He had never in his entire life thought something like that. Sure, he had contemplated how to kill someone every now and then, just to decide what would be more effective, but never in such… _malicious_ detail.

"I got careless," Sheik finally said. "I didn't see an obvious trap for what it was, and I paid the price. Or rather, you _made_ me pay the price."

Hatra whirled around so quickly that Sheik was almost hit in the face by his torch. The young man looked angry, afraid and anguished at the same time, resulting in a twisted face that was by no means similar to the one he'd wore when striding into the torture chamber. "Listen," he exclaimed, his voice shaking, "I'm sorry for what I did, okay?! I'm sorry I poured acid on your skin, I'm sorry I cut you and filled the wounds with salt, I'm sorry I inserted metal plates under your fingernails! I'm sorry!"

Sheik stared at him, surprised at the sudden outburst. Was he really so bothered by what he had done? Sheik seemed to have pegged him wrong. He drew a breath, and spoke: "Apologising is hardly going to make these wounds disappear, or these fingers heal, is it?" he asked, raising his bandaged hand to Hatra's face.

"Well, there's little else I _can_ do," said Hatra, the anger disappearing within a second. "At least for now," he added. "Maybe when we get out of here, I can get some medical supplies, and—"

"Don't bother," said Sheik, making subtle movements for Hatra to start walking again. The tunnel wasn't even wide enough for him to walk past the young man. "I already know someone who can fix this easily."

"You're not even going to let me atone for my mistakes by healing you?" asked Hatra in disbelief. "There is no way I can redeem myself in your eyes?"

"No, not really," said Sheik, knowing he was being a heartless prick, yet unable to actually care. "You are the enemy. You have destroyed my home. You have tortured me. I must hate you. There is no way I can see past all that."

Hatra looked stricken, almost as if he was going to cry. Sheik wanted to punch him in the face. With a pair of great, big breaths, Hatra turned around wordlessly and continued to walk, Sheik following just as silent.

The air began to warm up as the tunnel curved noticeably upwards, raising Sheik's hope in that they were going the right way. Hatra's steps seemed to be faster, indicating that he too was getting hopeful. When a brick wall appeared at the end of the slope, with lights shining through the cracks, Sheik found himself smiling. At least Hatra hadn't been lying, even though the tunnel was clearly a miscalculation on his part.

They hurried up to the wall. There was an obvious mechanism on the inside, showing that the door—slash—wall swung outwards. Hatra made to press the small button at the bottom of the complex mechanism, but paused and turned to face Sheik again. His face was just about neutral now.

"Listen, I want you to know that…had I been given more time to plan it out, I would never have done those things to you, and I would have stopped Ka—Nuviro from breaking your fingers." He looked down at his feet. "I'm sorry, is what I'm trying to say."

"You said it just fine ten minutes ago," said Sheik. Taking pity on the man, Sheik sighed, crossing his arms—wincing when he almost cut his wrist with Kazuya. "I know you are trying to do good here, and I know that I would have been dead by now if it hadn't been for you. I'm _trying_ to forgive you, but it's just…it's too much. Talk to me again when we are out of this castle, and I might change my mind. Is that alright?"

Hatra smiled weakly, nodding. "It's probably more than I deserve."

"It's _far_ more than you deserve," said Sheik. "Now please open the door so we can get the hell out of here."

"Alright," said Hatra relieved. He pressed the button. Something inside the wall clicked, whirred and scraped. With a loud creak which made Sheik wince, the brick wall swung open, revealing a well-lit hallway. The floor was covered with a regal, purple-coloured carpet, and dozens of suits of armour stood on pedestals that lined the walls. Hatra looked around anxiously. "This isn't the place," he said.

"I beg your pardon?" asked Sheik as he stepped out of the tunnel. "What isn't the place?"

"This isn't where we're supposed to be," said Hatra. "The tunnel isn't supposed to end up here!"

"Well, then we'll just go back and—"

Sheik didn't get any further in his sentence before the door closed with a loud slam, dust hanging in the air. The two stared at the wall, which the door had melted seamlessly into.

"Please tell me that you know how to open this door," Sheik said slowly. "Please tell me that."

"Er…" Hatra said, looking around. "There's usually some sort of switch…" He began to feel around the wall, behind the armours, as well as underneath the carpet.

Sheik looked around nervously. Despite the comfortable temperature in the hallway, there was an underlying chill that seemed to permeate the air itself, getting underneath his skin… He shuddered. At least there weren't any enemies here. He still wasn't too confident in his fighting ability at the moment.

"I don't know what to tell you," Hatra said after a few minutes. "I can't find a switch anywhere."

"Well, then we have to take the traditional path," said Sheik. "Just lead us out of here, and I'll deal with any trouble."

"That's the thing," said Hatra slowly, scraping his boots on the carpet. "I'm not really sure where we are."

Sheik rolled his eyes. _Why me?_

* * *

One of the guard towers was hit by a projectile from a catapult. It collapsed like a house of cards, raining tons of rock and lumber down on the enemy troops gathered below it. The legion troops, realising that the gates and walls were already a lost cause, had retreated further into the city, closing the gatehouses and setting up chokepoints in alleys and side streets, funnelling the Remnant troops into designated squares where the enemy lay in wait. Archers had taken up residence in tall buildings, shooting from the windows. Obviously, they had expected to defeat the Remnant here, creating kill zones and winning the battle by slowly grinding down the attackers.

But they hadn't expected the sheer viciousness of the assault that the combined Hyrulians were laying down. Seven long years of pent-up rage, indignity and determination was fuelling the Remnant army, and nothing would stop their righteous and well-deserved revenge on the ones who had caused so much suffering.

By Myde's guess, they had already taken a tenth of the city. The lowest part had been cleansed of enemy troops, and the commanders were slowly but surely starting to establish the new headquarters there. As the Zora general led his troops down a wide street that was oddly devoid of life, he understood why there would only be one clear victor of the day. If the Remnant's assault continued like this, the legion troopers would be pushed back. If they attempted a retreat, they would find themselves face-to-face with the unclimbable mountains to the north. They would literally be pressed into a corner, from which there were only two ways out: death, or surrendering.

If the Remnant were to loose, however, it would find itself attempting a retreat from a city few of them knew the layout of. And even if they were to escape, they would no longer have anywhere to hide. By now, Ganondorf must have figured out where they had been hiding until now, and would certainly troops to finish them off.

"Kill or be killed, then," he muttered to himself. He wiped his—Thea's, really—sword on a dead soldier's tunic and followed his men. He and his company had tagged along with one of the Hylian ones, mostly because they were on their way to rescue prisoners. None of his men—or women—questioned this decision. They were just happy to finally be able to pay those who froze them in ice for so many years back—mostly by chopping their heads off.

Something exploded far ahead of them. Myde felt his skin tingle, and knew right away that it was obviously this Vorpheus character that was responsible for it. He had lost track of the warlock after he had killed off Ganondorf's remaining magic users. Where he came from, Myde didn't know, but he knew for certain that if it hadn't been for him, the Remnant would have had a much tougher time getting inside the city.

Instead of heading towards the explosion, the Hylian company ahead of them took a left turn, heading towards the dividing wall. Already Myde could see signs of trouble ahead. Bodies littered the streets, both enemy _and_ those of the prisoners. Most of the legion troopers bodies were in a bad way, mangled or broken in ways that only tools like saws and sledgehammers could. Did this mean that the prisoners had broken free of their ghetto?

The answer came within another block, when they reached the wall. A gigantic hole gaped at them, bricks still coming loose and falling with loud cracking sounds. A scouting party was sent inside the ghetto.

"What do you think, general?" asked one of the Hylian officers. "Did someone blow it up before we had a chance?"

"I don't know," said Myde. "It doesn't look like the wall has been deliberately damaged with anything. More like it has collapsed on its own. Look, there's even a small trench underneath it."

"Maybe the prisoners made the wall structurally weak?" tried one of the Zora officers, the same sergeant from before.

"That is a possibility," said the Hylian officer.

The scouting party returned a few minutes later, reporting that the entire prison-section of the city was empty. Not a single soul left.

"We can only assume that the prisoners decided to revolt," said Myde. He pointed at the bodies littering the streets. "And that by following these fallen ones…"

"…we will find the rest," finished the Hylian. He smacked a fist into his palm. "Alright, then we'll do that. General Myde, can I count on your help?"

"Certainly, General Kato," said Myde, finally remembering the Hylian's name. He had spoken to him several times before on the hill before the battle. "Lead the way."

Kato nodded and assembled his men, quickly heading down the street, following the bodies. As Myde and his troops followed, the Zora prayed that he wouldn't see his sister's remains among them.

* * *

Link blinked as his sight returned. The Temple of Time was dark and silent, the sounds of the group's breathing and footsteps turning into massive echoes. Without the monks singing, the temple felt more like a tomb, like the Shadow Temple. The only light came through the large windows at the very top of the roof.. It was a dead place. He noticed Zelda stirring about in the corner of his vision and turned to face her.

"Secure the area," one of the Hylian soldiers said. As one, the group of fanned out, making sure that there was no one inside the temple. Two others went to the doors, opening them a fraction to see what was going on outside.

Link went over to Zelda, who was now feeling her way along one of the walls. "What're you doing?" he asked.

"I'm looking for something," the princess replied, not looking up. She continued for a couple of feet before pausing. "Yes, this is it," she whispered. Link looked over her shoulder. Carved into the white stone were ancient letters, the kind of which Link had seen in the other temples. He couldn't read it and waited for Zelda to explain. "This is the last piece of the puzzle, Link," Zelda said. "This is what you will need to finally defeat Ganondorf."

"I sure hope it _is_ the _last_ piece," said Link sourly. "Last time, you said the Triforce was all I needed."

"I recall no such thing," said Zelda. She began to mutter in a language Link didn't recognise, most likely the same that was written on the wall. To his surprise, the letters began to glow a pale blue. Slowly, but surely, the white, brick-like stone they were written on began to slide out of the wall, eventually falling to the floor with a loud crash. Zelda smiled and reached inside the opening. With a grunt, she began to pull at something. "Give me a hand," she told Link.

Together, they were able to pull the object out of he hole. It was a medium-sized wooden chest. The lock was elaborate, covered in carefully traced designs of the Triforce and what have you. There seemed to be no keyhole, however, which puzzled Link greatly. Before he could ask, however, Zelda muttered again, and the lock made a loud click. Carefully, Zelda opened the chest, lifting the lid inch by inch.

Inside laid a bundle of arrows. Link could hardly believe that a dozen arrows could weigh as much as they had seemed, but when Zelda undid the cloth covering their heads, he reconsidered. There seemed to be some sort of crystal covering them, a faint, yellow light emanating from them. Zelda gave him one, and he handled it carefully. It _was_ heavy, and he almost dropped it.

"What are they?" the Hero asked.

"Light arrows," said Zelda. "Given to us by the Goddesses themselves. No evil can stand up against the power of these, especially not if wielded by the Hero of Time himself." She handed Link the bundle, and he carefully put them in his quiver next to his regular and fire arrows. It would be awkward, pulling them out, but he had nowhere else to put them.

With that done, Zelda turned her attention to the soldiers. "Status?" she said.

"Area secure, Your Highness," one of them, a Gerudo, said.

"And the outside?" continued Zelda.

"No activity, Your Highness," said the men by the doors. "Dead as the grave."

"Alright, then we will move out immediately," said Zelda. The soldiers gathered around her as she and Link approached the door. "Remember," she said, "we are not here to fight the legions. That's the army's job. We are to take out Ganondorf, so don't draw attention to yourselves unless absolutely necessary. Is that understood?"

"Yes, You Highness!" the soldiers chorused.

"Oh, and stop calling me 'Your Highness'," Zelda added. "Just call me Zelda, okay?"

"Yes, Zelda!" the soldiers chorused again, this time looking uncertainly at each other.

"And don't call _me_ 'Hero of Time', alright?" added Link. "My name's Link."

"Yes, Link!"

The Hero grinned. "I can get used to this."

* * *

By Hatra's calculations, they were somewhere in the castle's upper levels and to the back, which meant that they had to navigate their way through countless passages, some ending in dead ends, and others ending in sheer drops five floors below. The fact that this was the part of the citadel, castle, fortress, whatever Ganondorf called it that Legion One used as barracks. Most of them were out fighting in the city, apparently, so they hadn't encountered any so far, but the chance was still there, so progress was slow.

"Where exactly did _you_ sleep?" Sheik asked after checking another hallway. "I'd think you would know where everything is here."

"I didn't sleep in the castle," said Hatra. He had armed himself with a scalpel he had produced from one of his sleeves, though it did little good since he didn't seem to know how to properly wield it as a weapon. "I slept in one of the taverns in the city, the same one Nuviro uses."

"Wanted to keep his debt slave close, did he?" asked Sheik. He carefully turned the handle of a door, opening it quickly to surprise anyone inside. The room was empty. He sighed and closed the door again, looking expectantly at Hatra.

"I don't know," said Hatra, doing the same as Sheik. His room was empty as well, to his obvious relief as his entire stance relaxed. "Maybe he just wanted me close in case a high-profile prisoner came…in…" he trailed off, looking embarrassed. "Never mind."

"Let's just get going," said Sheik. "I think I saw another staircase over there." There was something that was bothering him, as if they were being watched. He had felt it ever since they had emerged from the tunnel.

They moved for another five minutes or so, encountering nothing more spectacular than a rat gnawing on a piece of fruit left behind by some guard who had probably been pulled into active duty once the attack had started. Another minute later, they found a sort of balcony that gave them a spectacular view of the chamber that housed the inner sanctum and the doors with the temple symbols. Sheik raised an eyebrow.

"This is…strange," he said.

"We've been going down every staircase we've found, but we are still at this height?" said Hatra. "What the hell?"

"I can only see two explanations for this," said Sheik, turning around, watching the hallway behind them suspiciously.

"Yeah?" said Hatra. "What are those?"

"Either we have both thoroughly mistaken the way things work in this castle and its layout," said Sheik, finally seeing what had been bothering him for the past five minutes. "Or someone is playing a trick on us," he finished, pointing down the hallway. "I can see you!" he called. "Show yourself!"

"Heh," said a hollow, feminine voice. The entire hallway wavered and shimmered as Dehl revealed herself. She looked terrible. Her skin was paler than ever, and blue veins could be seen all over her face and hands. Her lips had no colour whatsoever. Her hair, which had been a mix of every colour in the bloody rainbow, had turned into a dull, grey shade. Her entire stance was slouched and slightly hunched over. In her hand, she carried a handkerchief that, while it may have been white at some point, was covered in blood. "Should've known I couldn't play this trick on you for long." She coughed, sounding like a an ancient person with bronchitis. Blood splattered on the handkerchief.

"I was wondering where you had gotten off to," Sheik said, gripping his weapons more firmly.

"Oh, you know, just laying about, coughing myself to death," said Dehl, grinning at him. Her teeth had started to go yellow. Honestly, she looked her age more than ever now. "I don't know what you and Vorpheus did back in those mountains," she said, "but it worked. I'm dying. Does it feel good to know you've poisoned a fourteen year old girl?"

"You're no more fourteen than I am," said Sheik.

Hatra looked between them. "Have you two met?"

"Several times," said Sheik. "What are you doing here, Dehl? Shouldn't you be out hunting your grandfather?"

"Oh, I am going to deal with him very soon," Dehl said. Her voice seemed to be collapsing in on itself, growing hoarser and hoarser by the second. "But I was ordered by Nuviro to find one prisoner and one traitor and kill them both." She nodded to Hatra. "Sorry, kid, but the commander's seen through your ruse."

"Where is he?" asked Hatra, his voice shaking again.

"Oh, he's around here, somewhere," said Dehl. "He's panicking because he's lost control of the battle outside. It makes me wonder how he ever became the commander of the supposedly _elite_ first legion…" She was interrupted by something Sheik could neither see, hear nor feel. A shiver went through Dehl's body and a huge grin spread on her face. "Ah, he's here," she said. "Vorpheus…"

Sheik tensed up, preparing to tear down the hallway and kill her before she had a chance to do something, but found Hatra's hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

Dehl looked at them, appearing rather torn. "Ah, I was told to kill you, but I don't want to lose sight of Vorphy…" She sighed. Or tried to sigh, anyway, as another coughing fit overtook her. "What to do, what to do…" she finished after wiping away more blood. Another shiver went through her. "Bah, screw it!" she exclaimed and snapped a finger. Almost instantly, much faster than Vorpheus could have done it, a portal appeared next to her. The colourful doorway morphed and jerked, as if it was unstable.

"As much as I would like to kill you myself, Sheikah, I simply do not have the time," she said. "By this evening, Vorpheus will be dead, and I will leave this shithole of a kingdom. Let Ganondorf deal with his own crap." She made to step through the portal, but stopped, as if remembering something. "However, I suppose I could leave you with a playmate. Someone who will be…very familiar to you." She waved her hand around, and something black and smoky-like slowly started to drift to the floor. Giggling, she waved to Sheik and Hatra and stepped through the portal. It winked out of existence.

The smoke began to take shape, and Sheik and Hatra watched it nervously, Sheik most of all. There was just something about those words…

"What did she mean?" whispered Hatra fearfully.

"If my inkling is right, we are in for a whole lot of trouble," Sheik muttered, a sinking feeling in his stomach. Two red dots had appeared within the smoke now, which was clearly taking the form of a person…

* * *

"Clear," one of the Gerudo soldiers whispered, waving them forward.

They were making their way through the streets fast, much faster than any of them expected. Most of the legion soldiers were indeed battling the Remnant army throughout the lower part of the city, leaving the upper part empty and silent, like a ghost town, as the soldier had said.

They were less than half a mile away from the castle now, and the air was getting noticeably warmer.

Link and Zelda had unofficially paired up, which seemed just natural given their positions. Oddly enough, Link found himself in a strange sort of…synchronisation with the princess. It was like their movements complimented each other as they climbed over the barricades that had been set up.

"Just a few dozen metres more and we'll be at the gates to the castle," Zelda said as they rounded a street corner. There was just one more square to cross, and they would be there. As they ran across it, Link found himself wondering if the city could ever recover from the occupation. Many buildings had been burned, and even more had been torn down for building materials. And there seemed to be this sort of permeating stench that filled every nook and cranny.

Suddenly, three of the soldiers—a Hylian and two Zora—dropped to the ground with quarrels through their chests and heads. Another dozen arrows thudded into the ground ahead of the group. A group of legion soldiers appeared at the other end of the square, aiming crossbows at them.

"Ambush!" one of the Hylians shouted.

Link drew his weapons. It had been too good to be true. Legion soldiers began to pour out of the buildings in the square. They barely outnumbered Zelda's own group, but their armours—which were painted a midnight black—were covered in Legion I-symbols. The elite of the elite.

"Damn," Zelda said as she and Link stood back to back. "So close."

"Don't let these clowns stop us!" Link shouted, surprising both himself and Zelda. "We've a purpose, a cause! They're just fighting for money!"

"Justice will prevail!" Zelda shouted, joining Link.

"Justice!" the Remnant soldiers shouted, drawing their weapons in one synchronised movement.

"Charge!" Zelda screamed.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 133**

* * *

With a desperate, decisive strike, the legion soldiers had halted the Remnant's advance through the city. Sealing one of the forward companies between two gatehouses, legion archers had quickly and efficiently eliminated it with a rain of arrows and crossbow quarrels. It was impossible to go around the gatehouses themselves, for the legion had demolished several neighbourhoods with explosives, effectively closing off any streets the Remnant could take. The battle had ground to a standstill, neither of the two armies willing to make a move.

But there were still pockets of legion soldiers hidden around the lower part of Castle Town, and they were fiercely resisting the advancing Remnant. Arrows whined, men and women screamed, blood ran through the streets as company after company on either side fell into ambushes. Myde could only shake his head at the chaos it had all descended into. But at least his and Kato's companies were making progress, slow as it was. They had yet to actually fall into an ambush themselves. They had _almost_ been caught in one, but Kato had seen through the ruse before any damage could be done. Then he had demolished the building the legion was hiding in. A messy, but effective solution to a problem.

He was worried, though. The trail of bodies had gradually thinned out before disappearing completely, and they were now unsure of where to go next. Had the rebellion failed, and had the entire population been killed? He doubted it, but there was still that little niggling feeling at the back of his head. He could only begin to imagine what had happened to Thea, and Pesco, and… He snapped back to attention when he noticed Kato approaching, wiping his sword with a piece of cloth.

"General Myde, we have a problem," the Hylian said as he slid his sword back in its sheath. "We've run out of bodies."

"That's one way to look at it," said Myde, wondering if the man was simply trying to put on a brave face after seeing so many of his own people killed. "What do you think?"

"I say one of the two sides panicked and tried to retreat and was chased by the other," said Kato. "But the questions are: which side, and where the hell did they go?"

Myde looked around. They were standing at yet another of the many crossroads that Hylians seemed to adore for some reason, only this particular cross contained no less than eight different branches in addition to the one they had come from. They did not have enough men to split off and look in all directions.

"I don't know, General," said Myde. "I do not have much experience in urban warfare, much less _human_ urban warfare." He took another look around. A fine layer of dust and ash had fallen upon the city thanks to his, Ayla and Sheik's efforts last night. For a second, he thought he could just follow the tracks through the ash, but realised that the tracks went off in _all_ directions.

"Well, we have to do _something_ ," said Kato, his jaw clenching when yet another catapult missile zoomed in over the city. "I don't know who's in charge of those things, but they're going to get a hiding as soon as I'm out of here. They've nearly hit _us_ twice!"

Myde agreed wholeheartedly with that statement. After the assault had started, the artillery had started to lessen their selective firing, apparently opting to just shower the entire city in tons of rock. He really wished they hadn't found that quarry. But, he supposed they were lucky in that the artillery officers hadn't decided to bring out the flaming ammunition.

"We can't stay here," said Myde. "We'll just have to pick a street and hope it will lead us the right way."

"Or we could send a couple of scouts down each," said Kato. "It'll expose us in this place for a bit, but at least we can—"

There was a scream. Not one of pain, but of fury. It was decidedly female, and Myde knew immediately who it was. Only one person could enounce such anger in such a supersonic way that could rupture your very ear drums if that person so decided. He gulped. If she was angry… And it came from one of the streets to the right. Without a word, he summoned his warriors to his side and charged down the street, leaving the Hylians to stumble surprised after them.

* * *

The groups clashed, screaming bloody murder at each other. Link immediately found an opponent in a wiry, skinny fellow wielding a pair of vicious-looking broadswords, with barbs and all. He briefly pondered why a sword would have barbs on it, and had his question answered when his sword was ripped out of his hand seconds later. The man grinned and did a fancy flourish. It gave Link enough time to slam his shield into the man's face, who dropped to his arse in a rather undignified way. The Hero's boot slammed him into oblivion right after.

Looking around for his sword, Link noticed that the Remnant soldiers Zelda had brought were evenly matched with the legion elite. The princess herself was engaged with a huge, armoured fellow with a halberd, and it was clearly she that led the dance. The man was simply too slow to keep up with her, and his armour was full of gaps. Every now and then, Zelda jumped to the side, waited for his blow to invariably miss, and then sank her sword into a joint in his armour. Before long, the man was swaying on his feet, blood pouring out of well over a dozen wounds inside his armour. Zelda finished him off by smashing the butt of her sword into his knees, making him fall backwards, exposing his neck. Quickly, Zelda decapitated him, her face completely neutral and apparently oblivious to what she had just done. She noticed Link looking at her, and nodded.

He nodded back, having finally found the Master Sword. He picked it up, noticing that Zelda's eyes had suddenly widened. Instinctually, he ducked. He heard a blade cut the air where his head had just been. He rolled back to his feet, seeing another enemy soldier that had tried to sneak up on him. He didn't wait, charging the man. Left, right, chop. He was strong and fast, countering or dodging Link's every blow. He even scored a scrape on Link's leg, blood trickling down and staining his tights. Link stepped back, glaring at the soldier, who only grinned back at him.

"This is the legendary Hero of Time? I'm disappointed," he said. "At least it'll get me in the King's good graces." He raised his blade, preparing a vicious downward chop.

Link dodged to his right, pivoting and bringing his own sword downwards. He severed the soldier's hand by the wrist and then slammed his sword's hilt into the man's throat. Down he went, gurgling. Another boot-strike from Link sent him into sleep.

By now, the _elite_ legion soldiers were more or less wiped out. The crossbow-wielding ones at the end of the square had already been taken care of by a pair of Zora, who had used a type of throwing knife made out of carved coral to kill them.

The last legion soldier was finished off by one of the Hylians, clutching his throat as the sword was ripped out.

"Regroup!" Zelda shouted. Her group gathered around her. They had lost ten in addition to the three who had been brought down by crossbows. Still a goodly sized group, in Link's opinion. "Right, this is it," the princess said, pointing at the dirt road just beyond the square. The turrets and towers of Ganondorf's castle could be seen, even from here. "Beyond there lies our goal. Let's go!"

There were no more soldiers waiting for them, which puzzled and bothered Link a lot. Why wouldn't Ganondorf post more guards to prevent any intruders from reaching his castle? The air grew warmer and warmer as they ran up the road, which was littered with bones, discarded weapons and armour and rotting carcasses. It was horrible to see, especially when he saw a skull that clearly belonged to one of the Remnant races.

They stopped to take a small breather, all of them panting heavily. The Zoras looked ready to collapse, and Link was betting that Zelda was cursing herself for not taking their handicap into consideration. Whatever the heat was, or where it was coming from, it was already dehydrating them.

"You two," the princess told the Zoras. "Go back to the square and secure the area. Don't let anyone through."

"Your Highness, we want to fight—"one of them began, but was interrupted by Zelda.

"If you go any further up this path, you will both die," said Zelda firmly, shaking her head. "Please, I don't want anyone dying unnecessarily."

They were about to argue, even looking to Link for support, but the Hero shook his head, agreeing with Zelda wholeheartedly. That defeated them, apparently, and they nodded, saluting before trudging grudgingly back down the road.

Zelda looked at their retreating backs, her posture clearly telling Link that she was about to call them back.

"You made the right decision," he said. "They would die in the heat."

"I just…it's like I'm saying they're not good enough," said Zelda.

"They will understand," said Link. "They were just excited to attack Ganondorf."

Zelda nodded, a small smile coming to her face. "I guess you're right. Thank you, Link."

There was a smell of sulphur in the air which only get worse and worse as they continued upwards. Link remembered the smell from the Death Mountain volcano, and the presence of it _here_ troubled him. Surely Ganondorf couldn't have…

He cursed loudly in his head when he, as the first of the group, reached the top of the hill.

The castle had changed. Instead of the white, peaceful-looking home that had once stood among the green trees and white ponds, there was now an ugly, black, hate-filled citadel, covered in spikes and threatening steeples. Link realised finally why there hadn't been any water from the moat in the drain pipe—there was no moat from which it could come. Where there had once been small, rolling hills covered in flowers and trees, there was nothing. The citadel was built on large ball of sand, rock and dust, which floated freely above a monstrous hole in the ground, at the bottom of which boiling lava bubbled, giving off noxious fumes and heat.

Zelda finally reached his position, stopped dead next to him. He heard her breath hitch as she saw what had been done to her home. Link looked at her, saw silent tears flowing down her cheeks as her jaw clenched and teeth ground together, the rage building up within her. Then she took a deep breath, and it was gone, and the neutral princess was back.

"How do we get over there?" asked one of the Gerudo.

"There's a bridge," said Link, pointing at the floating island. The word 'bridge' might have been an overestimation, however. It was more like a piece of metal that was simply swung over to close the gap between the island and mainland. And it was unmanned.

"Shit," said a Hylian. "There's no way there!"

Link pulled out his Longshot, aiming at the island. He had little hope, but he had to try. The Longshot didn't even reach halfway across. He turned to Zelda, intending to ask if she had any ideas, but found that the princess had closed her eyes and was mumbling something under her breath.

"The sages are weak," she said suddenly. "There are barriers inside the citadel, which reinforces the veil Ganondorf has cast over Hyrule."

"What can we do?" asked Link. "We can't even get across!"

Zelda continued mumbling, but suddenly looked up. "They will create a bridge," she said.

"How?"

"Their actions have little consequence on this plain, but they think they can do it."

The word _think_ did not bring much confidence.

* * *

"Of course, it had to be you."

Sheik glared at the smoky shape. Gradually, it seemed to be solidifying into the familiar form of the Hero of Time. The cocky grin on its face, however, did obviously not belong to Link.

"You…know this one?" asked Hatra, looking nervously at the shape.

"We've had a few…run-ins, yes," said Sheik.

It was strange. Sheik had expected to feel something…different. Being the creature that had succeeded in killing him once and almost twice, Sheik expected Speil to evoke some degree of fear or hate. But no. All Sheik could feel at the moment, was a smouldering anger, which was not even directed at Speil. No, he was angry at Dehl for bringing back something from a chapter in his life he had hoped would be closed forever.

The light around them dimmed as Speil seemed to suck the very life out of it, like his mere presence was a poison. It made sense, being a creature of darkness, but Sheik had never noticed this effect before.

 _Probably because I was too busy falling in love with him,_ he thought bitterly.

Finally, the smoke disappeared, and a fully restored Speil stood in front of them, still grinning like a madman. He took a step forwards. Sheik and Hatra took one backwards. His hand went for the dark copy of the Master Sword, slowly pulling it out. Even the blade itself was black as midnight, no reflections coming off it. His shield was the same.

 _Wait…didn't his sword have a regular blade?_ Sheik thought.

"I'm warning you, one more step and you will regret coming back to life," Sheik said threateningly, feeling slightly ridiculous. He had never been able to best the shadow in battle before, why would he be able to now?

Speil didn't answer, only took a defiant step forwards.

 _He knows,_ Sheik thought. He turned his head to look at Hatra. "Go. Get out of here."

Hatra hesitated. "But…I…"

"I am not sure I can defeat this one," said Sheik. "It will kill us both if I fail. Go!" He motioned behind him. "Whatever Dehl did to confuse us, it'll be gone now. Find the way out of here. I'll catch up!"

Hatra looked torn, but eventually nodded and ran, his steps thumping down the carpeted hallway. And then he was gone, leaving Sheik alone with the monster that had haunted him for so long. Sheik glared at Speil, tightening his grip on his weapons, daring the shadow to make a move.

Speil struck first. He appared almost instantly in front of Sheik, his blade already dangerously close to skewering him. Sheik blocked using his dagger, felt a jolt go through his arm. While keeping Speil's sword arm occupied, he tried to move in for a strike with Kazuya. But the blade was heavy, and the bandages were no suitable replacement for his broken fingers, and the blow came out slow and clumsy, easily dodged by Speil. Sheik almost anticipated what the shadow would do next.

Almost. Speil's shield slammed into Sheik's temple, temporarily blinding the Sheikah and confusing him as he stumbled and crashed into the wall. Dazed, Sheik swung his dagger wildly around him, hoping to at least graze the shadow before it was too late. He was surprised when nothing happened, and as his sight slowly cleared up, he found Speil standing in the same place as before, staring at him with a smug and…interested expression?

"What's wrong with you?" Sheik asked, finally able to stand upright without feeling the entire word shift beneath his feet. "No clever little line? No smug proclamation of being superior to the Hero and I?"

Speil only continued to stare. His shoulders went up a fraction, as if he was shrugging. Growling, Sheik assumed his fighting stance again, already feeling adrenaline starting to pump through his system, dulling the pain of his wounds and broken digits. If he was going to die, then he was going to die fighting! This time, he struck first. The shadow's eyes widened slightly as Sheik came at it with a flurry of blades. It easily dodged the strikes from Kazuya, which were still sluggish and somewhat…useless, but the dagger, which flashed in and out of its vision with surgical precision, gave it more of a challenge. It waited for a window, and struck, blocking Kazuya with its sword while protecting its upper body with its shield.

Sheik screamed in pain, his hand burning. The vibration caused by the blades' impact jarred the broken fingers in such a way that not even his adrenaline-affected system could ignore. Stepping away, Sheik let his right arm drop, his vision blurring. He had thought the actual process of breaking the fingers had been bad, but this was even _worse_! And the shadow stared, smiling broadly, obviously taking great joy in Sheik's pain, which was no surprise, really.

Ignoring everything he had learned about fighting, he simply launched himself at Speil, barrelling through the surprised shadow and taking it to the floor. Sheik hacked, stabbed, bit, punched and kicked at every visible surface. He was roughly pushed away by Speil, who did a bit of kicking and punching of his own before resorting to his blade again. Sheik got back to his feet just in time to dodge a strike that would have cleaved him in two had it connected.

 _I_ know _I got a hit or two in this time,_ Sheik thought, taking several steps backwards as the shadow advanced. And there it was, a clean cut on Speil's cheek. But there was no blood. Only an inky, black substance slowly leaked out. Speil opened his mouth, but nothing came out. His tongue moved, but there was no sound. And then it struck Sheik. He knew _exactly_ what he was dealing with here.

"You're not as fast as you were last time," he said as he and Speil began to circle each other. "Nor as strong. That shield bash you gave me should have knocked me out." He lashed out with his dagger, which Speil was barely able to dodge. "You wouldn't have batted an eye at a strike like that before," continued Sheik. "You're nothing like you used to be, and I know why. You're not Speil. You're just a copy. A reflection…of a reflection."

He feigned a strike with Kazuya, then with his dagger. The shadow attempted to dodge both, leaving his guard open. Sheik kicked him in the chest, sent him flying backwards and crashing into a suit of armour. Wasting no time, Sheik ran forward and plunged Kazuya into the shadow's chest. His eyes widened, looking up at Sheik, more of the black liquid coming out of his mouth.

"Please die," Sheik whispered. "And never come back."

The red eyes faded, the glimmer of life disappearing before the rest of the body went slack, quickly dissolving into the black smoke from which it had been made, which dissipated within seconds. Sheik slowly stood up, noticing that the creature's blood still remained. It looked as if someone had dipped Kazuya in black paint.

 _Of course,_ he thought. _Dehl knew nothing about Speil and I's relationship other than that we hated each other. And she obviously knew nothing of his true strength, if this copy was any indication. She was hoping I would freeze up on seeing my old enemy again and fall victim to its attacks._

He let out the breath he'd been holding. Even though he knew it was just a copy, it had felt like…attacking the _real_ Speil. And it felt…great. He had never had a chance to exact vengeance upon Speil for killing Terra, not to mention Sheik himself. And even though this copy was nothing like Speil—it hadn't even been able to _talk_ —it still felt like he had severed his link to the shadow once and for all, despite how petty the victory was. It was like some weight had been lifted off his shoulders, only this time he had done it himself, and Link hadn't been there to help.

He heard someone scream from the direction Hatra had gone, interrupting his triumphant thoughts. He took one last look at the destroyed suit of armour and the black blood that covered it, and then ran.

He found Hatra standing over the dead body of a legion soldier by a stairwell that clearly went down to the first floor. The Inquisitor's scalpel was covered in blood. He was staring at the body with wide eyes.

"He…he was going to kill me…" Hatra said slowly. "But he couldn't get his sword out, so I slashed his…his throat…."

Sheik bent down and checked the soldier's pulse. There was none. Then he stood up and, in a moment of compassion, nodded in approval. "It was either him or you," he said. "You did a good job. Nice, clean cut."

Hatra looked at him. "I didn't mean to…"

"But you did," said Sheik. "And that's all there is to it."

"It was so easy…"

"You get used to it."

Hatra looked behind Sheik, in the direction of where he had fought Speil. "The creature?"

"Gone," said Sheik. "It was a mere copy of the foe I could not defeat. It didn't stand a chance." He leaned over the rail, looking down the stairs. "And it seems you have found a way out. Good job." He smiled—a sincere smile this time—at Hatra. "Shall we?"

* * *

They finally found the bulk of the prisoners. They were heavily engaged in a street-wide brawl with the remaining legion soldiers, and they were clearly losing. Prisoner after prisoner dropped either dead or with lethal wounds. They seemed to be converging around… Myde wanted to slap his forehead. Of _course_ Thea had been the instigator. She was fighting as well, having appropriated a blade from a fallen enemy, most likely, and had just downed a foe. The fins on her arms were covered in blood, as were most of her clothes.

"There they are, General," shouted Kato.

"Let's help them, then!" Myde called, ordering his men to charge. Kato mirrored the action. The Zora and Hylian soldiers let out a roar as they ran forward.

The legion soldiers looked relieved upon hearing the roaring soldiers, most likely thinking they were getting reinforcements. However, upon seeing the three hundred Hylians and Zoras bearing down upon them, they blanched. Merely a minute into the engagement, the enemy broke and fled. Kato and his troops went after the fleeing soldiers while Myde and his men remained behind to secure the prisoners.

Thea smiled tiredly as he slowly approached her. She had looked so fierce while fighting, yet now she was suddenly the icon of innocence, looking utterly lost among the dead bodies. The blood splatters all over her skin and clothing did nothing to impede this.

"Took your sweet time," Thea said.

"I told you I'd be back, just not when," said Myde.

Grinning, the siblings embraced.

"Are these all the prisoners that are left?" Myde asked when they parted. There were less than fifty by his headcount. Had they been too late?

"Oh, not at all," said Thea, looking sadly at the many fallen. "These are just…what remains of those who wanted to fight. The rest of the prisoners are hiding behind the wall. And then there are the slaves..." Her eyes widened and she looked at the smoke that was rising from several places in the city. "Where are you assaulting?" she asked hurriedly.

"All over the city," said Myde, shrugging. "This is a very messy and badly executed battle."

"Then the poor slaves are caught in the middle!" Thea exclaimed. "You have to do something!"

"Later," said Myde, caring about one thing and one thing only. "First, I'm getting you out of here."

"No, I want you to—"

"Thea, don't argue with me on this." Myde sighed. "I will help the slaves, I promise, but I can't…I can't work properly unless I know you're safe. I'm going to escort you and the prisoners out of the city first."

"No," said Thea, glaring at him. "I'm not going anywhere until I know they're okay."

"But I can't let you stay here," said Myde, feeling like he was talking to a wall…much like he usually did when arguing with his sister.

"Then take me with you," said Thea, grinning. "There's no place I would be safer than by your side."

There was no arguing about it, he supposed. When Thea had made up her mind, she was impossible to reason with. At least the other prisoners agreed to be escorted out of the city, which eased his burden considerably. He assigned fifty of his troops to this task and brought the remaining hundred or so to bear. As they once again began to advance through the streets, he noticed that Thea was still grinning insanely.

"You _do_ know that I am going to make you pay for this later, right?" he asked her. Thea only nodded. "Oh, and red does not suit you."

She blew a raspberry.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 134**

* * *

The pain was returning rapidly now that Sheik had had a chance to calm down. The fight with the copy of Speil, while cathartic, had also been rather…anticlimactic. It had gotten his system started, but the effect soon abated. By the time he and Hatra had reached the first floor via the staircase, he was all but ready to collapse, partly because of fatigue, but also because of the wounds his newfound—and he hesitated to use the word— _ally_ had given him. But the young man had yet to show any signs of betrayal, even killing a legion soldier, almost as if he wanted to prove it to Sheik that he was done with Ganondorf. Not that it mattered, really. Hatra had no choice. Nuviro had apparently marked him for death, if what Dehl had said was correct.

Sheik halted at the bottom of the staircase, leaning against one of the banisters. His face felt like it had swollen to at least thrice its size, and his broken fingers were aching like never before. The wound left behind by the tooth that had been knocked out refused to stop bleeding, and Sheik had given up on spitting the blood out, swallowing it rather. His entire body stung, the dozens of tiny cuts Hatra had made with his scalpel all crying out at the same time. In short, Sheik was in hell, yet still very much alive.

He was surprised at the lack of activity from the Delta Force, though. It had last made its presence known back in the tunnel, and only when Sheik had been particularly upset with Hatra. He hadn't noticed it during the fight with the fake Speil. Perhaps it was subsiding, giving up on influencing his decisions and moods? He knew it was too good to be true, but one could hope, right?

"Is something wrong?" asked Hatra, looking concerned. Every now and then, he cast a glance around them, looking for more guards. There was a conspicuous lack of them.

"Injuries are catching up with me," said Sheik, closing his eyes and trying to will the pain away. It didn't work.

"Does it hurt?" asked Hatra, more insistently.

"Let's just say that I have been better," Sheik forced out, preventing a particular toxic tongue-lashing from escaping his mouth. " _Much_ better…"

"I might have something that can help," the Inquisitor said, starting to fumble around with the sleeves of his robes. Sheik raised an eyebrow as the young man grew increasingly flustered and nervous when he obviously didn't find what he was looking for. Hatra's face was quite red when he finally pulled a small vial out of his sleeve, looking triumphant. The vial contained a clear, innocent-looking liquid. Knowing Hatra, though, Sheik was sure it wasn't. The Inquisitor uncorked it. "Here, take a few drops of this."

"What is it?" Sheik asked, looking at the vial with apprehension. Was this an attempt to poison him?

"Painkiller," said Hatra. "A few drops are more than enough to dull the pain. Take any more, though, and it will blur your senses. Too much could kill you."

"How do I know this isn't poison?" asked Sheik, taking the vial from Hatra nonetheless. "How do I know I can trust you?"

"Well, if my actions these past hour hasn't convinced you, then I have no idea," said Hatra. "Releasing you, helping you escape, killing…" He shuddered. "Killing a soldier who is supposedly on my side…"

 _I can't bloody well go on like this,_ Sheik thought, feeling the ache in his entire body. He studied the vial, smelling the contents. It smelled like…well, chemicals. Just like any other medicine he had ever been given. He doubted that an expert in torture would walk around with a scented poison, as it ruined the entire idea of poison… Looking at Hatra, who smiled gently and nodded, he let three drops of the supposed "painkiller" touch his tongue before swallowing quickly. Too late. The taste hit him like a stampede of bulls, almost making him retch.

Hatra took the vial back, corked it and shoved it back in his sleeve. "It tastes horrible, but it's really effective, and it works quickly. In fact, you should be feeling the effects already."

Sheik wanted to contradict him, but quickly found that the pain was slowly, but surely, fading. Not completely, however, but enough for it not to distract him. He slowly nodded. "It's working."

"I'm glad."

Sheik took another minute of rest, during which Hatra diligently kept a lookout for enemies.

"We're not far from the main chamber now," said Hatra, looking excited.

"I thought we were trying to find the exit," Sheik pointed out.

"The exit is _through_ the main chamber," Hatra explained. "After that, it's just straight through the entrance hall, over the slidebridge and we're out of here. Easy as pie!" He looked rather pleased with himself.

"There is no way it can be _that_ easy," said Sheik sourly. "There'll probably be a thousand soldiers between us and the exit." He looked around, noting once again the eerie silence and emptiness of the corridors and halls. "Speaking of which, where _is_ everybody? When I was dragged through here, there were dozens, if not hundreds of them in here."

"Ganonodorf probably sent them out to fight in the battle," said Hatra. "We really didn't expect the Remnant to show up this soon."

"The element of surprise is always desireable," said Sheik, standing up straight and working his joints. The throbbing pain had turned into a faint, dull ache that was barely felt unless he specifically looked for it. Good enough. "Right," he said, tightening his grip on his weapons, "if we're going to offer ourselves to a thousand soldiers, then now is the time."

Hatra led the way through a crisscross-pattern of hallways. It didn't take them long to finally stand at the other end of the main chamber. The barrier around the inner sanctum still pulsated and swirled around the pillar-like construction. But it seemed a bit more erratic, like the creator was having trouble concentrating. Sheik still wondered what the doors with the temple symbols were for.

He held Hatra back as he slowly entered the chamber, looking around suspiciously. It may seem empty, but he was not going to take any chances. His boots clicked on the tiled floor, echoing in the large chamber. Carefully, he inched his way along the wall, circling the sanctum, the doorway to the entrance hall in clear sight. He was about halfway toward it when he heard someone shouting on the other side of it, and footsteps approaching. It was too late to get away by the time the door was all but ripped open, and Nuviro's large frame came in—backwards.

"You will hold your position!" he screamed at some unknown person on the other side of the door, the commander's back blocking them from view. "I don't want to hear any excuses. If the barricade falls, your lives are all forfeit!" With that said (shouted), he slammed the door shut.

Sheik felt himself go rigid as the commander slowly turned around. He was covered in blood, his armour full of dents. A stray arrow was lodged in his left thigh, blood oozing from the wound. Nuviro's eyes widened slightly as they fell upon Sheik, but then a grin spread on his face, and he laughed.

"Of all the rooms in the castle, _this_ was the last one I expected to find you in, Sheikah," he said, his hand already going for his sword hilt. "I would have thought that the will to live in you would be strong after narrowly escaping execution. Where is that little traitor?" He looked around the chamber. "Hatra! After years of kindness, is this how you repay me?!"

"He can't hear you," said Sheik hurriedly, hoping the Inquisitor wouldn't reveal himself by responding. "I killed him the second he showed me the way out of that torture chamber." He swallowed, feeling his pulse quickening. "His body is rotting in the hidden tunnels below."

Nuviro grunted. "Good riddance. The little bugger was never anything but a nuisance anyway. He should have known better than to free you after all he did to you."

"Actually, the way I see it," said Sheik, inching his way backwards, " _you're_ the one who did the worst of the damage. _His_ treatment was like heaven compared to yours."

"Heh, I do take pride in my work," said Nuviro. He sniffed. "Still, I'm impressed you made it this far. I suppose you also encountered and killed the mistress…?"

"Encountered, yes," said Sheik. "But I did not kill her, as she did not give me the chance. She escaped from the castle, just turned tail and fled. Not much of an ally in her, was there?"

"Hmph, mercenaries," said Nuviro, snorting. "They say you get what you pay for, but that is never the case. Not even with us." He relaxed his grip on his sword. "Believe me; if I was not stuck on this miserable piece of dust, I would have been long gone. This fight just isn't worth it. Sometimes, you just have to realise that there is more to life than money—"

"What, are you getting philosophical all of a sudden?" asked Sheik. "If you're looking for sympathy, you've come to the wrong man."

"You're nowhere near a man, boy," said Nuviro, unsheathing his blade. It too was covered in blood. "And I will prove that to you now, in a fair fight, mano-a-mano…"

Sheik couldn't believe what he was hearing, and grinned. "A fair fight? You've broken all my fingers and probably gave me a concussion."

"In a mercenary's eyes, that's a fair fight," said Nuviro, grinning evilly. He assumed his fighting stance. It was the same, basic style that nearly every wielder of a bastard sword used. Big, clumsy swipes and a wide reach. Speed would decide this battle. "Any last words before I end your bloodline once and for all?" asked the commander.

"No," said Sheik, also sliding into what he hoped was a passable combat stance. He had a feeling he looked more like a clumsy oaf, though. "I just want you to remember: everyone who said those words to have ended up dead."

"Not much of a threat, then," said Nuviro and charged. His armour made a horrible racket as he quickly closed the distance between himself and Sheik, starting off with a basic, overhead swing. Sheik was several feet away by the time the blade cleaved through the space he had been standing in. Nuviro was skilled, however, and quickly diverted his momentum in Sheik's direction, turning the overhead swing into a quick combination of fast, precise strikes. But he was still hampered by the weight of his armour, and his sword could not be very light either, providing Sheik with ample windows of opportunity to escape through.

 _Where the hell do I strike?_ Sheik wondered as he continued dodging for his life. There was not an inch of Nuviro that was either not covered in armour or out of his reach. The arrogant man clearly did not worry much about wearing a helmet, but his height prevented Sheik from doing anything to it. He could try to throw his dagger, but that could easily turn out to be a stupid idea if he missed. He couldn't use Kazuya to block strikes. That much he had learned from the fight with the fake Speil.

"What's wrong, Sheikah?" asked Nuviro as he continued his unrelenting flurry of attacks. "You won't find any holes in _my_ armour!"

 _I need to wear him out,_ Sheik thought. Nuviro was strong and fit, most likely at his physical peak, but even _he_ had to get tired at some point or another. The question was: who would tire out first? Sheik's head was already starting to spin from the rapid movement and dodging he had to perform, and his broken ribs didn't leave much room for breathing either.

They continued the horrible, horrible dance for a few minutes. Sheik was definitely dizzy now, and his footwork was starting to suffer. He almost ripped over his own right foot once, which earned him a cut on his cheek. It was superficial, but it kept him alert of the fact that he could very well die here…again.

"Stop fucking moving!" Nuviro shouted. He too was showing signs of fatigue, his face shiny with sweat and red with anger. His blows were becoming sloppy as well, but he still did not seem to slow down. In fact, his speed only picked up, pushing Sheik further backwards.

Suddenly, Sheik's heels bumped into something behind him, setting him off balance. He quickly recovered, rolling backwards with the fall. The floor felt different here. Daring a glance around, he realised that he had been chased onto the bridge to the inner sanctum. The forcefield pulsed behind him, the magic clearly potent. Sheik didn't want to know what would happen if he touched it.

 _Can't be boxed in,_ he thought. _Can't be boxed in!_ As Nuviro caught up to him, he went on the offensive. Not giving the commander a chance to attack again, Sheik launched a combo of his own, getting in close to the, where his large sword wouldn't be of much use.

Left, right, left, right, right, kick, left…

He tried to avoid having his blows with Kazuya actually hit, turning them into feinting manoeuvres instead, but every now and then he felt a pulse—a _pulse_ —of pain go right from his hand, up his arm and to his head. He barely noticed, but he cried out every time he hit. Nuviro took a step backwards, raising a mailed fist to ward off the attacks. For a moment, Sheik thought he actually had the commander on the defensive.

Not so. The mailed fist suddenly curled into a fist. It went right through Sheik's defences, striking the Sheikah with the strength of a horse's kick, sending him tumbling backwards. Wounds reopened, his nose felt like it had been smashes to pieces—which it probably had. He skidded slightly along the floor, ending up not very far from the shimmering forcefield. The magic felt like it was reaching out to him…

The Delta Force flared up again, burning intensely. Whatever this thing was supposed to grant Sheik, it did not deliver. Instead, it seemed to function as a warning about impending death—which would have been quite useful had it not been for the sheer obviousness of the situation. His limbs felt like lead, his vision blurred. He saw the looming shape of Nuviro standing over him, the blade of his sword inches away from his head.

"Almost too easy,"Nuviro said, crouching down to his level. " _One_ movement, and it will all be over…seems a shame to have the last member of a dead race go out like this…" Suddenly, he removed the blade, sheathing it. For a moment, Sheik thought Nuviro was going to spare him, but the thought was quickly banished when the commander removed his chainmail gloves from his hands. Nuviro's hands closed around Sheik's throat, slowly crushing his windpipe, literally choking the life out of him. "I've always preferred this way of killing," Nuviro said, grinning down at Sheik. "It really gives you the opportunity to see your opponent die."

Sheik tried to push him off, tried to stab his dagger into the side of Nuviro's head, but it was impossible to even summon the strength to lift his arm. His vision was swimming, the edges slowly going dark…

Something flashed in the air behind Nuviro. A scalpel. It moved to cut Nuviro's throat from behind.

"Nice try!" the commander exclaimed, letting go of Sheik's throat, slamming his elbow into Hatra's stomach. Sheik heard the young man gasp. The sound of a sword being drawn. "I knew you were lurking around here somewhere!"

Sheik tried to move, tried to intervene, but it was too late. He watched in horror as Nuviro plunged the tip of sword into Hatra's midsection, just below the ribs. The Inquisitor's face was frozen in surprise and pain, blood leaking from the wound as Nuviro pulled the sword out. Hatra sank to his knees, looking down at the red stain that was spreading across his robes.

Sheik felt…angry. Finally, he was able to move, slowly climbing to his feet, breathing heavily. Time seemed to slow down.

Nuviro raised his blade behind his head, intending to finish Hatra off. He looked quite imbalanced, in Sheik's opinion. Dropping his dagger, Sheik grabbed the hilt of Nuviro's sword, pulling it backwards while dropping to the floor at the same time, putting his entire weight behind the pull. Nuviro lost balance, began to step backwards to regain it. He tripped over Sheik's body, toppling backwards…

…directly into the forcefield. His cry was brief and agonised as he disintegrated, his entire being dissolving, pulled apart by the violent forces within the magical field.

 _That…was…a…stupid…idea…_ Sheik thought, having landed directly on top of his ribs. For a few seconds, he just laid there, trying to catch his breath and assess any damage suffered. Then he remembered. _Hatra!_

He rolled over to his side, spotting the young man. He was leaning heavily against the handrail, holding a hand over the wound in his abdomen. He looked at Sheik, a weak smile on his lips.

"At least…I helped…"

Rising achingly to his feet, Sheik hurried over to him, helping him sit down. He tore open Hatra's robes, revealing the damaged area. It was a clean stab wound, at least. It was difficult to see if any vital organs had been damaged, but judging by Hatra's breathing and the blood pouring, _something_ had clearly taken a hit.

"Shut up, you're going to be fine," said Sheik, even though there was nothing he could actually _do_. "I just need…" His hand went for his satchel, where the vial from Kaura still lay. The satchel…which was still lying on the torture room floor. "Damn!" He looked up as Hatra pushed his hands away.

"Don't bother," said the Inquisitor. "I know a…mortal wound…when I see one…" He coughed, still smiling. "I want to…thank you…for helping me…"

"I wasn't of very _much_ help, though," said Sheik, shaking his head. "I couldn't even get you out of here…"

"You wouldn't have…been able to…anyway," Hatra said. "You heard…Nuviro…there's a…bunch of soldiers…behind that door…"

"We could have made it," said Sheik.

"Nah…we—"

Whatever Hatra would have said next was interrupted by a series of explosions coming from the entrance hall. The door burst open, splintering to pieces, smoke and embers pouring out. Men shouted and screamed. Someone came stumbling out of the smoke, his entire being covered in soot.

"Go! Go! No mercy!" someone shouted.

There were the sounds of swords clashing and digging into flesh, the dying screams of soldiers fighting to the death.

"No prisoners!"

The legion soldier who had stumbled out of the hall finally seemed to get his bearings. Then he fell down, shouting something about his head spinning and some unintelligible mumbling.

"Beamos!"

Sheik recognised the sound of the one-eyed creatures as they spotted a target. However, before the sound of their killing beams could be heard, there was another explosion.

"Nice throw!"

"We're in!"

"Move!"

A figure burst into the chamber from the smoke-filled hall—a Gerudo. She headed straight for the confused legion soldier, hacking his head off before he had a chance to react. Another Gerudo came into the chamber, followed by a Hylian soldier.

Sheik felt his spirits elate immediately. The Remnant had already penetrated as far as Ganondorf's citadel!

"Clear!" shouted the three soldiers, keeping a careful eye on the two on the bridge.

"Good work, everyone!"

Sheik's eyes widened. "Zelda?" he whispered.

"The…princess?" Hatra rasped.

* * *

Link finished off his last opponent in the hall, his body slumping to the floor. Somewhere ahead, someone shouted "Clear!"

He hurried along the passage, almost stumbling over the bodies filling it. The air smelled of burned flesh and blood. He was surprised at how little time it had taken them to reach this far.

The sages had indeed been able to create a bridge for them to cross. It had shimmered with every colour under the sky. They had been hesitant to step on it initially, but it had turned out to be just as solid as a real bridge. The main gate into the citadel had been unlocked, which had woken his suspicion immediately. He prevented the Hylian who was opening it from getting a crossbow round in the face. The legion had laid a trap for anyone who was going to enter the citadel that way. Luckily, several of members of Zelda's group carried bombs with them, which they had lobbed inside the door. The chaos caused by the explosions was unbelievable, and they had used it to their advantage, cutting down every dazed and confused soldier in their way.

He hurried down the stairs, seeing someone standing in the doorway, light flooding in from the room within. It was Zelda. She was staring at something, but turned to Link when he came up to her, pointing inside.

The Hero gasped. There, on the walkway, sat Sheik and someone else, a young man by the look of it. But that wasn't the reason for his surprise. His lover was covered in blood from head to toe, his face full of cuts and scrapes, swollen beyond anything Link had ever seen before. Sheik's sword was tied to his hands with what seemed to be bandages.

Link dropped his sword and shield, mouth opening and closing, sprinting towards the pair on the bridge. His heart galloped, he felt like he couldn't breathe. He stumbled on the steps up to the bridge, almost falling flat on his face. He recovered, scampering across the walkway, finally falling to his knees next to Sheik, saying nothing. Instead, he pulled the Sheikah into a tight hug, clinging to him desperately, burying his face in the crook of the younger's neck.

When he finally found the strength to say something, all he could blurt out was: "Goddesses, Sheik, I was so worried…I love you…I love you…I love you…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 135**

* * *

Hatra gasped as he was gently laid down on the floor by two of Zelda's soldiers, one of whom was apparently a trained medic. He cried out as the soldier began to prod and examine his wound. Sheik gave him a worried look as he himself was led away by Link and Zelda to a secluded corner. The remaining soldiers were securing the area and setting up positions at the exits. Even though the citadel seemed pretty much abandoned, there was no need get sloppy with security.

Sheik sat down with the help of Link, who looked absolutely miserable, and leaned against the wall. Zelda crouched down and began to fumble around in her pockets. The princess hadn't said a word since she had entered the chamber, Link doing most of the talking. Again and again, he kept asking Sheik if he was okay. Link was on his knees in front of Sheik, looking concerned and not unlike a puppy, his big, wet eyes on the verge of spilling tears at all times, it seemed. Sheik smiled weakly and raised a hand, placing it on Link's cheek. The action was enough to jar just about every injury from his shoulders and down, and he gave a hiss.

Link was on him immediately. "Are you alright?" the Hero asked, already beginning to look panicked. "Where does it hurt?"

Sheik gritted his teeth, an expression which turned into a grin as he realised how absurd the question was given his current appearance. "All over," he replied. And it was true. The painkiller Hatra had given him, while effective then and there, did not last as long as he'd liked, and the fight with Nuviro had woken all the other wounds to life. Worst of all were his fingers. They gave a twinge, and he looked at it. The fingers had taken on an ugly, blackish blue colour, and they still curled into vicious claws, as if he was some sort of stereotypical evil magician. Kazuya's weight was pressing down painfully on them, and Sheik reached over, trying to untie the bandages that held the sword to his hand.

Link noticed and swatted away his healthy hand, gently and carefully undoing the knots. After removing the sword, exposing the ruined hand fully, he gasped, and his eyes watered all over again.

"Goddesses, what have they done to you?" he whispered, gesturing not only to Sheik's hand, but to his entire body. The Sheikah's robes had fallen open, revealing his bruised chest and ribs.

"Nuviro found breaking my fingers to be great sport," said Sheik, trying to do another grin, but now his _jaw_ gave a warning twinge. Nuviro had really done a number on him. "And when that didn't work," he continued, "he decided to work on my face and upper body…"

"Who's Nuviro?" asked Link, his face filling with rage, lips curling back to reveal sharp incisors. Sheik had never really noticed how sharp Link's teeth really were, or how canine-like he looked when he was angry. In fact, he looked very much like a wolf.

"Nuviro is the commander of the First Legion and de facto leader of the mercenary legions," said Zelda emotionlessly, still fumbling around her pockets. "He's responsible for the slaughter of our armies."

"Tell me where he is," said Link. "Tell me where to find that bastard, and I'll make him suffer twice as much!" His hand was already straying toward the Master Sword.

"He's dead," said Sheik, coughing slightly. "Pushed him into the forcefield. Tore him apart and scattered him for the winds…"

"Good," said Link, relaxing. He looked back at Sheik's ruined fingers. Gently, he picked his hand up, kissing the broken digits one by one.

Sheik held in his hisses of pain, knowing that Link was just trying to make him feel better, and he appreciated the gesture too much to interrupt it. Still, he looked around, making sure that none of the others could see what he was doing. The Gerudo in the group probably already knew and wouldn't bat an eyelash, but the Hylians…

"A-hah!" Zelda exclaimed, pulling a vial containing a familiar, red liquid out of her pocket. "I knew they were here somewhere."

"You brought potion?" asked Link incredulously.

"Do you really think I would go into battle without carrying healing items?" asked Zelda, shaking her head at the Hero. "I had Kaura make more of those highly concentrated doses she gave to Sheik, Myde and Ayla, and—"

"Are they okay?" asked Sheik suddenly. "Did they make it out?" He knew they must have, since the battle had not been called off, but he still wanted confirmation.

"They did," said Zelda, smiling at Sheik. "Ayla took an arrow to the shoulder, but otherwise they are fine. I believe they are both fighting in the city right now, as a matter of fact."

"Ayla's fighting with an arrow in her shoulder?" asked Sheik, not resisting when Zelda placed the vial in his mouth, feeding him the potion like a baby. The taste was still the equivalent of shoving a nail into one's eye, but he felt its effects immediately afterwards, a warm feeling spreading from his stomach throughout his entire body.

"She had it removed, silly," said Zelda, still smiling. It was a fake smile, though, Sheik could see that much. Was he really in such a horrible state? Sure, he felt like he had been mauled by a pack of rabid wolfos, but really…

"I see," said Sheik, feeling silly for asking such a question. "How goes the battle?" he then asked.

"From what we saw before coming here, I think we're evenly matched," said Link. "But the legion soldiers were really caught with their pants down, even though you guys caused a helluva chaos here last night." His smile too had suddenly turned into a fake imitation of one, and Sheik began to worry slightly.

"Good to know our efforts weren't completely wasted," said Sheik. Hatra suddenly cried out, and Sheik's head snapped to stare at where he was lying.

"Who is that guy, anyway?" asked Link, looking worriedly over to the wounded Inquisitor as well. "I've never seen him before."

"He's..." Sheik began. How was he going to finish that sentence? "He's the one who tortured me" did not seem like such a good option considering the killing intent that rolled off Link at the mention of Nuviro. Of course, Nuviro had done a lot more damage, but he still doubted that Link would accept that as reason for not chopping Hatra's head off.

 _Wait,_ he thought. _Since when did I care about that?_

 _He helped you escape, you dolt,_ he thought seconds later. _And he saved your life. Twice!_

"He's…he's a friend," Sheik finally said. "He helped me escape, and he saved my life twice."

"Okay, but who is _he_?" asked Link again.

"His name's Hatra," Sheik said, hoping to the Goddesses that neither Link nor Zelda had heard the name before. Neither of their faces or eyes gave any indication of this, and he felt a bit braver. "He was Nuviro's…slave, taken in by the legions after they raided his village many years ago. He never stopped trying to escape, though…"

 _That's the best I can do, Hatra. Let's just hope they buy it,_ he thought. He had, by and large, spoken the truth, only leaving out unimportant bits. _Not that it'll do you much good if you die, however…_ He tried to stand up, but Zelda and Link's hands forced him to keep still.

"Where you do you think you're going?" asked Link.

"I need to know if he will make it," said Sheik, looking worriedly over to Hatra. He hadn't made a single noise after crying out, but the soldiers were still fussing about him.

"I will go," said Zelda, patting Sheik's shoulder as she stood up and jogged over to them.

Sheik noticed Link staring at him, and he stared back. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I want to kiss you," said the Hero, frowning. "But I know you don't like doing it in front of others."

"We cannot blow our cover, Link," said Sheik, shaking his head—regretting it immediately as he was almost blinded by a stab of pain in his head. Nuviro had definitely left him with a concussion. Frantically, his healthy hand shot out, grabbed the front of Link's tunic and pulled him close, crushing his lips to the Hero's in desperation. Anything to distract him from the pain!

Link responded slowly, almost shyly, working his smooth lips against Sheik's chapped ones. To the Sheikah's surprise, he pulled away first, smiling. "Thank you," he said, "but any more than that, and I think people will notice."

Sheik sighed. "I'm sorry, Link…"

"Hey, don't be," said Link, rubbing Sheik's hand with his own. "You've got no reason to—"

"I made you worry."

"Well, yeah, but if I didn't I wouldn't be much of a lover, or boyfriend, would I?" asked the Hero.

"I was stupid and got caught—"

"But now we're together again," interrupted Link. "And while you're…eh…a bit worse for the wear, you're still alive, and that's all that matters."

Sheik smiled, squeezing Link's hand back. "Since when did you become the rational one of us?" he asked.

"No idea," said Link, grinning stupidly. "Happened almost seamlessly, didn't it?"

"So, does that mean I get to be the stupid adventurer?" asked Sheik.

"Nah, you're still the grumpy uncle everyone avoids at family gatherings," said Link, though the words sounded like they were rehearsed rather than natural.

Sheik blinked. "Where did that come from?" he asked. "Did you come up with that yourself?"

Link blushed. "Um…no. I overheard some soldiers doing some jokes, and I thought it sounded funny." He looked around conspiratorially, while looking rather embarrassed at the same time. "Between you and me, I had to ask Zelda what an uncle is."

Sheik stared at Link for a solid minute. "Un…believable…" he said slowly.

"Hey, be nice to me, I don't have a family," said Link, managing to look so horribly and theatrically hurt that all Sheik could do was rolling his eyes.

"What am I to you, then?" he asked. "A complete stranger?"

"That's not what I meant, Sheik," said Link hurriedly.

"I know, Link."

Zelda came back, smiling slightly. Crouching down next to them, she revealed another empty vial of red potion. "He will be fine for now, Sheik," she said. "The wound is not mortal, though they thought his lungs had been damaged at first."

"That's a relief," said Sheik, sighing. "How is he?"

"He's a bit delirious from the blood loss, but otherwise fine," replied Zelda. "But we have to get him to a doctor as soon as possible. The wound needs to be closed by a surgeon."

"How soon can we get him to one?" asked Sheik.

"I was actually planning to send him off immediately," said Zelda. "We have reached a point in the prophecy where…I hate to say it, but Link will be running things from now on. It _is_ his destiny, after all." She looked at the central column, inside which Ganondorf was hiding…or waiting. "Ganondorf is in there," she said. "And Link is the only one who can defeat him."

"Hurray for me," said Link sarcastically.

"Don't be like that, Link," said Zelda. "You knew where this was heading." She brushed a lock of hair that had escaped her ponytail out of her eyes. "Anyway, I am going to send the soldiers back to link up with our main force, taking Hatra with them." She looked at Sheik. "And I want you to go with them, Sheik. You're in no state to be fighting now."

"With all due respect, Your Highness," said Sheik, "I will not be going with them. I can still be useful, and—"

"Come on, Sheik, look at yourself!" Link interrupted, almost shouting. "Your fingers are broken, you're covered in cuts and scrapes, your head is bleeding—I don't think there's any part of you that _isn't_ bleeding, actually—and…you're a mess." He sadly shook his head. "I never thought I'd say this, Sheik, but I think you're just going to be a liability if you come with me."

"Us," interrupted Zelda. "As a bearer of a piece of the Triforce, I too shall be taking part in the battle, Link."

"Fine, _us_ then," said Link.

Sheik understood what they meant. Hell, he _felt_ like a mess, and he knew very well that he wouldn't be much good in the upcoming fight, despite the fact that the concentrated potion was already making him feel better and better by the second. But still…he had been part of the war, had been fighting for seven years, and…he wanted to _be_ there, to witness the event that ended it once and for all, and now he was being told he couldn't, that he wouldn't be allowed. It was a ridiculous thing to feel, but it _tore_ at him. Still, he knew that his needs were far less important than those of Hyrule and everyone in it. Taking a deep breath, he nodded.

"I understand."

_I'm a bearer of a Triforce piece as well…_

* * *

It had been too long since he had been in an outright battle as this. As much as he abhorred the idea of war, he found it very entertaining to be part of it. Of course, being able to blow away entire enemy companies with the merest flick of a wrist was a big contributing factor to said entertainment. And, on top of it all, this time he was actually doing _good_. He could get used to this, working with the good guys.

Vorpheus gave a triumphant shout as yet another group of legion soldiers were vaporised by a blast of pure magical energy, making his kill count reach the two-hundreds or so. Not that he kept count, or anything, but he still found it important to know how many lives he had ended that day. He did not delude himself, did not trick himself into thinking he was anything but a monster. He'd had plenty of time to realise that. He had racked up one hell of a debt with the powers that be, he knew, but he liked to think he was working a little bit _off_ that debt by doing this.

And of course, there was the factor of his granddaughter. She too needed to be stopped, as she showed no signs of remorse for anything she had ever done, unlike himself. But that was most likely his fault as well, and he was going to take the responsibility and end it.

He was standing in one of the many squares in the upper part of the city, which was completely devoid of life save for a large group of slaves that was hiding here. He had chased them away, however. He did not want any innocents to perish in this battle. He chuckled to himself. That sentiment would have been lost on him just two years ago. He heard another group of legion soldiers approach, and launched a pre-emptive strike in the form of a powerful tremor, collapsing a building on top of them just as they entered the square. How long was thing going to take? He launched another wave of pure energy, this time into the air. He needed to draw her here…

He felt her long before her portal opened up. He smiled, recognising the irregular and chaotic pattern of the portal. She had definitely been breathing in the toxic waste of the mountain he had vaporised. But something went wrong. The second she stepped out of the swirling colours, his chest gave a lurch as he saw the state she was in. She carried herself with the attitude of someone who knew they were going to die, yet also knew that they had a chance to take it all out before they did so. That, coupled with the bedraggled, sick and miserable appearance on her, made him wonder how he could have been so blind, so many years ago. Monster or not, she was still his granddaughter.

Dehl said nothing as she made the portal disappear, standing a hundred feet away from Vorpheus. She stared at him, her expression devoid of any emotion. It was like she was staring into his very soul, a difficult feat since Vorpheus was certain he had forsaken it long ago.

"Millicent," he said, trying to sound happy and carefree. He was anything but. The sheer power Dehl exuded was frightening. It was like her poisoned system was actively making her stronger in an attempt to combat it. "How are you?"

"How do you think I am?" Dehl spat, glaring at him. "And you are not allowed to speak that name." She coughed, hacking up several droplets of blood, which dripped on the cobbles below her feet.

"I'd say you are miserable, sick and dying," said Vorpheus, any joviality, fake or otherwise, gone. The time for jokes, cheerfulness and irony was over. "And we both know what is going to happen now," he added.

"Yes," said Dehl. "One of us is going to die today, and one will survive." She coughed again. "And I would not put my money on the old man."

"And I would not put _my_ money on the poisoned, sickly little girl," said Vorpheus. "But we both know that neither of those descriptions fit us. We have transcended what it means to be normal humans and become…something else."

"I did not do anything," said Dehl, sneering. "Whatever became of us was your fault. You turned us into monsters!" She looked ready to pounce on him, but she was able to hold herself back, barely.

"I will not deny that it was my fault," said Vorpheus, shaking his head. "It _was_ my fault, and I turned you and your father into something you did not wish to be."

"Monsters!" Dehl repeated.

"And it is the nature of monsters to destroy their makers," said Vorpheus, gripping his mace tightly, gradually tensing his posture, gathering energies to his body. "I can only hope that you have what it takes, granddaughter, for I will not give up that easily."

"Just make sure you don't die too fast, old man," said Dehl, staring at the building directly behind Vorpheus.

Without warning, it exploded, showering the warlock in broken stone, burning wood and melting metal. Vorpheus was prepared, however, shielding himself with a quick spell. After the materials had stopped raining, he let the shield fade away, looking at Dehl, who was breathing heavily, fatigued from such a simple explosion.

"If that is your best, Millicent," said Vorpheus, deliberately using Dehl's real name, "then I predict that this will be a short battle. Would you like a handicap?"

"Shut up and counter, Vorpheus!" Dehl snarled, raising her head and spitting blood in his direction in defiance. "Give me your best shot!"

"As you wish," Vorpheus whispered, already channelling a good deal of magic to his fist. He slammed it into the ground, releasing a shockwave that went right for Dehl. For a moment, his granddaughter only stood there, watching the incoming attack, but then she raised her hand and raised a shield, the same kind that he had just used himself, protecting herself. The shockwave slammed into the shield, sending cobbles, dirt and stone flying in all directions.

"Is that the best you can do?" Dehl asked mockingly after the cloud of dirt subsided, revealing her to be completely unharmed. "After that little stunt with the mountain, this feels oddly anticlimactic!"

"There has to be a build-up, honey," said Vorpheus mockingly. "Can't have the grand finale right at the beginning, after all." He straightened his posture, holding his mace out in front of him, pointing it at Dehl. "But instead of firing back and forth at each other like this, what do you say we establish some rules of engagement?"

"I piss on your rules of engagement!" Dehl shouted, her eyes glowing as she prepared another spell, the crackles and arcs revealing it to be lightning-related.

Vorpheus gritted his teeth. He _hated_ lightning spells.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 136**

* * *

There was a subtle change in the morning air. Everyone felt it, but few realised what it was. The sky, which had been bright and blue, revitalised by the sun, suddenly seemed to darken. Some started to feel like they were being observed, spied at by some unfathomable being. The few clouds that dotted the sky began to grow, and spiralled into each other, forming a massive roof above the land, above the battle taking place in the city.

Then it happened. The final vestiges of the sun were swallowed by the clouds, plunging Hyrule into darkness. Many thought they had suddenly gone blind. Others thought the world had ended. Those who were nearby fires continued to fight, as if the sky suddenly disappearing was something that happened regularly.

Thunder crashed and lightning flashed across the sky, the bolts red as blood, illuminating the world briefly. The booms were so strong that glass cracked and broke under the pressure.

Something exploded in the north. A bright light began to glow, only to disappear moments later. Another explosion, and an entire city block was vaporised. Soldiers on both sides knew better than to approach that area.

But the magical battle taking place between two immortals was not what people noticed the most. As the darkness grew deeper, everyone felt the sensation of being watched grow stronger. And everyone knew. Ganondorf was watching. And laughing.

* * *

Sheik felt a shiver go through his body. In the corner of his eye, he saw Link, Zelda and everyone else in the chamber give a similar shudder. Something was definitely happening, and it was not good. They could all feel the presence above, which seemed to assert itself continually, a never-ending, increasing pressure that seemed to weigh down on them like several tons of steel.

Lightning flashed in the corridors beyond the chamber, the thunder echoing throughout the citadel. Suddenly, Sheik felt like he was all alone, despite having Link not ten feet away. It was as if the world had singled him out as a nuisance that needed to disappear, that he was not worthy to walk upon it. It was almost convincing enough.

"What is this?" asked one of the soldiers, his hand on the hilt of his sword. "Where is everyone?"

The other occupants of the room looked at him strangely, though the soldier took no notice as he grew increasingly panicked, looking around the chamber desperately, calling for his allies that were right in front of him.

"Where are you?!" he shouted.

"Crenna, we're here," said one of the Gerudo, waving at him. The Hylian seemed to stare right through her.

"Era! Nadir! Where are you?!" the Hylian shouted again. "Princess Zelda, can you hear me?! Hero of Time?!" He looked close to tears now, his hand still firmly around the hilt of his sword, looking ready to draw it. Sheik felt himself tense up. This could turn…ugly.

"Crenna!" the Gerudo called Nadir said, marching up to Crenna, looking ready to give him the slap of the century to bring him back. Sheik saw Crenna's arm twitch. He was too late with the warning.

"Nadir, don't!" he shouted.

The occupants of the chamber stared in horror has Crenna swiftly drew his sword and plunged it into Nadir's stomach, twisting it briefly before ripping it out and swiftly decapitating her. The girl had no time to even scream. Crenna shouted triumphantly, as if he had just defeated some mighty foe rather than coldly murdered an ally.

"Nice try, demons!" he shouted. "You're not going to get me _that_ easily!"

As the soldiers began to draw their weapons, probably thinking Crenna had turned traitor, Sheik slowly drew back, towards Link, putting his healthy hand on the Hero's shoulder. "Don't, Link," he said. "None of you do _anything_ ," he repeated, raising his voice so everyone could hear him. "Crenna isn't a traitor!"

"He just killed Nadir!" shouted Era, the other Gerudo. "He's a traitor!"

"What? More demons?" Crenna said, turning his attention towards Era, looking every bit as murderous as he had done while killing Nadir.

"Sheik's right," Zelda said loudly. "Ganondorf has done something to him! Can't you feel it? Evil is permeating the very air we breathe!"

Suddenly, Crenna froze, his expression turning from bloodlust to fear. His face locked in a horrified mockery of the human form, he began to scream. It went through the very marrow of everyone's bones, made them shiver even worse. It was like Crenna was being tortured…from the inside. His sword clattered to the floor, and the man ran into one corridors beyond the chamber, his scream gradually fading away and disappearing.

The rest of them stared at each other, wondering what had just happened. Era looked angrily at the remains of her slain clansman, her hand also hovering at her sword hilt. She looked around the group, spat on the floor and ran after Crenna.

"Shouldn't we stop them?" asked Link, seemingly unable to comprehend what he had just seen. "She's going to kill him!"

"There's nothing we can do, Link," said Zelda, her posture relaxing slightly. "Ganondorf got to them both. The sooner we can finish the fight, the better."

"Right, first things first, then," said Link, pointing at Sheik and Hatra, who was still lying on the bridge. "Getting those two out of here."

Sheik shook his head. "I really don't think—"

"No thinking, Sheik," said Link firmly. "You're injured, you can't hold a sword and…and I'm not going to allow it, alright? You're going back to headquarters with Hatra, and that's final."

"But I—"

"Link's right, Sheik," said Zelda. "I thought we'd been over this already. If you won't go back to headquarters willingly, I can order you to. Or I can have you knocked out and carried off. It's your choice, really." She smiled kindly. "You've played your part. Now it's time that we play ours." Had it been anyone but her, Sheik would have spat at the condescending attitude.

"Don't worry, Sheik, we'll be back before teatime," said Link, grinning.

_No use in struggling, I guess…_

Sheik nodded, finally giving up. Despite his insistence, he knew he would be of no use in an upcoming battle. "Alright, I give in. I'll go back."

"Great," said Zelda. She nodded to the remaining soldiers—all of them Hylian. "You two, carry the wounded, and make sure he is stabile."

The soldiers nodded and went to pick up Hatra, but the young man suddenly raised a hand, taking a deep, raspy breath. "Wait…I would like to speak…to the Sheikah…in private first…"

The soldiers stepped away, giving them the privacy. Sheik crouched down next to Hatra, who was still struggling to draw breath. Without warning, the Inquisitor leaned upwards, staring into Sheik's eyes.

"You didn't…tell them…who I was," he breathed.

"No, I didn't," Sheik concurred.

"Why?"

"Isn't it obvious?" asked Sheik, glancing over at the Hero and Zelda, who pretending not to listen. They weren't very good at hiding it. Leaning a bit closer, he lowered his voice: "You saved my life."

"And you saved mine," Hatra said. "That made us…even. You…didn't need…to hide me…"

Sheik wanted to grin, despite the oppressive feeling that had overtaken the entire citadel (even though it had been quite oppressive to begin with). "Well," he said, "some things happened, and I hit my head, and now this complex little dance of favours and life debts has lost all meaning to me." He leaned even closer now. " _Now_ we are even, but if I find out that you have been lying about redemption…"

"Trust me," rasped Hatra. "I haven't. As soon as…I'm out of this…rut, I'll…do my best…to help…people…" Again, without warning, Hatra grabbed the front of Sheik's robes and pulled him close enough to feel the heat of his breathing. Softly, Hatra placed a kiss on Sheik's forehead. "This…was my…people's way of…showing gratitude," he explained after letting Sheik go. "You rescued me from Nuviro…and for that…I am eternally grateful…"

"No need for that," said Sheik. "As I said, we're even."

"No," said Hatra, shaking his head, pushing Sheik away. "I'm ready now," he told the soldiers, who carefully picked him up and began to carry him toward the entrance hall, disappearing into the darkness.

 _I seem to be starting quite a collection of kisses these days,_ Sheik thought, wondering why the Inquisitor had done that. The gratitude part was, of course, evident, but still…

"What was that all about?" Link asked, having crept up on Sheik from behind. "For a second, I thought you were going to kiss or something…"

"It was just his way of thanking me, Link," said Sheik. "You don't need to be jealous."

"I wasn't being jealous," muttered the Hero.

"Keep telling yourself that," Sheik said.

"Maybe I will," said Link, slowly drawing Sheik into a tight hug. "And before you say it, yes, I will be careful."

Sheik sighed, wondering why he was even entertaining the thought of leaving Link and Zelda now. What if something happened, and Link didn't…didn't make it? Or what if something happened to Zelda? Even if she had released him from his duties of being her bodyguard, an oath is an oath… But not matter how many times he tried to stop himself from nodding gratefully and squeezing Link back, he couldn't. It was over for him. As he was pulling out of Link's embrace, he stopped, noticing something. "Have you gotten taller?" he asked.

"Huh?" asked Link, looking confused.

Sheik shook his head. "Never mind. I must be imagining things."

Zelda came over, taking Sheik's hands in her own, being mindful of the Sheikah's broken bones. "Sheik, if anything happens—"

"It won't," said Sheik, not even wanting to hear it. "You have Link with you. I'm certain he can—and _will_ —protect you from anything Ganondorf can throw at you." The princess too insisted on drawing him into a hug, the brother and sister embracing for one last time before destiny took hold.

"Right, then," said Zelda, smiling weakly. "I suppose you should go and catch up with the men." She dug around in her pockets, pulling out another couple of vials of the concentrated red potion, handing them to Sheik. "Here. Might as well start the healing immediately, right?"

"Words of wisdom," said Sheik, nodding gratefully.

And that was that. Sheik turned around and walked slowly towards the entrance hall, not looking back. If he did, he was certain that he would make another attempt at being allowed to stay. And that wouldn't end pretty.

The smell of burnt flesh, blood and gunpowder in the entrance hall was overpowering, almost making him gag. The floor, walls and ceiling were covered in black soot from the explosions. Twisted and burned bodies lined the walls, moved aside by the Remnant soldiers on their way out. The feeling of dread that had fallen upon the citadel did not ease up as he approached the gate, one of the soldiers waiting for him in the opening. And when he stepped out, he was struck by the sight of what had become of what was once his home. The crater, the lava, the fumes… He had noticed the heat and the fumes while being dragged here by Nuviro, but he had never even imagined the extent to what Ganondorf had done here.

There was the sound of squealing metal as the slidebridge—just a large, thick piece of metal held up by counterweights that swung across the gap between the floating island and the rest of the world—went across. The soldiers carrying Hatra began crossing immediately, one lingering behind slightly before following. The one who had been waiting for Sheik, a not-quite-young-but-not-quite-old man, looked at him expectantly.

"Can I just….have a moment?" Sheik asked, feeling a wave of nausea pass over him. "I'll catch up."

"Of course," said the soldier, slowly walking across the bridge, looking back at him.

Sheik opened one of the vials and downed the red potion, longing for the feeling of warmth spreading through his body. It was all too much. The injuries, the carnage, the destruction… It was all finally catching up to him. He had left Kazuya back in the chamber, he remembered. The soldier waiting for him had reached the other side now, staring at him. Waving a hand, Sheik slowly began to move towards the bridge, passing by the mechanism that operated the thing. It was a simply construction, really. Just pull a lever, and the counterweights would either ascend or descend, pulling or pushing the bridge over the gap.

 _Too simple, really,_ Sheik thought as he reached for the lever. The soldier on the other side noticed it too late, his shouts unheard as the metallic squeal blocked them out. He was not happy, obviously. Sheik waved yet again. "I'm sorry!" he shouted. "But I'm not going back just yet."

The steady pulse in his right hand told him he had done the right thing. He turned around to back inside the citadel, reached the gate. The second his foot was set inside the hall, he heard a scream coming from the end. A female scream. His eyes widened.

_Zelda!_

* * *

Broken bricks and smouldering pieces of woods hailed as yet another building was torn down by a haphazardly aimed catapult missile. Myde was barely able to push Thea out of the way of a tumbling chimney. Smoke blanketed the area, the fighters unable to distinguish friend from foe.

The legion had laid an ambush for them. According to other units they had met in the field, Ganondorf's men still held most of the main streets past the Temple of Time, and they were putting up a fierce resistance, which was only strengthened by the darkness that had suddenly fallen upon the battlefield.

But it was only a matter of time before the Remnant won, Myde knew. They had taken the entire southern half of the city in record time, and were slowly but surely surrounding the enemy. An unconditional surrender would be unavoidable unless the legion wanted to be annihilated.

But he was getting ahead of himself. He ducked as an arrow whistled by, embedding itself into the wall, inches from his head. Thea gave him a look, chastising him for getting too caught up in his thoughts. He shook his head and signalled for them to move. The smoke was starting to clear up, and the combatants finally found the enemy, engaging them in close combat.

Myde and Thea weaved their way through the crowding fighters, striking out at a conveniently placed enemy every now and then. While most of Myde's troopers were keeping the enemy busy, a select team—including himself and his sister—were going through the buildings on both sides of the street, extracting any slaves that had been caught up in the battle. Until now, they had rescued at least twenty-three, most of them children. There was a statement to be made on the scruples and general preference the legion soldiers had for their servants, but Myde was too disgusted to even think about it. Needless to say, what he had seen so far did not tempt him to treat any of his enemies mercifully.

"Right, stand back!" he shouted as he repeatedly kicked a locked door until its hinges gave and the entire thing crashed inwards, revealing an empty hallway. They were fast and methodical, moving from room to room, covering each other's backs in case of any other ambushes.

"Empty," said Thea from one of the rooms.

"Empty here as well," said one of Myde's men.

"The living room is as dead as the cemetery," said Myde, sheathing his sword. He had tried to give it back to Thea several times already, but his sister wouldn't take it, claiming that he needed it more. It was a good sword, well-balanced and weighted, and he enjoyed using it. Even so, he would have liked to see his sister defend herself with more than just her fins…

"Upstairs, then," said a soldier, eyeing the staircase.

"Upstairs," Myde confirmed, nodding.

It was a wooden, spiral staircase, surely built by some posh person. Exquisite designs had been carved into the banisters and handrails. They moved up the stairs, wary of any enemies waiting at the top. There were none. Another hallway stretched off into the distance. They repeated the search, coming up empty-handed here as well. Myde ordered the building to be cleared out.

"I thought you said this was the area in which all the slaves were kept," Myde said to Thea as they made their way towards the stairs. "We've searched over forty houses, but only seven had people hiding in them."

"They're afraid, Myde, and they bunch together," said Thea in a scolding tone. "Can you blame them? There's a _battle_ going on outside!"

"Perhaps so, but they are not making things any easier by hiding," said Myde, peeking inside the last room before the staircase. There was a tall table inside. There were dust tracks on the floor, suggesting it had been moved recently. He shrugged and was about to move on when he heard something creak. He looked up. There was the outline of a trap door. He stepped inside the room, Thea hot on his heels.

"Is there anyone here?" she asked.

"Maybe," said Myde, pointing at the trap door. He drew a quick breath and raised his voice: "You can come out now! We're not going to hurt you! We are with the Hyrulian Remnant!"

No answer. Myde pointed at the table and nodded to Thea. They both climbed on top of it, both of them realising that the ceiling in this particular room was really low, their heads bumping into it as they stood on the table. Slowly, carefully, Myde lifted the trap door, poking his head up through the hole…

Something flew at his face. There was a loud **CLANG!** and stars exploded around his eyes. He fell, crashing off the table and to the floor.

"Myde!" Thea exclaimed.

"Damn…and blast…" Myde groaned, rubbing his nose. "What the hell was that? It felt like a frying pan…"

"That's because it was," said Thea, pointing at the face that had appeared in the opening in the ceiling. It was a young girl, brandishing what was indeed a frying pan. It had been a good swing, and Myde was surprised there wasn't an imprint of his face in the pan. Thea smiled up at the girl, who was glaring back. "Hi there."

"Go away!" the girl said, preparing to slam the trap door shut.

"No, wait!" Thea said quickly. "We're here to help you, get you out of the battle."

"I've a good mind to throw her _into_ the battle," Myde whispered to himself as he picked himself up off the floor.

"I don't believe you," the girl said, her blue eyes still narrowed in suspicion. "You're just here to kill us."

"No," said Thea, shaking her head. "I promise you, we're here to help. My name's Thea, and this is my brother, Myde. The Remnant is here, and they're kicking Ganondorf's ass!"

"Prove it," said the girl, waving the frying pan at them in what was probably supposed to be a threatening gesture.

"Oh, for the Goddesses' sake," Myde muttered, glaring at the girl. "Listen here, you little runt, if you don't come down from there this instant along with whoever else you've got up there, I'll personally set fire to the building and laugh as you're incinerated." He deliberately put as much venom in his voice as he could, trying to convince the girl that he was serious. He was really surprised when the girl's eyes widened and she nodded meekly.

"Please, don't hurt us," she said, her voice completely different from before. Myde felt a tug at his compassion, and went to help her down. As he reached up for her, he noticed Thea wincing in the corner of his eye. He turned to look at her, but it was too late. There was another **CLANG!** and Myde once again crashed to the floor.

"Holy mother of…"

"Myde, are you alright?"

Thea helped him stand. He barely even wobbled. Glaring at the girl, who was sticking out her tongue at him, he turned on his heels. "Fine, screw it!" he shouted. "If you don't want help, then rot in hell."

"Myde, come on, she doesn't know—"

Thea didn't get any further. The hallway behind them exploded as a huge chunk of rock crashed through the walls, taking a good part of the building with it. One by one, the rafters cracked apart, showering them with splinters.

"Who the hell is in charge of those catapults?!" Myde half-shouted as he helped Thea up, his anger with the girl now directed at the artillery. "I'll have them hanged!"

The entire house began to shake as it slowly started to fall apart. Most of the supporting structure had been taken out by the catapult, leaving only a destroyed framework to hold the house up. They could feel it lurching to one side already, cracks appearing in the walls. Then they heard the girl scream, along with more voices all shouting over each other. Myde and Thea shared a look before the tore into the room again, where the people who had been hiding in the attic—all of them children—were trying to climb down. Wordlessly, the Zora siblings began to help the children down, who did not seem to mind at all. The girl who had smacked Myde not once, but twice with the frying pan, looked at him shamefully as he lifted her down. Myde said nothing, only urged her on.

There had been five of them, all hiding in the cramped attic. The house creaked, cracked and crumbled around them as they hurried down the stairs, barely making it out before the entire building collapsed, making an unholy racket as it came down.

The fighting had moved further up the street, leaving Myde, Thea and the children alone along with the soldiers Myde had ordered out of the buildings before they noticed the trap door.

"General, are you alright?" one of them asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," said Myde. "Take these children to the rear party and take them to the others."

"Yes, sir!" they all said in unison before starting to herd the children away.

Myde felt someone prodding at his arm and looked down. The girl who had knocked him down was looking up at him with remorse in her eyes, still clutching her weapon. "I'm sorry," she said.

Wary of the cooking utensil, Myde did his best to smile at the girl who had tricked him so utterly. "It's alright."

"Thank you," the girl said, giving him the frying pan before going with the soldiers, soon disappearing out of sight. They would be taken along a safe route to a rallying point, where all the other civilians and prisoners were taken and kept safe.

Myde looked at the frying pan in his hand. There was a dent in the very middle of it. He had a distinct feeling that it would match up with his nose if he tried to compare them…

"Well, look at you Mr. I-Hate-Kids," said Thea, grinning at him.

"Is it really such a crime to dislike urchins who insist on hitting me in the face with a frying pan?" Myde asked, tossing it aside. As much as he appreciated the apology and gift, he really couldn't see himself running around and bonking legion soldiers on the head with it.

"She just wanted to protect her friends," Thea said as they began to head in the direction of the rest of the troop. "Can't blame her…"

"Not even after we had identified ourselves no less than three times?" said Myde.

"Kids are funny that way," Thea said, giggling at the look Myde gave her. "Besides, it was pretty funny watching you fall for her trick _twice_. And the sounds of the frying pan, hah!" She then proceeded to imitate the sound of it and Myde's gasping and cursing.

Myde sighed, wondering why he had bothered befriending Thea to begin with.

* * *

In retrospect, Vorpheus really wished that he had gone even more prepared. As he crashed into the wall, still twitching due to the electric blast he had just been subjected to, and plaster rained down on him, he began to doubt his ability to win this battle, even though Dehl was considerably weakened.

Coughing, he got to his feet and brushed the plaster from his shoulders. Across the square, Dehl was waiting, glaring and grinning at him at the same time, producing an eerie effect. Ignoring the jabbing pain in his side, stepped out of the pile of rubble, grinning.

"My, my," he said. "You've certainly gotten stronger since we last fought like this."

"Do you really think one can serve a beast like Ganondorf without picking up a thing or two?" Dehl asked. "The man practically shoved spells down my throat so that I could be stronger than you."

"Well, that was nice of him," said Vorpheus, subtly trying to prepare the cutting spell he had used to kill Jorrah and the other warlocks. "Reminds me of another man who was very insistent on learning and teaching spells such as…" he trailed off, realising that Dehl had detected his attempt at sneakiness.

"You will have to do better than that, grandfather!" Dehl shouted, sending a ball of super-compressed air towards him.

He was barely able to duck out of the way, the ball more or less taking the rest of the building behind him. He was definitely getting too old for this, he thought as his breath grew increasingly ragged as he tried to come up with a strategy. He had relied far too much on Dehl being too weak to fight him with any effort. Making small fireballs in both his hands, he ran towards Dehl, hurling them at her.

She deftly blocked them, laughing. "Fireballs? What is this, a nursery?" she asked, her eyes landing on…nothing. "Ah, invisibility spell, eh?" she asked, giving another wretched cough. "Amateurish, if I do say so myself…"

"Not invisibility," said the voice of Vorpheus, appearing behind her. "Chameleon, more like." His arms wrapped around her middle. "The fireballs was only a distraction," he said as he lifted his granddaughter while simultaneously charging the air just below her with electricity. With a roar, he hurled Dehl upwards, the static charge beneath her sending her flying through the air, crashing through the wrought iron fence at the end of the square. Not wasting any time, Vorpheus made another fireball, much bigger this time, and hurled it after her. The small alley Dehl had landed in exploded into flames, setting fire to the buildings around it.

He stared into the inferno, wondering if he had actually won.

"I ask again," said Dehl from directly behind him. "Fireballs? Really?"

He whirled around, lashing out with his mace. She stepped out of the way, the tip of the mace barely missing her nose. Smiling, she pulled the stiletto dagger out of her bodice, quickly stabbing his side through the joints in his chest plates. He groaned as Dehl promptly vanished, already feeling his body weakening. Sure, being unable to die from old age was wonderful, but it made them all the more vulnerable to physical trauma.

"Damn…got careless," he muttered to himself as he tried to regroup. Two exits from the square were blocked off—one by rubble and one by the rapidly spreading inferno. He heard Dehl cough, but couldn't place the sound. It was coming from everywhere and nowhere at once.

"Well, Vorpheus," Dehl said. Her voice was still coming from somewhere unidentifiable. "Shall we call it a stalemate? You've poisoned me, I've stabbed you in a highly fatal spot…with a poisoned stiletto, no less."

So that was why he was starting to feel so weak already. He _knew_ he couldn't be _that_ physically weak. "You're learning," he said, trying to ignore the stinging in his side. "You're learning to be sneaky, just like your old grandpa…"

"Never pass down an opportunity to learn dirty tricks," Dehl said. "That much I learned from all these years. That's how I killed Milo as well, you know."

"And I'm sure your father was proud of what you have become," Vorpheus growled. The poison was spreading fast.

"Oh, he was," said the voice of Dehl. "He even told me that _you_ would never be expecting that trick…"

"For pity's sake, girl, he was your father!" Vorpheus shouted, unable to take the idle banter anymore. "You sound like he was just a random stranger!"

"And your son," said Dehl, her voice suddenly coming from the last exit to the square. She was standing there, grinning at him. "And I killed him. And it felt good. The feeling of finally having my revenge was…indescribable."

Vorpheus tried to walk towards her, but found his legs suddenly very unwilling to cooperate. He almost sank to his knees, his heavy plate armour weighing him down. "Revenge?" he asked. "Milo never had anything to do with what happened to him…or us!"

"No, but he condoned it, and that was enough," said Dehl. "But I grow tired of bantering with a pathetic shell of an old man." She turned around, her gown fluttering. "I do believe I shall…help the legion out a little. From what I have seen and heard, you are the only magic user in the Remnant's army. They won't know what hit them…" She stopped, turning around to blow him a kiss. "Goodbye, Vorpheus, grandfather. It has been a good struggle."

As she approached the exit, Vorpheus wanted to tear his hair out. How could he have fallen for that? And now, because of such an idiotic moment of inattention, he was going to die and the Remnant would have a tempest like her to deal with. No, it couldn't end like this. He refused to let it. He tried to stand up, howling in pain as the stab wound was jostled.

"Damn," he whispered. "Damn, damn, damn…"

But then an idea came to him. The heat from the gigantic crater in the world underneath the citadel was reaching even this area.

"A crack…in the world," he said to himself. "Of course." He began to draw power to himself, trying to suck every last bit of magical energy out of the air, before directing it downwards, into the ground itself. He fed it around the square, circling in both himself and Dehl. When the circle was complete, he focused on the energy, willing it to expand…amplify…ignite…

With a roar, the ground beneath them exploded, everything outside the circle disappearing from view as the blue light issuing from the foundation of the world blocked it out. The light was so brilliant that Vorpheus had to close his eyes, it growing to such brightness that he could see it through his eyelids. All the while, he fell to his knees; holding on to the world to his best ability as it shook, turned and tossed, seemingly desperate to throw him off.

He dared to open his eyes a fraction as he noticed the light fading, and the earth stopped shaking. He smiled. It had worked.

For all intents and purposes, he had created an island. Or, rather, he had carved an island out of the rock beneath them. The square was no more, only a circular piece of land surrounded by an abyss. Far down below, lava bubbled and hissed. The air was quickly filled with noxious fumes, and Vorpheus knew that he wouldn't last long. But if his plan had worked, he wouldn't need to.

As he rose to his feet, he spotted Dehl standing at the other end of the small island. She had been a few feet away from stepping out of the circle, and she had clearly taken a large brunt of the explosion judging by her bleeding and bruised appearance. She had her stiletto in her hand, and she was glaring at him, coughing all the while.

"You…just…don't…know…when to…quit!" she shouted hoarsely.

"That is…my curse…alright," he replied, taking a few steps forward, clutching his mace tightly.

"Die!" Dehl shouted, holding her hand out, clearly intending to hurl a spell at him. She looked confused when nothing happened.

"That won't work," Vorpheus said, grinning weakly. "That blast…required me to suck out…all the energy in the area…" He assumed his fighting position—or tried to, at any rate, as his joints suddenly seemed to decide he really _was_ an old man after all. "Magic does not exist here for the moment."

Dehl glared at him, and then looked to the other side of the artificial cliff, where the city stood. She tightened her hold on her stiletto. "You've suddenly developed a sense of moral, old man? You won't let me destroy the supposed 'rightful' inhabitants of this land, all because you've had a change of heart?"

"Something like that, yes," said Vorpheus. "Anyone can have a change of heart, Millicent. Even you."

"What's that supposed to mean, old man?" Dehl asked, ignoring the use of her name.

"It means that…I am still willing to forgive and forget," said Vorpheus, hardly believing his own words. "That we can still reunite…as a family, before we both leave this world."

"Forgive and forget?" asked Dehl, sounding intrigued, coming closer. "You mean…you would look past my atrocities, all my misdeeds, all my murders…and still consider me family?" She sounded hopeful, her eyes looking so radiant, a smile spreading on her lips. It was a look Vorpheus had not seen on the girl for _many_ years. And it was still as charming as then. He smiled back, nodding.

"Yes. No matter what we have done to each other, we are still family, and blood runs thicker than anything the world can throw at us," he said, relaxing in his stance, instead opening his arms in a welcoming gesture. The poison was just about everywhere in his system now. He could feel it.

Tears had started to pour from Dehl's eyes, the girl stepping into his arms without a word, wrapping her own around him. "I…I…" she said.

"Yes?" he asked gently, looking down at her withered hair.

"I…"

"What, Millicent? Please tell me."

"I…can't believe you fell for that!" Dehl exclaimed, her stiletto once again finding its way through the plates in his armour, burying itself in his back.

"Ah!" Vorpheus groaned, eyes widening.

"How does it feel, Vorpheus?" Dehl asked, her arms still wrapped around her grandfather. "How does it feel to have my knife twisting in your back? Hurts, doesn't it?"

"Very…much…so…" Vorpheus was able to force out. But then he suddenly clasped a hand on Dehl's shoulder, tightening his hold until it felt like the bones were about to break. "But you…forget…one thing…" he continued, taking hold of the hand that was holding the stiletto, taking the dagger away from her. Still holding her in place, he slowly turned the stiletto around, his fingers suddenly feeling clumsy. "And that is…that I am stronger than you." With that said, he stabbed Dehl three times in her stomach. Dropping the stiletto, he once again embraced his granddaughter, who was gasping and coughing, unable break free.

"You…bastard…" she managed to choke out. "You…utter…bastard…"

"Preaching to…the choir, Millicent," Vorpheus said, slowly walking backwards, dragging Dehl with him. "Preaching indeed." There was only one way to guarantee both their deaths, and that was exactly what he was going to do as he moved towards the edge of the island.

"I…hate…you…"

"I know…you do…"

"I…want…you…dead…"

"You've…killed me…"

Dehl was crying again, but this time Vorpheus knew the tears were real. He was crying as well, he noticed when a tear of his own slid down his cheek. There was nothing that had to be said. They hated each other, and one had just killed the other and vice-versa. As Vorpheus felt his heels hit the edge and the heat at his back, he sighed.

"Our time…is over…Millicent…" Slowly, he let himself fall backwards, arms still wrapped tightly around his granddaughter. "For all…it's worth…I still…love you…"

They fell.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 137**

* * *

His thoughts raced as he ran across the mangled bodies in the entrance hall. _I should never have left!_ His mind's eye kept seeing images of horrid things happening to Zelda, to Link… If something happened to either of them, he wouldn't be able to forgive himself for leaving at such a critical time. His body protested most strongly against running at this time, but another of Kaura's concentrated potions quickly subdued it, enabling him to go just a bit faster, tearing through the doorway into the central chamber, coming face to face with…

Zelda was wiping blood off her sword, the body of Era, the Gerudo who had gone after the apparently insane Crenna. Era was covered in blood, though only one wound could be seen in her chest, most likely where Zelda had gotten her. _The rest of the blood must be Crenna's, then,_ Sheik thought as he approached them slowly, panting as the adrenaline flow stopped. Link, standing close to one of the doors, his weapons drawn, noticed him, his expression growing…angry?

"What are you doing here?" he asked, sheathing his weapons and coming closer.

"Sheik?" Zelda said, surprised, noticing him now. "Wha—?"

"What happened here?" asked Sheik, conveniently forgetting to answer their questions and gesturing towards the body of Era.

"She suddenly appeared, covered in blood and tried to kill me," said Zelda, sighing. "She was out of control, was barely able to stand, but her sword skill remained. I had no choice but to kill her."

"I don't understand why she did it," said Link, his eyes still fixed on Sheik's, silently berating him for coming back. "I mean, she helped us all this way. Why suddenly go crazy like that?"

"Ganondorf's influence got to her," said Zelda, shrugging, still looking sadly at the dead Gerudo. Two of the desert thieves had died in this room, both by allies. "Her anger with Crenna did not cease when she got him. The blood belongs to him, I am willing to bet." Shaking her head, she stepped away from Era's body and headed towards the door that had the emblem of the Forest Temple engraved into the rock above it. "If the others had stayed here any longer, they would most likely have reacted the same way."

"How come we aren't, then?" asked Link. "We've been here for some time now, I mean."

"That's a good question, Link," said Zelda.

"I'd say it has something to do with our strength of mind," said Sheik, knowing that the longer he kept their attention on something else; they would forget that he was not supposed to be there. "Either that, or our respective Triforce pieces are preventing him from getting into our heads." He carefully pulled the sleeve of his robes back, showing the Delta Force, which had once again gone back to what Sheik had come to see as its dormant state.

"Perhaps," said Zelda. "Either way, we should count ourselves lucky, and get to work immediately." She immediately raised a finger as Sheik opened his mouth to agree. "Not you, Sheik. You're going back to headquarters."

"But—"

"No buts, Sheik," said Zelda. "Why did you even come back? Link and I are perfectly capable of handling ourselves here. I'm sorry to say it, Sheik, but you would just be in the way, being unable to fight."

Sheik opened his mouth to protest again, but noticed that Link had come up behind Zelda and was sharing her look of utmost determination and condescension—which was, by and large, appropriate, but still hurt. "I heard the scream…" he tried weakly.

"Which came from Era, not me," said Zelda. "I will say it again: we can handle ourselves. You're injured and need to get out of here before you get yourself killed." She stepped forward, her finger pointed at him. "And another thing, why do you keep—"

She stopped mid-sentence. Sheik and Link stared at her for a few seconds. When Zelda did nothing—did not breathe, did not blink—they shared a panicked look and ran towards her. Link was closest, and just as he came within a few feet of the princess, there was loud clang and the Hero bounced away, as if he had run into an invisible wall. Sheik stopped, his eye already seeing what was happening. Slowly, but surely, a crystal was forming around Zelda, her face frozen in surprise. It was solidifying by the second.

"No!" Sheik shouted, hand going for Kazuya—which was not there—and his daggers—which were not there. Growling at his lack of weaponry, Sheik picked up his speed, jumping and aiming a vicious kick at the giant crystal. He, too, bounced off it like Link had, crashing into the wall with a loud thud, sinking to the floor with a sigh. Link suddenly appeared in his line of sight, charging the crystal with the Master Sword in hand, shouting a battle cry. His sword didn't even scratch the crystal, which had taken on a red hue.

"Damn it!" Link shouted, striking the crystal again and again with his sword. "Let her out!"

" **He…he…he…!"** a deep, rumbling voice reverberated around the large chamber, sending chills down their backs. Sheik recognised the voice immediately, and shuddered.

 _We were so close…_ he thought.

" **Princess Zelda,"** Ganondorf's voice said. **"You foolish traitor! I commend you for avoiding my pursuit for seven long years. But you let your guard down…I knew you would appear if I let these kids wander around!"**

Link growled, renewing his efforts in striking at the crystal. Sheik felt his muscles seizing up, knowing there was nothing he could do right now. If only there was a spell he could use…

" **My only mistake was to slightly underestimate the power of these kids…"** Ganondorf continued. Sheik gasped as Link was suddenly flung away from the crystal by an unseen force accompanied by more of the Evil King's chuckling. The crystal began to float in the air, rising higher and higher by the second. Sheik tried to move, but could only stare as his princess, his charge, his sister, rose higher and higher towards the darkness above them. **"No,"** Ganondorf said suddenly. **"It was not the kids' power I misjudged; it was the power of the Triforce of Courage and Delta Force! But, with the power of the Triforce of Wisdom that Zelda has… When I obtain these two Triforces…then, I will become ruler of the world!"** He laughed, the entire castle shaking at the sound. **"Hero of Time, Survivor of the Sheikah…come rescue your princess…I will be waiting!"**

The crystal disappeared from view, and Ganondorf's voice faded away, leaving Sheik and Link to stare at the ceiling in silence, both their forms trembling. Sheik felt a sting at his heart. Zelda had just fallen into Ganondorf's hands, and what had he done? Nothing. He had only looked on as she was taken away! He sank to his knees, his legs failing him.

"Zelda…?" he heard Link whisper, the Hero still staring at the spot where the crystal had disappeared. For a moment, he looked devastated. Then, to Sheik's surprise, his face set into a completely neutral expression, his eyes hardening. Slowly, with calculated movements, he sheathed his sword and turned to the Forest Temple door.

Sheik stared at him, worried by his lover's sudden change. He could almost _feel_ the anger rolling off Link in waves. "Link," he began, "I—"

"Go back, Sheik," Link said shortly, not even looking at him. "I'll deal with this…"

Rising shakily to his feet, Sheik stared at him. "No, Link, I can't—"

"You heard me," Link interrupted again. "Please go back."

"No," said Sheik. "I won't."

Link slowly turned his head to look at him, his eyes still hard as diamonds, the normally sapphire-coloured irises darkened to an almost solid black. "Sheik," he said firmly, "you can't even fight."

"Yes, I can," said Sheik stubbornly, wondering how long Link was going to insist on going on with this.

"All your fingers are broken," Link insisted.

"I can fight just as well with my left hand," Sheik lied through his teeth. To prove his point, he looked around the floor, spotted Kazuya lying where he had left it leaning against the wall in its sheath, and picked it up with his uninjured hand. Carefully, he held the sheath in his right hand and drew the blade with his left, giving it a few almost-not-entirely-clumsy swings. He stared defiantly at Link. "See?" he asked.

"Sheik, you can't expect me to—"Link began.

"No, I don't, but I don't expect you to stand in the way of me performing my duty either!" Sheik interrupted, shouting at him as the Delta Force flared up in sync with his anger. "I just saw my charge, my _sister_ lifted out of my sight by the most evil man in the world, and you expect me to go back now?! Link, if you tell me to go back one more time, I swear to the Goddesses that I will punch you in the face!" To prove his point, he took several steps forward, stepping in front of Link and glaring into his eyes.

Link stared back at him for over half a minute, obviously trying to find a way to make Sheik go back that would not end up in bodily injuries—and failing spectacularly. Then he tried to stare Sheik down, foolishly believing that he could take on a Sheikah when it comes to being stubborn.

After a few minutes of this exercise in futility, Sheik put in the clincher: "What if you were the one injured? Wouldn't you do the same?"

Link blinked, took a deep breath and straightened his posture, finally backing down. "Fine," he said. "You're in." He put a hand on Sheik's shoulder. "But if we come up against anything that you can't take, you're going back. Understand?"

Sheik nodded. "I understand. Thank you, Link."

"I'm so going to regret this," Link muttered under his breath. "Right, Zelda said something about six barriers behind these doors," he said, gesturing towards the doors that surrounded the central pillar-like tower. "And these," he said, pulling out one of the Light Arrows, the crystal still glowing, "will destroy them. After taking 'em all out, the forcefield will disappear, and we'll be able to get to Ganondorf."

"Seems straightforward enough," said Sheik, eyeing the spot where Commander Nuviro had been torn apart. "But for some reason, I have a feeling it will be much harder than we think."

"Since when has it ever been as easy as we thought?" asked Link.

"Good point," said Sheik.

They stood in front of the Forest Temple door, staring at it with apprehension. Surely they had been through worse?

"Ready?" Link asked.

"Ready," Sheik confirmed.

* * *

It felt like they had been going through every damn house in the slave quarters now and yet they still found people hiding all over the place. By now, Myde's count had reached well over two-hundred slaves. He wondered just how many prisoners and slaves had been housed in the city. Though, by the look of general distress and starvation among the prisoners and subservient behaviour shown by the slaves, he had a feeling he didn't want to know.

"I think that's the lot of them," said a sergeant as one last group of slaves were sent off with an escort, leaving Myde's group with a grand total of twenty men including himself and Thea. The general sincerely hoped that everyone had managed to escape the city in one piece.

"I think there's still a lot of people in hiding," said Thea quietly, her face a grim mask, having seen the conditions outside the ghetto.

"Let us just hope that's where they will remain," said Myde, looking around. They had to carry torches now, the darkness suppressing just about any other light source. And it was bloody noon! "We can't help them now, we're too few. If I send any more men as an escort, we won't be able to fight."

"I thought we were going to rescue them," said Thea, looking at him.

"We've rescued all we can, and we've cleaned out this part of the city," said Myde. "As long as they stay inside the houses, they will be safe. For now, we will move further to the west."

"Why?"

"Because there's someone I need to see," he said, sheathing his (Thea's) sword. "Sergeant, I want a single line."

"Sir," the sergeant said, saluting before rounding up the rest of Myde's soldiers and arranging them into the formation.

"This _someone_ wouldn't happen to be that Gerudo girl, would it?" asked Thea, a sly smile on her face suddenly, her stance telling Myde exactly what was going to happen next.

He sighed, nodding. "That would be co—hurgh!" He didn't get any further as his sister's arms were suddenly crushing him.

"Hah! Myde's in love! Myde's in love! I knew it!" she shouted, not caring that her brother's men were watching—and laughing or smiling in amusement.

"You didn't know anything," said Myde, pushing Thea away half-heartedly, knowing there was really no way he could make her stop. He could only hope that his soldiers understood the nature of siblings—which, by and large, they should since they all hatched from large roes.

He was pretty sure he had a few blood relatives himself, but no one had ever really cared about him, and he did not, therefore, care about them. Only Thea mattered to him, in the end.

"So, who made the first move?" asked Thea, grinning madly. "I bet _she_ did. You've never been the kind of guy to be adventurous, and—"

Myde felt his cheeks growing warm, and turned away. "As much as I enjoy hearing you dissecting a non-existent romantic relationship between Ayla and I, Thea, we really should get moving." He motioned for the other Zoras to get moving, and so they did, but not without giving him whoops or winks. "And they call themselves professional warriors," Myde whispered, suddenly wishing he was back in the drain pipe.

"Off to save your girlfriend, then!" Thea shouted, pointing into the distance—which happened to be a pile of rubble about yay high. "Yeah, not that way," she said to herself.

They moved through the streets at a snail's pace. Not because they were being overly careful, but because the rampant bombardment of the city had left many alleys and roads blocked off by destroyed buildings. Every now and then, they came across a group of legion soldiers who had either lost their way or been blocked off from the rest of their platoons. They were swiftly dealt with, the ones who surrendered even more so.

"Are we winning?" Thea asked after the fifth group of enemy soldiers was sent on their way, unarmed and heading towards the back of the field.

"It would seem that way," said Myde. "At least in this particular area. If I remember correctly, there is a large concentration of enemy forces still between us and the castle. Hopefully, the darkness doesn't mean anything but that Ganondorf has realised he's losing miserably."

"Yeah, Ganondork is probably crying right now," said Thea happily, sticking out her tongue in the direction of the citadel.

"Ganondork?" Myde asked, almost snorting with laughter. "That's a new one."

"I couldn't come up with anything else, so there," said Thea.

They finally reached another Remnant troop, a mix of Hylian and Gerudo soldiers who were apparently forming a blockade in a side street. The commander revealed that the battle had pretty much come to a standstill, the legions having dug in around a large tower just below the Temple of Time. When Myde asked why, he was told to go into the square just beyond the blockade, where a large amount of Remnant troops were gearing up and preparing for a massive advance.

Myde didn't really understand what the commander had meant, as all he could see in the square were the aforementioned Remnant troops. Just as he was about to ask Thea if she was seeing anything, he heard a voice calling to him. A familiar voice indeed. He smiled as he turned around.

"Hey, Myde, over here!" Ayla shouted, waving from her seat atop an ammunition cart. She was looking rather pleased with herself, and noticeably blood-free.

"I was wondering where you had gotten off to," Myde said as they approached. "Didn't expect to find you just lounging lazily around here. Have you even been fighting?"

"What kind of a question is that to ask a girl?" said Ayla, pretending to be offended. "Never on the first date, and all that." She jumped off the cart, smiling at them, drawing one of her scimitars, which was all but covered in the red fluid. "Besides, it is an artform to fight, kill and yet only stain one's blades." She put the scimitar back and looked at Thea, smiling even broader. "And I see your brother sprung you out."

"Actually, I took care of that myself," said Thea, punching Myde in the arm. "He only arrived late to the party."

"Huh, I'm disappointed, Myde," said Ayla. "How can someone expect you to save the damsel in distress if you can't even spring your own sister out of a prison?"

Myde, realising that he was now stuck between two very vengeful, sarcastic and insane women, tried to gain a foothold in the doorway of masculine pride. "I didn't even realise there was a damsel to save," he said.

"Oh, there's sure to be one, sooner or later," said Ayla, leaning against the cart. "That's the world for ya."

"Anyway, what's going on here?" asked Thea. "How come you guys are just waiting around here?"

"Because of that," said Ayla, pointing at the large tower. It was huge, covered in banners of the legions and burning torches. It looked quite recent. But even so, it was just a tower.

"You're afraid of a tower?" asked Myde.

"Oh, that's not just a tower, my friend," said Ayla, apparently thinking for a bit. "Let's see…three, two, one…look at the top."

All at the same time, six gigantic fireballs suddenly launched from the top of the tower, all heading in different directions, but all of them inevitably falling on Remnant troops somewhere. One of the fireballs struck a building in the square, which burst into flames and collapsed within seconds. Five seconds later, another barrage was launched. And another. All in all, six barrages, thirty-six fireballs in all, were fired upon the city.

"What the hell?" Myde said, unable to believe what he had just seen. "What _is_ that?"

"Obviously a battery of catapults or trebuchets of some kind," said Ayla in a matter-of-factly voice. "No idea how they're able to fire so fast, but that's what's keeping us here. We think most of the remaining legion soldiers have dug in around it, and they're keeping us away with plenty of archers."

"How come we didn't see that last night?" Myde asked.

"It wasn't lit up," said Ayla. "Not a single torch was lit, effectively masking it from our sights. Also, it was covered by the darkness of the Temple of Time's spire."

"So," said Thea, "basically, you two screwed up."

"We _three_ screwed up," Ayla corrected. "Though I suppose Sheik-sama was too busy to even _look_ up."

* * *

Kaura could only sigh as she saw the endless procession of wounded and dying soldiers being carried towards the field hospital Even now, with every trained medic and physician on duty, they were being overwhelmed. It didn't really help that the hospital itself was operating at many times its full capacity and that every single bed was occupied, forcing them to lay the wounded out on the dusty fields, opening a smorgasbord of possible infections and every other damn medical problem imaginable.

But the worst part was that…was that there were many they could not help whatsoever. And they couldn't even afford the decency to have someone be at their side as they died. Kaura tried, she tried so hard, to be with everyone who drew their last breath, but there were so many of them. Right now, even, she was holding the hand of a dying Zora, whose hand gave one last squeeze before the grip slackened entirely, and she stopped breathing. Kaura made sure she was gone, closed her eyes and stood up, ready to tackle the next patient.

"Kaura, over here!" one of the medics called, standing over a Hylian whose arm had been severed. "This one can be saved!"

"It never fucking ends," Kaura said as she hurried over, noticing a green blur approaching from the corner of her eye. "Tao," she called, "get me a large bundle of bandages and antiseptic!"

Tao nodded, hurrying towards the storage area. The young boy had proved quite an able assistant, though he was not allowed near any of the dead or major operations. There was only so much Kaura wanted him to go through.

"It's a clean cut," the medic said as she finally reached the wounded Hylian. "But I can't close the veins." To prove his point, he showed how useless a pair of clamps was in closing the gushing wound. "I don't know what to do!"

Kaura wanted to slap the man right then and there. "Are you a moron? Hm? Are you? You can't use a pair of clamps for this, you need to cauterise the damn thing! Where's that sword?"

After Kaura had seen the general state of the wounded that came in—many of them missing arms, legs and other extremities—and realising there was no way she could reattach or close them all, she had decided to put several swords in a fire. It was the only way to close a wound fast enough to save their lives. The medic nodded fearfully and went to get the sword while Kaura did her best to limit the bleeding. The Hylian was in a state of shock, shivering and shaking while staring up at nothing. Kaura slapped him, hard.

"Oi, you!" she shouted. "Get back to the land of the living this instant, or yer arm's not the only thing that's going to be missing when you wake up!" When he didn't react, she slapped him again. And again. And again until his eyes finally landed on her, and his mouth opened.

"H…help me…" he said weakly.

"What do you think I'm trying to do here?" Kaura asked, finally managing to pinch one of the bleeding veins. "Just stay awake and keep talking!"

"It…wasn't my fault," the Hylian said, seemingly not even noticing that his arm was gone.

"Of course it wasn't," said Kaura, clenching her jaw in annoyance as blood covered her coat. "It's always the bloody fat cats up top's fault, eh? Playin' you soldiers like pawns on a chessboard."

"I didn't…see them…" the Hylian said.

"Didn't see who?"

"The enemy…"

"A clever bunch, are they?" she asked. "Better than you stout and mighty Hyrulian soldiers?"

"Hell…no…" the soldier said.

"Damn straight," said Kaura, noticing the medic running towards them, a white-hot blade in his hands. "Right, we're gonna stop the bleeding by burning your wound closed. It's going to hurt like hell, like the worst pain you've ever experienced, but it's going to save your life. Okay? Do you understand?"

"Yes…ma'am," said the Hylian.

"Right, give me that," said Kaura, ripping the blade out of the young medic's hands. "Hold him down, will you? He's going to wriggle and flop around like a fish on land. Oh, and watch his teeth, they have a tendency to bit too. Okay, ready? Here we go."

The man howled as the blade was placed against his wound, the heat burning all the nerve endings and veins closed, stopping the bleeding in an instant. There was still a huge risk of infection and other things, but at least the man wouldn't bleed to death. By the time Kaura was satisfied she had cauterised it completely, the man was crying. The medic, a young man Kaura had often seen fraternising with the soldiery, was whispering into the man's ear, obviously trying to comfort him. She sighed and put the blade on the ground, knowing it had to be put in boiling water to disinfect it before it could be used again anyway. Her hand went into the satchel hanging from her shoulder, coming up empty as she realised she had used up all her bandages.

Hasty footsteps and the panting of someone young behind her brought a small smile to her lips as she turned around, looking down at Tao, who was carrying what had to be more than half his own weight in bandages, bottles of disinfectant and alcohol. He grinned up at her.

"Perfect timing, kid," Kaura said, taking a bottle off of him along with a bundle of bandages. She handed these to the medic. "Right, clean the wound with this and bandage it. Check back on him every fifteen minutes to make sure he's still awake and alive. Understood?"

"Yes, doctor," said the medic, nodding seriously.

"Good," said Kaura, turning back to Tao, lifting several bundles of bandages off him and putting them in her satchel. "Thanks, sweetie," she said, gently pushing him away from the wounded man and back towards the hospital. "Have you given bandages to everyone else?"

Tao nodded.

"Good boy. Have you helped anyone who said they needed it?"

Tao shook his head.

"Did anyone actually ask you for help?"

Tao shook his head, looking a bit disappointed.

"Huh, I'll have a word with them later. How else are you going to learn things?"

They entered the main tent, which was completely packed with wounded. Kaura had initially had her doubts about letting Tao run around all this death and destruction of the human form, but the boy seemed to pay no mind to all the blood and grisly injuries, so she had let him. The fact that the boy was like a bundle of energy and didn't seem able to sit still was a bonus. Plus, it was also very convenient and helped her keep an eye on him and make sure the Gerudo didn't try anything.

He also seemed to cheer up the patients. Whenever he passed by someone, their eyes seemed to light up and smiles came to their faces, as if one glimpse of innocence among all the hideousness was enough to make them happy.

As Kaura began to check the stable patients, Tao began handing out bandages to the other physicians and medics, who took it with polite smiles and nods. Kaura watched him in the corner of her vision. He really was a strange one, in her opinion. Sweet, caring and kind, but strange. Why he would want to even do this crap was beyond her, but at least he was useful.

"Kaura!" someone shouted outside. "Kaura!"

She sighed, checking the pulse of one last patient, declared him stable and walked out of the tent, looking around. "Yeah, I'm here!" she shouted. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"I have a patient for you!" shouted the voice, coming from the right. A pair of Hylians were carrying someone on a stretcher, approaching her quickly. "Straight from the castle!"

"We're breached the castle?" Kaura asked incredulously. "That was quick."

"The princess did, at least," said one of the Hylians. "Apparently, the commanders of the legions are both dead, so it's just a matter of time before they surrender."

"They won't surrender until Ganondorf does, though," said Kaura, staring at the city walls. What was Zelda up to, and how the hell had she able to breach the castle? She shook her head, taking her attention back to the matter at hand. She went over to the stretcher and looked over the patient. "What happened?" she asked as she noted details.

The patient was a young, male Hylian, barely out of his teens, it seemed. He wore simple, red robes which were stained with the blood that was steadily leaking from a wound in his stomach, just below his ribs. His breathing was weak.

"He was stabbed in the gut according to the soldiers who brought him to us," said one of the soldiers. "He seemed to be fine until they were ambushed on their back to our lines, and he took at turn for the worse."

"Right, right," said Kaura, seeing that the wound would need immediate attending to. "His name?" she asked.

"We didn't catch it completely," said the soldier embarrassedly. "Ended with –tra or something."

Kaura looked back at the tent, noticed that a deceased patient was being carried out. That meant that a bed had just opened up. "Okay," she said, pointing at the entrance. "Take him inside and put him one of the beds. I'll see to him right away."

"Yes, ma'am," the soldiers said in unison and carried this –tra person inside.

Kaura remained outside for a few more seconds, steeling herself. That kid was not a Remnant, she knew. He seemed to have been living too comfortably, and was well-fed unlike everyone else. That meant he had to have come from the inside. But still, her oath commanded her to help everyone that needed it, and she'd stick by it. But the kid was going to answer some questions once he got better.

As she came inside, she saw that Tao had immediately gravitated towards the –tra person. That was another peculiar thing about the dark-skinned boy. He seemed to be drawn towards people closer to his own age (whatever that may have been) than those who were older. Natural, perhaps, given that he was still so young, but it still made her wonder.

"Right, you know the drill," she told Tao as she rolled back her sleeves. "Remove the clothes around the wound and clean it with water before you do anything."

Tao nodded and did so, cleaning the blood around –tra's wound with water from the bucket that stood by each bed. There was no time to go looking for water, so the doctors preferred to have it everywhere. Meanwhile, Kaura fetched alcohol and clean instruments, knowing how finicky chest and stomach wounds could be.

"Good job, kid, now stand back," she told Tao, holding a candle close to the wounded boy's—she refused to acknowledge someone so young as a man—wound, poking at it with her instruments every now and then. He had been lucky. The sword had missed every major organ, only scraping slightly against the right lung. That would have to heal by itself, and the boy would probably have difficulty breathing properly for a while, but at least it wasn't life-threatening on its own. No, this was a simple matter of disinfecting and sowing it shut.

"This one's lucky," she explained to Tao as she rubbed the alcohol and other disinfectants on the wound while he threaded a needle. "He took a sword to the stomach, but was left almost entirely undamaged. It didn't even run him through, as you can see."

Tao nodded, effortlessly passing the thread through the eye of the needle. Kaura wanted to slap the back of his head for that, as she always struggled with that herself.

"All we need is to make sure he doesn't get any infections, which this will take care of," she pointed at the bottles. "And, of course, make sure he doesn't stop breathing. Which you will be in charge of from now on."

Tao looked at her in confusion as she took the needle and thread from him and began to stitch the wound.

"You heard me, kid," Kaura said. "You will stay with this young gentle…boy, and make sure he keeps breathing. If he stops, then slap him or something to wake him up. It's simple, really. Can you do that?"

Tao looked thoughtful for a second, and then nodded, smiling.

"Great," said Kaura. "That takes a lot off my shoulder."

* * *

The transparent of Princess Ruto of the Zora, her eyes looking sadly at them blinked out of existence, leaving behind only the faintly spoken words:

" **The Water Barrier is dispelled…hurry up…"**

Link nodded, putting away his bow. "We will, don't worry."

Sheik watched Link carefully. This was the fourth barrier to fall, and the Hero seemed to get more and more depressed for every one of his old friends, the Sages, he saw. He had even broken into tears when Saria, his childhood friend, had wished him luck.

There was the by-now familiar sensation of the world rushing by, and the two suddenly found themselves standing outside the door to the barrier. The forcefield around the tower shimmered and wavered, clearly weakening for every barrier Link took down with his Light Arrows.

"Are you alright?" Sheik finally asked after a few minutes. Link hadn't moved, eyes staring ahead. He carefully put a hand on Link's cheek, drawing the Hero's attention to him finally. "Link, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly.

"Nothing," Link said, blinking and pushing away from Sheik.

Sighing, Sheik crossed his arms, feeling foolish when his right hand stung as it collided with his forearm. "I don't believe you, Link," he said. "You have a problem, and it's getting worse for every barrier you take down."

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Link, heading towards the door with the Shadow Temple's symbol above it.

"I can read you like an open book, Hero," Sheik said calmly, recognising that Link was quite close to the edge of anger now. Obviously, this had to do with Zelda's kidnapping. Sheik too was upset with his, but years of training allowed him the ability to push it to the back of his head. Link didn't have this luxury. "And if you don't tell me what's bothering you, I am putting an end to this quest."

"You're gonna stop me from rescuing Zelda?" Link asked humourlessly, his hand on the doorknob. "That's heartless, coming from someone who looks at her like a sister."

"No, Zelda will be rescued," said Sheik, slowly coming closer, trying to appear nonthreatening. "Just not by you. We've lost one piece of the Triforce already. If we lose one more, then _all_ is lost."

"Is that all she is to you, Sheik?" Link asked bitterly. "A piece of the Triforce?"

 _Oh-ho, is this what is trying to do, now?_ Sheik thought, seeing right through Link's strategy. "I can see what you're trying to do, Link, and it's not going to work. You can't make me leave, so you try to make me storm off in anger by myself. Good attempt, but no dice."

"Goddesses, why can't you just leave, Sheik?" Link thundered, finally letting go of his calm. "Why are you even here? I can handle this by myself!"

"Judging from the way you've been acting ever since you started seeing the Sages again, I'd say you're close to a breakdown," Sheik said calmly, not fazed by Link's outburst. "And that would be most counterproductive to what we are trying to achieve in this horrible place."

"And stop being so damn analytical and calm about it! Geez, do you have any idea of how many people have died?!"

"Several thousand at the least," said Sheik, not a break in his stride. "And you know what? If you don't pull yourself together—if we don't work together—many thousands, if not millions more will die as Ganondorf will finally be able to break out of Hyrule and take over the rest of the world." He stopped a few paces away, staring Link in the eyes. "Now…are you going to tell me why all this is getting to you _now_ , of all times?"

Link looked ready to argue more, to shout, but then he looked away. "I didn't realise how much I hate this…" he muttered.

"Pardon?" Sheik asked.

"I said I didn't realise how much I hate this," Link repeated, louder. "All those faces I've seen…I never thought about how many of my friends who have had to suffer all because I needed seven years to be ready. Saria, Darunia, Ruto, Rauru, Zelda, you…" He looked back up at Sheik, eyes wide. "If I had just thrown those Sacred Stones away…then Ganondorf wouldn't have gained access to the Sacred Realm, and…and none of this would have happened… I let you all down, Sheik."

Sheik blinked. He hadn't expected that. Smiling softly, he closed the distance between Link and himself, reaching up to stroke Link's cheek again with his left hand. "Is that what you've been thinking about all this time?" he asked. "Link…you've done nothing wrong. You have played your part in the prophecy to perfection. You've done everything right." Link tried to turn his head away, but Sheik held it in place. "Now listen to me," Sheik continued, hardening his voice to get his point through. "None of this is your fault. Ganondorf would have found a way to the Sacred Realm anyway—and without you, Hyrule would have fallen immediately.

"With you on our side, we have a fighting chance, and that's more than we could ever ask for. And the only person you have let down…is yourself, for thinking that you did something wrong." He was tempted to kiss Link right then, but knew that if he did, it could make matters worse. As much as he wanted Link to let it all out, they could not waste any more time. "Come on, Hero, what do you say?"

Link said nothing for a few minutes, but then he took a deep breath and nodded. "You're right," he said, straightening up. "Let's go kick Ganondorf's ass!"

"That's more like it," said Sheik, smiling. "He will rue the day he even came to this kingdom."

"Right, two more barriers!" Link announced and ripped the door open, disappearing inside before Sheik could react. The Sheikah smiled and followed.

"There is one thing I would like to ask you, Hero," his voice echoed inside the chamber.

"Yeah? What's that?" Link's voice asked.

"How did Princess Ruto react when you met after the Water Temple?"

"That's a long story…"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 138**

* * *

" **The Spirit Barrier is dispelled! Hurry up, kids!"**

The image of Nabooru disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, the Gerudo giving them both a smile of approval before fading away. Seconds later, Sheik and Link both found themselves at the entrance to the room.

Sheik was relieved to know that this was the last of the barriers. While the barriers themselves were easy enough to dispel—Link's accuracy with the heavy arrows noticeably improving with each shoot as he got used to their weight—it was the actual rooms leading _to_ the barriers that were the problem. Each room was crafted to be reminiscent of the temple it represented, leading to many frustrating moments (for Link, at least) in which they were forced to complete puzzles. But even so, they overcame the challenges easily, only struggling slightly with the Shadow Barrier as Link was effectively blind without the Lens of Truth. It had led to some…interesting situations involving ledges, precipices and bottomless abysses the likes of which Sheik could only have imagined in his worst nightmares—had he not been living it for the past seven years.

But the worst part of all the barrier problems was the fact that he was getting tired. Not just physically, but mentally as well. He hadn't slept in well over…actually, he couldn't remember for how long he hadn't slept, but it was starting to get to him. He could've sworn that someone was following them and observing them from a distance, but cursory glances and listens revealed nothing. Maybe it hadn't been a good idea to go back after all; perhaps he'd been better off at the hands of Kaura…

 _Now_ that _is insane, Sheik, stop it!_ he thought, just about ready to slap himself awake. He felt a grip at his shoulder and looked into the eyes of Link, which were practically sparkling—for some strange reason.

"Hey, did she just call me a kid?" the Hero asked, sounding positively offended at the idea. "I saved her life!"

Sheik blinked—confused for a fraction of a second—but then smiled, shaking his head. "Regardless of that fact, she is still older than you, so I suppose it's her prerogative." He gave it another second of thought. "Plus, she's a Sage, a direct representative of the Goddesses, so she can pretty much call you anything she wants to."

"Yeah, but still—"Link began, eyes rolling frantically around as he tried to come up with a rebuttal. "She called you a kid too!" he exclaimed, finishing his titanic struggle with his own intellect.

"Yes, she did," said Sheik, nodding. "And so I am. Physically, at least." He turned around, gripping the doorknob with his uninjured left hand. "While you, my love, are still a kid both physically _and_ mentally." He opened the door, leaving Link to gape after him.

"What's that supposed to mean?" the Hero demanded as he followed Sheik, almost crashing into the Sheikah, who had stopped just out of the doorway. "Hey, what's going on?" he asked.

"The forcefield isn't down," Sheik said tonelessly, pointing at the massive forcefield that surrounded the tower.

"What the hell?!" Link exclaimed. "Zelda told me that all it would take to take down the forcefield was dispelling the barriers! Why isn't it down?" He brushed past Sheik and slowly approached the tower, walking across the bridge where Sheik had thrown Commander Nuviro into the field.

Sheik hurried after, trying to ignore the bloodstains on the stone where Hatra had been lying. If his suspicions about Link's natural curiosity and stubbornness were right, then the Hero would now probably be…

 _Damn, he_ is _!_ He arrived just in time to stop Link from putting his hand into the forcefield, grabbing his wrist when his fingers were less than an inch away from the pulsating field. "What are you trying to do, Hero?" he asked slowly. "Atomising your fingers?"

"I just wanted to see what would happen…" Link said, scraping his boots on the floor after Sheik had pulled him to a safe distance. "I was curious…"

"Well, I can certainly enlighten you about what would happen if you had touched it," said Sheik, jerking his thumb in the field's direction. "Commander Nuviro would too, except he's scattered for all the winds. He took a little trip inside the field and was torn into billions of tiny little pieces which are probably still flying around."

"Really?" Link asked, eyes widening as he regarded the field with what Sheik hoped was a newfound respect. "Cool!"

Sheik sighed. _Unbelievable,_ he thought. "Anyway, we need to find out what went wrong with Zelda's plan."

"Maybe it needs a little something to get it going," said Link, digging through his pockets for something. Sheik wondered just what he meant with that—and voiced his question. "Maybe the field's surviving on what little of Ganondorf's will that's focused on it," Link explained, his hands still roaming his pockets. "Maybe it just needs a little something…damn it, where did I put that thing?"

Sheik, understanding—or at least getting the gist of—what Link was trying to say, looked back at the field. What could they possibly have to burn through that thing?

 _Wait…burn?_ Sheik wondered, looking back at Link, who whooped triumphantly as he pulled the tiny, tiny crystal out of his pocket, brandishing it like it was the ultimate weapon of all time.

"Din's Fire," Link said to no one in particular. "Useful _and_ awesome. What could be better?"

"Who are you talking to?" Sheik asked.

"Myself," Link said immediately, his tone of voice serious. He winked at Sheik and motioned for his lover to get back. Sheik did so, back away until he was absolutely certain that he was not in any sort of blast radius—which seemed to be attracted to Link no matter _what_ he was doing. "Right, Mr. Forcefield," Link said, standing before it. "Let's see if you can stand up to the wrath of a goddess!"

Sheik had seen it before. The shout, the quick hurl into the ground, the ball of flame… But there was something different this time. Usually, a sphere of expanding flames would envelop Link and then burn everything around him, but the Hero seemed to be actively funnelling the flames themselves into the forcefield. How he had suddenly learned such great control of his own, innate and untrained magic, Sheik didn't know.

What he _did_ know, on the other hand, was that Link was somehow focusing the flames to a single point on the field, the flames burning with the intensity of something much greater than Sheik wanted to imagine. He felt beads of sweat sliding down his face as the entire room began to feel like a sauna, Link gradually turning it into an oven.

The forcefield wavered and sputtered under the onslaught of Din's Fire, and it slowly began to stop moving and pulsating. The area around the focusing point had turned a different colour, and it was slowly spreading along the rest of the field. Sheik heard Link groan, give another grunt—and that was it. The field disappeared with a loud popping sound. Link stopped the fire immediately upon breaking through the field, giving another triumphant whoop before slowly beginning to topple forwards. Sheik caught him by the neck of his tunic before he could fall, however. The Hero's clothes were absolutely soaked through with sweat.

"Didn't expect it to get _that_ hot," Link said, brushing his wet bangs out of his face, grinning. As if to make a point, he looked back at the tower and the now completely exposed door leading inside. "A little something something," he said.

Sheik stared at him, letting go of the Hero's tunic. "Are you gloating at me?" he asked slowly.

"So what if I am?" asked Link defiantly. "For once, I figured out what we had to do before you, and I even _acted_ on it. And it _worked_." He smiled. "I guess you were right, I _am_ turning into the rational one here."

Sheik wanted to smile, wanted to kiss him and tell him he was right, but his ego did not agree. Instead, he shook his head and headed towards the door. "And I suppose I _am_ turning into the grumpy and creepy uncle no one ever wants to talk to," he added.

"Sheik, I didn't mean it like that," he heard Link say. He turned around to look at the Hero again.

"And I never said I _meant_ that you were turning rational," he said, grinning.

Link looked relieved. "Yeah, you're right," he said. "I'm still as reckless as before."

"And childish," Sheik added. "And immature. And stupid. And—"

"Okay, I get it!"

* * *

"Right, so how did I get roped into this again?" Myde asked for the tenth time. He and Ayla were moving along the streets, surrounded by at least a hundred other Remnant troops, many of them Goron, which made Myde feel at ease _and_ uneasy at the same time. Easy because…well, they were Gorons. Their hides were like stone, their strength equal to a dozen men or more. Uneasy because of the strained relationship the Zora and Gorons had always been in. Several wars under their belts did not help either.

But as it was, the gathered were too focused on the battle to care about their old enemies, and that was a comfort. He could only hope that the cooperation would continue after the battle was won.

There was no doubt about their victory now. The legion soldiers were more or less defeated everywhere else in the city. Those who still wanted to fight had banded around that infernal tower of destruction that continually rained fire upon the city. And there they were, heading directly towards it. It was madness.

"Because you and I have a particularly efficient professional relationship," said Ayla happily as she rummaged around in her pockets. "Plus, we've got this," she said and waved the explosive she had received from Vorpheus in his direction.

"You kept it?" Myde asked. "You are aware that's highly unstable, right?"

"If it survived our little foray into the sewers, shit-tsunamis and other things, I'm pretty sure it can survive a little battle," the Gerudo said, grinning. She put the explosive away and drew one of her scimitars. "Besides, it's our only hope to take down that tower until the engineers can move the siege equipment _into_ the city, which, given the general ruined nature of it, is going to take a lot of time. Time which we don't have, I might add."

Myde could do nothing but nod. The logic was sound, the reasoning level and consistent…but it did not instil him with optimism for his immediate future. When he had asked the commander of this particular operation about the number of enemy troops, he had only been given a grave stare and the word "lots".

"So where's your sister, anyway?" Ayla asked, probably sensing his unease and trying to cheer him up—or at least distract him. "Thought she'd be all over this crap."

"Believe it or not, but my sister is not that interested in fighting," said Myde. "She remained behind to help the wounded, as is her wont. I tell you, you won't find a better medic anywhere."

"I wouldn't say that to the physician from Termina, if I were you," said Ayla. "She's fierce."

"The one who patched you up?" Myde asked, recalling the few times he had been in the purple-haired one's presence—and shuddering. "I wasn't really planning on getting close to her ever again."

"Better not get hurt, then," said Ayla, grinning at him.

Up ahead, the lead scouts motioned for them to stop and for the section leaders to report for a final meeting. Myde had turned down one such position, not feeling confident in commanding anything other than Zora soldiers. As the section leaders convened, whispering to each other, Myde looked around, noticing that they had stopped just about a hundred yards or so from the dividing line—the line between Remnant and Legion territory. They were just about to charge, then. He felt someone grip his forearm and found Ayla staring at him seriously.

"Seriously, Myde," she said, looking into his eyes with an expression he had never seen on her before. "Don't get hurt. We've been through too much for any of us to get killed now."

Myde knew exactly what she was going to do before she did it—which was probably why he didn't resist when she leaned in and placed a kiss squarely on his lips. It was short, chaste and sweet. Ayla began to giggle when she leaned back, making him confused.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," replied Ayla, trying to suppress her giggles. "It's just…well; I kinda expected it to feel like kissing a fish."

"I _am_ a fish," he said in a deadpan. Then he registered what she said once more. "Then what _did_ it feel like?"

"Kinda like kissing a Gerudo," Ayla answered and began to walk towards the strategic huddle, probably to meddle in their affairs.

Myde smiled to himself—at least until he once again reregistered what she had said. "Wait, I feel like a girl?"

* * *

"This…does not bode well," Sheik said as they entered the chamber beyond the bridge. It was empty, save for a trio of torches, a large, red carpet that stretched across the floor and extending upwards a large and curved staircase leading upwards.

"Why not?" asked Link. "The room's empty. Means we don't have to fight, and that's great."

"And that is in no way an obvious trap of some sort, laid by an evil dictator so corrupted by his own wish for power that he is willing to let just about anyone suffer as long as he gets it?" Sheik said, firing off the sentence much faster than intended. He sighed, shaking his head. "But that's not what I meant."

"Then what?" asked Link.

"Hear that sound?" Sheik asked, cupping his hand to his ear. It had been obvious the second they entered the chamber—the flapping sound of wings beating rapidly as their owner desperately struggled to stay afloat. To illustrate his point, he also looked up.

Link mirrored the action, and his face fell. "Oh…"

"Indeed."

The bats noticed them immediately. Normally, such creatures would not bother Sheik, sharing their affinity for the night and its beauty. But bats on _fire_ , on the other hand, bothered quite a bit. Especially if they came careening towards them, threatening to set _them_ on fire as well.

"Uh, what do we do?" Link asked.

"I highly suggest we run!" Sheik exclaimed as, as one, the bats seemed to notice them. There were dozens of them up there, flying just below the ceiling, and now they were all rushing down towards them.

The Hero didn't have to be told twice. The pair ran up the stairs, trying to avoid getting a headfull of fiery bat. Sheik felt one of them swish by inches from his ear, the thing thudding into the step just in front of him, shrieking bloody murder. The shrieks ended the second Sheik's boot crushed it, extinguishing the flames at the same time. If the carpet caught on fire, who knew what would happen?

"Door!" Link shouted, pointing at the top of the stairs, where there was indeed a green-coloured door with yellow, swirly designs painted all over it. Sheik felt relieved, but as they came closer, he noticed that the door was missing one critical, mechanical part.

"Where's the knob?" he asked.

"I dunno!" Link exclaimed. "Keep running!"

They were in luck. The door opened by itself—something Sheik would have thought of as highly suspicious—had it not been for the many times aforementioned flaming bats—and they dived inside, the door slamming shut a split second after. Sheik and Link picked themselves up from the floor, staring at the door as they heard the sounds of the bats crashing into it.

"Angry birds, sure," said Link. "Pissed off bugs, no problem. But bats on fire? Screw that!" He looked at Sheik, who stared back at him, wondering how many other phobias—a-hem—they shared, and was about to ask this question.

But then they heard the hissing. Both slowly turning around, they heard the clicking of the claws on the stone floor before they actually saw them. The crests, the green scales, the swords…

"What the hell are those?" Link asked, hitting the nail on the proverbial head. Sheik had no idea what they were.

They looked like a pair of lizalfos, the kind that sometimes crawled out from underneath Death Mountain, roaming the countryside. Some thought they were related to dodongos, sharing a common ancestor or something like that, but these things…these things were different. More muscle, taller and—if possible—eerier.

 _What has Ganondorf been up to in here?_ Sheik wondered as he gripped Kazuya with his left hand, slowly drawing the blade. The pair of overgrown lizards' eyes followed the movement carefully. When Link did the same with the Master Sword, the lizards started to jitter with what Sheik hoped was fear rather than anticipation. If there was anticipation, it meant there was intelligence. If there was intelligence, it meant that there was blood thirst. If there was blood thirst…it would be a bloodbath.

"We can take 'em, right?" Link said, he too noticing the strange air around the two creatures, who were now communicating with each other through a series of high-pitched whines. "Right?" he asked again, sounding unsure.

"Sure," said Sheik. "We just need to…divide them up, I suppose."

"You sure about that?" asked Link. "With that hand of yours?"

"I have one more, you know," Sheik said, wondering if he once again had to show Link that it worked.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry," said Link, not taking his eyes off the lizards, which were now taking slow steps towards them, eyeing them with an intelligence Sheik never wanted to see on such creatures again. "So, I go left, you go right?"

"Perfect," Sheik said, already approaching his designated opponent. Link sighed and went for his. The creatures…or lizards…or whatever they were, split up accordingly, their swords flashing in their hands. Sheik wanted to know how strong the thing was before he thought up a strategy. He didn't have to wait long. The crested, horrible thing raised its weapon and threw a swing at him. Sheik held up Kazuya, blocking the strike. There was considerable strength in the blow, but far from what Sheik had expected from the looks of the thing's musculature.

The creature screamed as it attacked again, aiming a blow at Sheik's left shoulder. It was a slow, uncoordinated strike that was easily dodged by rolling past the creature. As he stood up, Sheik swiped with Kazuya, nicking the creature in the back of its knee. It shrieked in pain and almost buckled, but kept itself up just barely.

 _As I thought, the creature is not a natural being,_ Sheik thought as he circled it. Now that he was up close to it, he noticed that it was moving awkwardly, as if not used to its body being the way it was. It became even more obvious when he glimpsed at Link and his own opponent, which was clearly struggling to keep up with the Hero's repeated strikes and feints. The creature knew what to do, how to block and dodge, but its body was not up to the task. _They must have been created…_

The creature Sheik was fighting was back on its feet now, its claws clicking on the floor as it tried to circle around the Sheikah, red blood flowing down its leg. It seemed to be in much greater pain than such a small wound should have caused. Suddenly, it lunged, trying to stab Sheik in the side. Sheik didn't even have to put any effort in stepping aside, the creature's own, forward-leaning weight causing it to crash to the floor. It was almost comical, but Sheik couldn't even crack a smile, for he now pitied the creature more than he feared it. He couldn't imagine how it must feel like to be trapped in a body that is clearly not its own. The creature gave a pitiful howl—a sound a reptile should not have been able to make, surely—as it tried to get up.

"Hah!" Link exclaimed as he sank his blade into the chest of his enemy. It gave a sharp cry as it fell backwards, clutching its wound. It was dead before it hit the ground.

The second its partner died, Sheik's own opponent gave another howl, and Sheik knew somehow that it was expressing grief—or anger. Either way, it stopped struggling, lying flat on the floor, giving a rattling sigh of some sort. Sheik stood poised to stab it in the back in case it was trying to pull some sort of trick.

"Hey, are you done?" Link asked as he cleaned his blade.

Sheik didn't answer, hooking his boot underneath his opponent's unresisting arm, pulling it onto its back. Blank, slit eyes stared upwards into nothing. Sheik waited another few seconds before he bent down. He nodded to himself. "It's dead," he said.

"Did you get the heart?" Link asked, coming closer.

"I didn't get anything but the back of its knee," said Sheik, gesturing at the tiny pool of blood. "I gave it no mortal wounds. It just…died."

"Well, I gave mine a mortal wound," said Link. "But…is it just me, or did it seem like they weren't fighting back at all?"

"They instigated the fight," Sheik reminded him. "But no, it's not just you. They were hopelessly unskilled. Perhaps not so strange since this is obviously not their natural form." He took his eyes off the dead creature and looked around the room.

It was just as barren as the room below, the only remarkable features being the two doors—one that led back the way they came and another that would, presumably, take them further up the tower.

"Natural form?" Link asked. "What are you talking about?"

"You didn't notice their clumsy movements?" Sheik asked, refusing to look at the dead creatures. They made him feel…sad, somehow.

"Mine stumbled a lot," Link said.

"Exactly," said Sheik. "It stumbled because it wasn't used to having two legs. Perhaps it was used to having four, or more…"

"So, are you saying that Ganondorf turned a creature…into another creature?" Link asked, surprising Sheik with his deduction that Ganondorf had done it.

"Presumably," Sheik answered. "And it's a good sign."

"How so?"

"It means he is getting desperate. That he is willing to do anything to stop us."

"Then why didn't he do it back in the main chamber?" asked Link, raising an eyebrow in a perfect mimic of Sheik's own body language. "I mean, if he was able to trap Zelda in a huge crystal, the why couldn't he just make us…I dunno…explode?"

"Explode?"

"…that's all I could come up with at such short notice."

"Right…" Sheik sheathed Kazuya and shrugged. "As for why he didn't make us…explode…I can only say…I don't know. I have no idea of what is going on inside that man's head or how he thinks. Perhaps he is playing with us; perhaps he is trying to kill us in whatever way he can. Or perhaps he is simply testing us, trying to see how strong we—or rather, you—are."

"Again with the frigging tests!" Link exclaimed, waving the Master Sword around in annoyance. "Why can't we just get to the damn showdown already?"

"Theatrics?" Sheik tried.

Link grumbled and put his sword away, looking at the two creatures. "So they weren't really supposed to be like this?" he asked.

"Probably not."

"Poor things…"

"Agreed. Which is why we should get a move on, so we can stop Ganondorf before he does it to any other creatures."

"And save the princess."

"And save the princess, yes."

"Sheik?"

"Yes?"

"Why did I just feel like I was saying something incredibly clichéd?"

"I…don't know, Link."

_Since when d_ _id he know what that word means?_

* * *

"Okay, this didn't exactly go as planned," Ayla said as she and Myde crouched behind a broken wall, arrows and bolts flying around them.

"Oh, really?" asked Myde. "I thought huddling behind this piece of scenery with half our troops dying around us was just stage one!"

A female Hylian took a crossbow bolt to the throat as she came charging from an alley, her battle cries coming out as mere gurgles as she slowly fell sank to the ground. A Goron came rolling from a doorway, quickly clearing half the square. Arrows bounced off it, swords didn't even leave dents. But just when it seemed to have a chance in making it to the huge tower, a precisely aimed, deadly fireball crashed into it from above. They didn't even hear the Goron scream as it died, burned to cinders.

"Hey, don't get mad at me!" Ayla shouted, clearly trying to take her eyes off the dead Goron. "I'm not a section leader! This wasn't my idea!"

"I know!" Myde shouted back. "I'm sorry!"

He really was. He just needed to lash out at someone after having watched the massacre that had just taken place in front of the tower. The legion troops had more or less made the perfect stronghold. In the tower itself and the buildings surrounding it, archers had positioned themselves for an effective 360-degree defence. Around the base of the tower, spearmen and other melee fighters had created barricades out of old carts, barrels, crates and other things, creating a strange sort of trench-system. Any Remnant soldier that tried to move across the empty areas around the tower was immediately cut down. The only position that seemed even remotely vulnerable was on the tower's east side, where the buildings were a bit closer. But getting there meant going through an entire garrison inside the buildings themselves…

"We need to get over there!" he shouted, pointing at the buildings. "But how?"

Ayla looked, nodding. "Good question!"

Another brave, but foolish squad of Remnant troops—a mixture of Hylians, Zoras and Gerudos—tried to move across the square, screaming at the tops of their lungs. They didn't even get halfway across before they were cut down by a hail of arrows and bolts, punctuated by another fireball, as if the legions wanted to wipe their opponents off the face of the world.

"If only we could go through the buildings," Myde said. "But I doubt the buildings are even connected."

Ayla opened her mouth to say something, but paused. A grin spread on her face. "Through them, eh?" she asked.

"Yes, though them!" Myde said.

Ayla continued grinning. "Do you know where the other Gorons are?"

"I believe they are waiting behind the line," said Myde. "Why?"

"I have a plan."

* * *

There was something infuriating about the way the stalfos continued grinning at them even as they took swords to their faces. Even more infuriating was the fact that they refused to go down no matter how many times they repeated the process of putting themselves back together even after being scattered into a thousand little pieces.

But it _was_ slowing them down, luckily. With each dismantling and reconstruction, the reanimated skeletons became increasingly sloppy and inert in their movements and attack patterns. Sheik ducked underneath a wide strike from the stalfos, his robes fluttering around in a highly annoying way, and kicked it in the chest, sending it stumbling backwards. It tripped over its own feet and fell backwards, comically smashing itself to pieces on the floor. This time it did not get up. Sheik panted, glad for the lack of challenging opponents so far, though annoyed at himself for getting winded. Six weeks ago, he would have been able to fight the damn thing for hours before finishing it off easily.

"Get out of my way!" Link shouted as he kicked the head off the other stalfos, which had been kneeling on the floor. Its head bounced off the wall and broke into pieces upon hitting the floor. The skeleton's body followed suit. "Hah!"

"Good work," Sheik said, already on his way to the door at the other end of the room. He didn't know how many floors the tower had, but he was getting mighty sick of it already—and they were only on the second!

"He's definitely playing with us," Link said. "Why else would he give us such easy opponents? I mean, I've struggled with stalfos in the past, but these days I can defeat with them with a hand tied to my back. Hell, you just did, basically…"

Sheik looked at his crippled hand, at the ugly, clawed things his fingers had curled into. "You're right," he said. "But it wasn't as easy as you think it was. I'm used to having a dagger in this hand, not a sword."

"You did well enough from what I saw," said Link.

"Obviously, or I'd be dead," said Sheik, smirking at Link in a way he knew was hopelessly childish. He loved it, though.

"I wonder how many floors there are," Link said, mirroring Sheik's thoughts from before. "From what I saw, the tower was pretty tall…"

"Tall enough," said Sheik as they stepped through the door, revealing yet another curved staircase. Torches burned merrily on the walls, and the comfortable, cosy carpet on the floor belied the tower's true nature.

As they walked up them, Sheik began to wonder what Ganondorf had been thinking when he formulated his plan for taking over Hyrule and the Triforce. What was his motivation? Surely he did not just get up one morning and say loudly to himself: "I think I'll take over the world today"? There had to be a reason. Revenge? Sure, the Gerudo and Hylians had been at war several times, the most recent one ending in the decline of the Sheikah, but surely there had to be more to it than that? But why take over the world, then, when he had so utterly annihilated Hyrule's infrastructure? It would take years before the kingdom could recover… He noticed that Link was talking and put his thoughts aside for the moment.

"What?" he asked. "Could you repeat that?"

"You weren't listening?" Link asked, glaring at him. "I said: flaming bats, lizards that aren't lizards, stalfos," Link said. "What's next? Those empty suits of armour?"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 139**

* * *

"I just had to open my big mouth, didn't I?" Link asked, his face screwing up in annoyance as they looked at the suits of armour standing in their way.

They were covered in ornamental carvings and were far too big for any man to wear them. One was black as midnight, the other white as snow. Their weapons, gigantic battle axes, were largely undecorated save for a gem at the end of their handles. The white one had a piece of onyx, the black one a diamond. At the moment, they seemed to be dormant, just waiting for someone to wake them up with a touch, their axes resting across their laps.

"You have a talent for it, yes," Sheik said, looking closely at them. Iron Knuckles weren't his favourite type of enemy, but surely these could not be any harder to beat than the ones in the Spirit Temple? "But I don't think this will be a problem. Knock off their helmets and destroy their brains."

"You make it sound easy," said Link sourly and prepared himself. "But one of those nearly killed me when I was a kid."

Sheik caught himself just in time. Link didn't need any more reminding of his true age. "Well, now you're an adult," he said. "Surely these will pose no challenge."

"Again, easier said than done," said Link taking a few steps forward before whirling around to look at Sheik. "Maybe you should sit this one out, Sheik."

"Pardon?" Sheik asked. "Why?"

"Hate to bring it up, but you're really injured—"

"I dealt with the stalfos easily enough," Sheik said.

"Yeah, but they're not exactly intelligent, are they?"

"Would you say walking suits of armour are any smarter?" Sheik pointed at the pair blocking the door. "The only thing they are able to do is walk, swing their axes and moan. I think I can handle myself quite well, thank you very much."

"Okay, fine," said Link, giving up much quicker than Sheik had expected him to. "So, you want the black one or the white one?"

"I'll take the white one, if you don't mind," Sheik said, drawing his blade.

"Alrighty then," Link said as he pulled a torch off the wall and hurled it at the armours. "Wake up, you bastards!"

* * *

Myde and Ayla found a bunch of Gorons and other troops in the adjacent streets trying to navigate their way around the ruined buildings. The rock-eaters' strength came in handy when trying to clear away rubble, but the sheer amount of it made it slow and difficult work. Ayla took one of the Gorons aside and spoke to him—or her, Myde wasn't too sure about the gender—in hushed tones. The Goron seemed sceptical, but eventually nodded, conveying the idea to the others in equally hushed tones.

Ayla had an infuriating grin on her face as she came back to Myde. "It worked. They'll do it," she said triumphantly, stretching her back in an overly casual way that annoyed and delighted Myde in equal amounts.

"Do what?" Myde asked. "You _still_ haven't told me what this plan of yours is about."

"I couldn't help but get an idea when you said that we need to go _through_ the buildings in order to reach the tower," Ayla said, nodding and smiling in a condescending attempt to get him to understand. Myde was about to voice his annoyance with this when the idea struck him as well—and made him feel foolish for not realising the possibility sooner.

"You want them to roll through the buildings," he said. "That's…actually quite clever."

"That's right," said Ayla. "I'm smarter than I look."

It was like cutting butter with a hot knife. The troop of Gorons easily punched their way through the massive walls of the buildings in the square, crushing any legion soldier in their path. The ground shook as, one by one; the buildings were perforated, creating a tunnel for the Remnant troops, who poured in after the rock-eaters. They fell upon legion soldiers, who still didn't quite understand what had just happened, showing their enemies just what they thought of their little stronghold.

Myde and Ayla were right in the middle of it, carried along by the tidal wave of Remnant soldiers as they moved in to secure the row of buildings, clearing them out and killing any enemy they came across.

"There's still the problem of getting to the tower itself!" Myde shouted over the din and screaming of the war around them. "I counted at least a twenty meters between it and this row!"

"Don't worry!" Ayla shouted back. "If all goes according to plan, the legion won't even know we're in here! We'll just pour out of the buildings and overwhelm their positions before their archers can fire off any shots!"

"How do we know they won't fire?"

"They wouldn't shoot their own men!"

"You sure about that?"

"Of course I am." Ayla suddenly lashed out with her scimitar, catching a legion soldier who had been hiding behind a pillar below his chin, cutting his throat. The roof above them creaked as it threatened to collapse at any moment. "Or, I hope so," she added after a minute or so.

"How reassuring!"

"Any time!"

* * *

Kaura smiled to herself as she tied off a bandage. The soldier was unconscious, but he would live, which was a small triumph in itself considering the fact that both his legs were gone. She could only hope that he had a family or someone who could take care of him later. She nodded to the other physician who had helped her with the soldier.

"Right, he's all yours," she said, looking around the field. The number of dead was growing steadily, the number of stable patients lagging behind dreadfully. Her efforts, while not entirely in vain, were negligible. By the end of the battle, she was sure that well over a fifth of the Remnant army would be dead, with an additional fifth wounded. That was almost half the army!

As she washed her hands with a heavy bout of alcohol and hot water, she noticed that the clamour and sounds of battle from the city had fallen somewhat still. They could still hear an explosion every now and then, and there was always a pair of swords clashing, but not nearly as loud as it had been. And yet the wounded continued coming in…

She decided to go back to the tent and check upon the –tra person who had been brought in. As she walked, she suddenly had a mental image of Tao sitting on the man's bed and slapping him in the face to make him breathe. It made her smile, for some reason. Of course, imagining Tao doing anything made her smile these days. There was just something about the boy that cheered her up no matter what he did, even while stealing her chocolate.

Tao wasn't slapping the –tra person, to her disappointment, but he was keeping a close eye on the man's slowly rising and falling chest. This made her proud. Tao actually listened to her, unlike two other kids who seemed to be more than averagely suicidal.

"Hey kid," she said as she pulled up a chair. "How is he?"

Tao shrugged, pointing at the man's chest.

"He's been breathing steadily?"

Tao nodded.

"Showed any signs of waking up?"

Surprisingly, Tao nodded again. Opening and closing his mouth, imitating speech.

"He was talking?"

Tao nodded.

"Anything coherent?"

Tao looked at her blankly.

"Did it make sense?"

Tao shook his head.

"Damn," Kaura said, leaning back in the chair, sighing loudly. "I was hoping he would wake up soon. An unconscious patient is the worst 'cause you have no idea if what you're doing is right or not. Sure, they probably won't die, but if they have internal injuries or bleedings that are not visible from the outside…well, a lot of damage can be done while they're sleeping." She took her eyes off the man's chest and looked at Tao. "How about you? How're you holding up?"

Tao smiled, giving her an up-turned thumb.

"Good, eh? All the wounded and dead people aren't bothering you at all?" Kaura asked. She had expected the boy to at least feel a little…sick, or nauseous, but there he was, sitting cross-legged on the bed, smiling like he was in the middle of a flower field in summer, carefree in the way only children can seem. Surely all the blood and gore would affect him just a little?

But Tao only shook his head, adjusting the cap he had been given by the Hero.

"Then you're a stronger person than I was at your age," Kaura said, despite not really knowing how old Tao was. Sure, he looked he was no more than ten or twelve years old, but his malnutrition and…abuse could have interfered with his growth. It was disconcerting, however, that he could just ignore all the death around him like it was nothing…but then again, perhaps he had seen far worse things during his captivity and enslavement.

She looked back at the –tra person, wondering where they had found him. He was wearing robes—not an easy thing to come by these days, at least not in Hyrule—and looked much healthier than he should have. Obviously he was not part of the Remnant, but he didn't really look like he was a prisoner or slave either. Surely he wasn't part of the Legions? As a Hylian, that would be high treason… She picked up one of his hands and examined it. Delicate, almost feminine-looking fingers. Skin much softer than her own. Nails neatly trimmed… This was a man who took pride in his appearance, as well as whatever work he did with his hands. His palm had calluses in several places, however, which suggested he used tools quite a bit. But what kind? Not carpenter's tools—his body wasn't muscular or brawny enough for that…

He moaned. Kaura looked up from her examination and watched as the young man slowly opened his eyes, looking around in a confused manner. His breath was still regular and calm, but Kaura doubted it would last when the pain hit him. One second later, it did, and he began to breathe quickly and irregularly.

"Oi, you," she said, "calm down. I've just spent a lot of time patching you up, and I won't have you tear the stitches open."

"Where…am I?" the young man managed to gasp.

"You're in the field hospital of the Hyrulian Remnant," Kaura answered, using her free hand to grasp around a scalpel. One could never be too safe. "And I happen to know that you are not one of us."

"What?" he asked.

"You heard me, kid," Kaura said, leaning closer so that no one but him and Tao could hear it. "I know you're not Remnant, and I know you're not a prisoner of the legion. So, are you going to tell me who you are, or will I be forced to fetch someone who can _make_ you?"

The young man stared at her, his eyes widening. So he _was_ hiding something. "I…I…" he said.

"You can start by telling me your name," Kaura said.

"I…"

"Your name."

"…Hatra."

Well, at least he was honest about it. Kaura gave him a small, fake smile. "Well, that's a start. Now, Mr. Hatra, care to tell me what you were doing in the city?"

"I…"

"You seem rather fond of that letter, Mr. Hatra, but I'm afraid I'll have to insist that you answer my question."

"I…was…a slave," Hatra finally said with some difficulty. "Personal debt slave…of Commander…Nuviro…"

"Ain't no such things as a debt slave as well-fed as you, kid, I'm sorry to say." Kaura glared at him. "How about you tell me what you really did behind those walls. Soldier? Engineer? Tailor?" She rattled off a whole string of professions in rapid succession, having seen such a method work before. And sure enough, Hatra gave the tell-tale jerk and sharp intake of breath when she said his profession. And it was not a profession she wanted to hear. "Torturer?"

"…"

Kaura sighed. "So, you're one of those, huh? You hurt people in order to make them compliant and tell secrets, not giving a damn about the trauma—"

"I'm not…a torturer," Hatra said protesting, his eyes hardening. "I am…an interrogator."

"Same shit, different name," Kaura said dismissingly. "You still cause pain, suffering and damage to the human form, a crime which I cannot forgive. I am sorry, Mr. Hatra, but I am afraid I must inform the proper authorities of this, and—"

"I saved…his life," Hatra said.

"Whose life?" Kaura asked, blinking. This was the first time she had heard of someone like Hatra doing such a thing.

"The Sheikah's."

That made her pause. She knew that the idiot had been captured and that he had most likely been taken to the Evil King himself. If this was true, and that Hatra had indeed saved Sheik's life, then what were his motives? "Who are you?" she asked finally.

"They know me…as the Inquisitor," Hatra said. "I saved his life because…I don't want this anymore…I never wanted it…"

She had heard of this Inquisitor. Apparently, this was a man who could get you to tell him everything you know in mere minutes as opposed to hours. His methods were new, revolutionising and horrifying. Yet, his victims were rarely crippled or damaged in any way, the pain he inflicted on them merely being temporary yet agonising. Of course, it was horrible to even think of him as a better alternative (physically, at least) to other interrogators. After all, he was still a glorified torturer. But she distinctly remembered soldiers telling stories about him never killing anyone… She leaned in close again.

"Did you torture him?" she asked slowly, menacingly.

Hatra looked fearfully up at her, no more than a child in the face of wrath incarnate. His lips quivered as he opened his mouth. "…a little…but nothing lasting…"

Kaura had to take a deep breath in order to stop herself from jamming her scalpel into his eye right there and then. "So…" she said. "When I see him next time…he will be…in perfect condition?"

Hatra slowly shook his head, prompting the physician to take another deep breath. The young man had no idea how close he was to death at the moment. "But it was not my fault," he said, voice shaking. "Nuviro cut me off, tried to interrogate the Sheikah himself. Beat him up, broke his fingers and ribs…"

Kaura's hands were shaking by now. "But you saved him?" she asked, trying to let go of the scalpel as a precaution.

"Yes…I loosened his bonds…and helped him to the main chamber of the citadel."

"And then?"

"We killed Nuviro…I got this," he nodded at his wound, "by the commander as…a parting gift."

"Then what happened?"

"The princess and Hero of Time…showed up. They helped us both, and the Sheikah made me…come here…didn't tell anyone who I was, either…"

"Why?"

"I…don't know."

Nodding, Kaura leaned away, scratching her chin as she thought. Sheik didn't want Hatra to be exposed for who he was. That much was obvious. But why? Surely he would want the man who tortured him and many of his fellow Hyrulians to receive his due punishment. Unless, of course… "Unless he still adheres to the honour system," she whispered to herself. Hatra was eyeing her carefully, probably afraid that she was going to expose him. She cleared her throat, got his attention. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't have you arrested and hauled away. And don't even think about using the Sheikah's life as an excuse. You've already spent that card."

Hatra looked her straight in the eyes, his face the epitome of seriousness. "I want to help." His breathing had finally levelled now, and he didn't look half as much in pain as he had done upon awakening.

"Excuse me?" she said.

"I want to help," Hatra repeated. "Here, in the hospital."

"I don't think—"

"I know much about anatomy and the treatment of wounds," Hatra interrupted her. "Many times have I been forced to treat the victims of the other interrogators. Please, doctor, let me help…to make up for my sins…"

What could she do? She wanted to report him, she really did, but if Sheik thought he was a good man, or better than most legionnaires, anyway, then… She sighed heavily again, wondering why she had even bothered to come to this blasted kingdom. She caught a flash of green in the corner of her vision and looked at Tao, who was still sitting on the bed, having paid utmost attention to the conversation. "What do you think?" she asked.

Tao did nothing, except give her a small smile.

"Kid, you're going to be the death of me," Kaura said, finally letting go of her scalpel and fishing out one of her last vials of the concentrated red potion. "Right," she told Hatra, "are you in any condition to walk?"

"I feel fine," Hatra said, sitting up to prove the point, hissing when the skin around his stitches was pulled. "A bit…painful, but otherwise it's fine."

"Right, drink one of these," Kaura said, handing him the vial, "and get ready. I'm not going to let you help in any major procedure, but you can start by helping Tao here distribute bandages, disinfectants and whatever else the doctors say they need. Understand?"

"Tao?" Hatra asked, looking at the boy. "Is that your name?" He looked confused when all Tao did was nod and smile.

"He doesn't speak," Kaura explained. "Something he can thank the Legions for. Your side." She stood up, gesturing towards the storage area. "You will find the bandages and other things in there along with a clean change of clothes. Tao will be your supervisor. Hesitate in doing your job for even one second, and he will tell me. And then I will make your life hell. Ask the Sheikah when he comes back, he can confirm. Is that understood?"

Yes, doctor," Hatra said meekly, glancing at Tao, who was grinning widely, apparently at the aspect of being an authority person.

"And my name's not 'Doctor'," Kaura said. "It's Kaura."

"Yes, Kaura—"

"App!"

"Doctor Kaura…"

"See? That wasn't so hard, was it?" Kaura asked, giving him a fake grin. "Now get to work, both of you!"

* * *

Link gave a strangled cry as he took the flat side of the battleaxe to his stomach, which sent him flying across the room, crashing into the wall on the other side. Sheik didn't fare much better, taking an armoured knee to his stomach and then a boot to his chin, which made the remainder of his teeth rattle. He landed on his back not far from Link, both coughing blood and groaning loudly.

"This…isn't working," Link said, slowly sitting up, blood dripping from his nose, which had taken quite a hit a few minutes earlier. "They're too strong."

"And too fast," Sheik added, wiping the blood from his mouth and spitting out another mouthful of it. He was surprised to see that his teeth were still attached. "Much faster than the ones in the Spirit Temple."

"I can't get to their brains." The Hero sighed, watching as the twin knuckles went back to their positions in front of the door, barring the way. "I think the worst part is that they're just waiting all the time."

"A more…aggressive opponent would be better, I agree," Sheik said, rising to his feet. "They're just playing with us. The closest I got to a hit was when you almost knocked the black one's helmet off."

"Yeah, that was some jump," Link said. "But you know what I noticed?" he asked.

"No."

"Their brains aren't at helmet level."

"I noticed as well."

"How come we didn't tell each other, then?"

"…good question," Sheik said. "We need to work on our communication some more after this is over."

"Deal."

"But what do we do?" Sheik asked. "Their armour's impenetrable; they are too fast to allow joint strikes…"

"How about dropping a bomb down their cuirasses?" Link asked, grinning.

 _That could actually work,_ Sheik thought. "But how are you going get it down there? The necks are a bit too wide, and—do you even have bombs with you?" he asked, trying to find any obvious bulges in Link's tunic that fitted the size of a bomb. He saw none.

"Well, not exactly bombs," Link said as he dug through his pockets and pulled out a pair of fist-sized balls. They looked like miniature bombs, even had the short fuses. "The engineers whipped up a couple for me when I asked them," Link explained as he tossed one to Sheik. "They call them 'grenades' and pack quite a punch, apparently."

"You've been carrying explosives around this entire time?" Sheik asked incredulously, testing the weight of the _grenade_.

"Yeah," Link said, grinning. "Why?"

"You have been running through rooms filled with lava, great heat and open flames…with _explosives in your pockets_?" Sheik said, stressing the last part. "And you used Din's Fire…again, _with explosives in your pockets!_ "

"Yeah?" Link said. "And?"

Sheik sighed. "Forget it, if you're too stupid to realise what my point is, then it's better that you don't know."

"Alright," said Link, focusing his attention back on the living suits of armour. "So, how do we do this? One knocks off their helmets and one tosses the grenades in?"

"I suppose that's a plan," Sheik said. He saw Link reaching out his own grenade towards Sheik, who stepped away. "Shouldn't _I_ knock off—"

"Not in your condition you're not," Link said, grabbing the grenade from Sheik's only slightly resisting hands. "You're more likely to get _your_ helmet knocked off."

"But I don't _have_ a helmet—"

"Exactly!"

 _Well played, Hero,_ Sheik thought as he realised he'd been fooled into wordplay by Link and accepted the other grenade, holding one in each hand. "But how are you going to deal with them both at the same time?" he asked.

"I don't have to," Link said. "They only seem to react whenever one of us hits them. So I figure if I only hit one, only that one will react and start fighting me."

"That's a bit risky—"

"I'm the reckless one, remember?"

"…right."

"Besides," Link said as he slowly approached the iron knuckles again. "You're the one with the best aim. Okay, here we go then."

Sheik positioned himself near a torch, ready to light the fuse of a grenade and toss it. Link was right. Even with his left hand and only one functioning eye, Sheik could still nail any possible target he was presented with. And lobbing a small ball into a large hole wouldn't exactly be difficult.

Link carefully prodded the black-armoured one, which immediately woke to life in a rage, already swinging its axe before it had even gotten to its feet. But the other one—the white-armoured one—stayed completely still. Why hadn't they tried that right away and simply ganged up on one of them?

Seeing Link fight was, as always, interesting. With no formal fencing or sword-handling lessons, Link had to teach himself how to fight, resulting in a fighting style that reminded more of a brawler's than of a legendary hero's. And that's probably why he was so successful as a fighter. His opponents always seemed to expect a refined, controlled and elegant fighter. What they got instead was a teenage boy who was guided by his emotions and was not afraid to fight dirty when circumstances called for it. His ability to backflip and roll his way out of the axe's way helped quite a bit as well, and now that Sheik and the white-armoured one wasn't around to take up space, Link could really unfold himself.

And then his chance came. As the iron knuckle recovered from an overhead blow which sank its axe into the floor, Link jumped forward while swinging his sword in a vicious sideways arc. It caught the knuckle's helmet just underneath where its ear should be, knocking it off. Sheik had already lit a grenade fuse when Link shouted. Gripping it firmly, Sheik took aim. It sailed delicately through the air, the fuse burning brightly. The knuckle never had a chance to move out of the way as the grenade fell into the neck hole, making rattling sounds as it made its way downwards. Link jumped out of the way just in time as the grenade detonated.

The explosion was quite impressive for such a small thing. The knuckle was blown to pieces, pieces of armour flying about the room, the dark ball of energy obliterated in a flash of light. The axe remained stuck in the floor, the knuckle's gauntlet still locked firmly around its handle.

"Nice throw," Link called to him, grinning. "Think you can do one more?"

Sheik picked up the other grenade, tossing it up and down in his hand. "Let's find out."

* * *

"That was refreshingly easy," Link said as they walked up what the both hoped was the final set of stairs.

This staircase seemed longer, the carpet more richly decorated. Portraits of…well, neither of them really knew who the people were, hung on the walls, their eyes seemingly following the two as they walked past.

"Indeed," Sheik said. "Though I could have done without the knee to my stomach."

"I was going to ask you about that," Link said, spinning around and pinning Sheik in place with a firm stare. "Are you sure you're up for this?" he asked.

Sheik stared back. "Yes," he said.

"Really?" Link asked. "I know there's no point in telling you to go back, but I want you to take one last look at the state you're in. Are you absolutely certain that you're able to take on Ganondorf with a broken hand, broken ribs and most likely the concussion of the century?"

"Or millennium," Sheik said jokingly, though it died as soon as it came out of his mouth. He sighed. "Yes, Link, I am absolutely certain. And even if I wasn't, I would still go."

"Right," Link said, turning back around and began ascending the stairs again. "As long as you're sure."

"You're being awfully mature about this," Sheik said as he caught up with him.

"I think I've just realised how stubborn you really are."

"Congratulations."

"Thanks."

There were a lot of steps. Too many, really, and they were really steep. They were both sweating and panting within minutes of their conversation. Link suddenly paused again, cupping a hand to his ear. Sheik had noticed it too.

"Do you hear that?" Link asked.

"The music?" Sheik said. "Yes."

There was indeed music being played somewhere above them. A large organ of some sort, by Sheik's estimate. The melody was sinister, not out of place considering where they were and what they were embarking on. The two shared a look as they walked, the music growing louder and louder…

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 140**

* * *

There was something special about the feeling you got when lying flat out in the rubble of a collapsed building. A certain…serenity that only the ringing of one's ears can produce. At some point or another, it had begun to rain, and the feeling of muddy, bloody water soaking into your clothes and skin was almost starting to feel comfortable.

But just almost. Myde blinked, realising what the hell he was doing and sat up, looking around. There were bodies everywhere, Remnant and Legion alike. Few of them had died fighting. Something was running down his cheek. He wiped at it, found that it was blood. His blood. Then the headache hit him, nearly causing him to cry out. His head felt like it had been split in two. Given the current situation, he wouldn't be surprised if it was. His tunic was in tatters, more rags than anything. He ripped it off, snarling as his hand bumped into something. It was a rafter. Its edge was buried deep in the ground, inches from where his head had been.

Something creaked above him, making him look up. A legion soldier, impaled on a broken beam, was dangling in the air, the wood holding him afloat looking ready to break. Myde slowly moved out from beneath it, feeling his head at the same time. There was a deep gash just past his forehead, close to his head fin.

"What happened?" he mumbled to himself. He moved underneath what little remained of the building's ceiling, sheltering himself from the rain that was starting to worsen.

The building had collapsed, that much he knew. But when? And how? They had been charging through the improvised tunnel the Gorons had created, fighting their way through pockets of legion soldiers who still weren't ready to give up and surrender. He had exchanged a few words with Ayla, and then everything had gone to hell.

"Ayla," Myde said, looking around. Where was she? She had been right beside him when the building went, hadn't she? She was not among the bodies surrounding him or piling up against a wall. It was difficult to see, the impenetrable darkness that had fallen over Castle Town effectively blinding him for everything that was more than a few feet away. Where were all the torches? Probably extinguished by the rain and collapse.

His hand went for his sword, wanting to see if he still had it. Pain lanced through the limb, this time making him cry out. He crouched down, holding painful arm with the other, probing at it with his fingers. Broken. He cursed under his breath. Why hadn't he noticed it before?

Sighing, he stood up again and tried to get his bearings. There were no windows, and what remained of the doorways had been smashed to pieces by the weight of the building above it. He located what he estimated was the place where the tunnel had run through the building and began to clear away the rubble. It was slow going with only one arm available, but the tunnel entrance appeared eventually.

It had partially collapsed from what he could see, but what other options did he have? It was either that, or waiting for the house to eventually crush him. There was one positive thing about it, though, he thought as he lay prone and began to crawl inside the tunnel, scratching himself on a broken plank and the water began to pour into the tunnel. At least he wouldn't get dehydrated.

* * *

The music grew louder and louder as they walked up the stairs. It was a sinister tune, which only seemed to get darker and darker the farther along the chord progression the player got. Sheik had never heard anything like it before, not even while playing some Sheikah funeral dirges he had found in Impa's house one day. While the dirges were sad, mournful and made for uneasy listening, the tune he was listening to right now was just…frightening. And it made him angry.

 _Not only does he corrupt the land and kill its people,_ he thought. _Ganondorf is also destroying music!_ To Sheik, music was one of the things he had always been able to comfort himself with during the long years between the outbreak of the war and Link's awakening. And now he would be remembering this perversion every time he picked up his lyre.

"You alright?" he heard Link ask next to him. "You've stopped walking."

Sheik looked up and realised that Link was at least five steps ahead of him. He hadn't even noticed that he had paused. Shaking his head, he caught up with Link. "I'm fine. The music…disconcerts me, that is all."

"Yeah, it's pretty scary," Link said, childish honesty shining from his face. "If I were alone here…I don't think I'd be able to go on."

"Why not?" Sheik asked, raising an eyebrow, once again forgetting that the cuts on his face would not allow such an action without a healthy dose of pain along with it, which he took in stride.

"I don't know," Link admitted, shrugging. "I just think I'd reach this far, and then stop. I don't know if it's the music, the tower itself or these horrible carpets, but…no, I wouldn't be able to. But since I've got you by my side…you…er…you…"

"I fill you with confidence?" Sheik asked, trying to help Link finish his sentence. At the Hero's nod, Sheik smiled and laid a hand on his shoulder. "You do the same with me."

They continued. Eventually, they reached the top of the staircase and were confronted by the same kind of simply designed door that was on the other floors as well. Putting his ear to the door, Sheik realised that it was not from the room beyond the music was coming, but they were getting close. He could hear voices, however. Male voices.

"Hear something?" Link asked.

"Someone's talking," Sheik answered. "About…Ganondorf being a prick, apparently."

"Allies?" the Hero said, eyes lighting up at the prospect of more backup.

"I doubt it." Sheik stood back, drawing his blade. He was getting more used to fighting with something heavy in his left hand now. "I think you should prepare for a fight."

"No problem," Link said, bracing himself. "Stand back."

Sheik stepped aside, letting Link's boot speak for itself. The door more or less exploded, showering splinters of wood into the room within. The Hero was through less than a second alter, the Sheikah hot on his heels.

There was much confusion among the small group of legion soldiers who had gathered in the room within. They shouted and cursed at each other, trying to find out what was going on. When Link burst into the room and hacked one of them to death, they realised what had happened and tried to mobilise against the flurry of strikes that Link had suddenly become, his sword barely leaving one soldier's body before cutting into the next.

There were eight of them, Sheik counted. Six by the next fifteen seconds. He slid Kazuya's tip between a man's armour plates, giving him a hearty kick which sent him tumbling backwards, exposing the man's neck. A quick slice, and the man was bleeding to death, his throat cut. He noticed someone approaching from behind, crouched down and swung out his foot. It caught the unarmoured soldier behind his shin and tripped him up. His face slammed into the stone floor, where he lay without moving.

"Gah!" Link shouted suddenly. One of the soldiers standing behind him had gashed his shoulder, which bled profusely. Sheik was about to help the Hero, but Link didn't need it. He threw his elbow backwards, catching the soldier under his chin, lifting him slightly off the floor before stabbing the Master Sword into his stomach. The man fell, clutching his middle, moaning.

That left three.

They stared at Link and Sheik, holding their blades up fearfully. They were young, barely older than the lovers, probably conscripted into defending Ganondorf with their lives. They were not especially enthusiastic about the idea, apparently, as one of them dropped his weapon and fell to his knees. The other two looked ready to do the same.

"Your master is going to die no matter what you do," Link said, surprising Sheik with the coldness of his voice. "If you want to live, I suggest you get the hell out of our way." He jerked his head in the direction of the door. "No one will stop you."

The one on his knees looked relieved, but the other two seemed sceptical. "How do we know you won't kill us?" one asked.

"Because if you _don't_ get out of our way, we will _definitely_ kill you," Link answered.

They considered the odds. And ran. Link and Sheik watched them practically fight each other to be the first one out of the room. Apparently, one of them tripped and fell down the stairs judging by the grunts and thumps that followed.

"Huh," Link said, sheathing his weapon.

"They were so young," Sheik said.

"Notice something different about this room?" Link asked suddenly, looking around.

Sheik looked around as well. "There's a big metal pillar in the room, the floor is covered in some sort of rubber-like material and there are no torches," he said. There was also a big, iron-grated doorway on one end of the room, through which a cold wind blew and the sound of rain could be heard. _This must lead to one of the walkways outside,_ Sheik thought.

"Exactly," said Link. "That must mean we're getting close."

He was most likely right. The music had grown quite loud now, the floor and walls shaking slightly with the deep notes. By Sheik's ear, he estimated that the music was coming from the room just above this one.

"Come on!" Link shouted from the doorway he had found on the other side of the room. "There's more stairs here!"

They ascended this new staircase, which was covered in a regal red carpet with white trimmings, reminiscent of ermine. At the top, a doorway waited for them. But this was completely different to the ones further down the tower. It was massive. Elegant, luxurious and complicated designs had been carved into the wood, resembling what must have been Ganondorf's triumphant battles against the Remnant over the years.

 _More like massacres,_ Sheik thought bitterly. The designs all came together to form a gigantic Lion's mouth which surrounded the door itself. It was probably there to intimidate whoever was invited inside and scare away anyone who wasn't. He heard Link give a sigh and gave him a concerned look.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah," Link said, trying to plaster a fake grin on his face. "I just…heh, I just half-expected there to be another huge padlock on it, or something. That would really piss me off, heh."

"You're nervous," Sheik stated. "Don't be."

"Easy for you to say," Link said. "You don't have the fate of an entire kingdom—the entire _world_ —on your shoulders."

"Perhaps not, but I know that you are more than capable of handling it."

"…is that supposed to comfort me?"

"I tried…"

"…thanks."

* * *

It was a wonder he wasn't dead already. After numerous snags, scrapes and an endless amount of cave-ins behind him, Myde had finally reached the end of the destroyed buildings. He pulled himself out of the tunnel, hearing the familiar creaking sound as it threatened more death and destruction to _anyone_ who dared to even look at it. He was about to turn around when he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. He spun around, ready to take the offender's head off with his arm fin, but stopped when the face of a worried Gerudo girl came into view. She held a finger in front of her lips, begging him to stay silent.

He nodded, and she waved for him to follow her. Even though it still stood, this buildings was not in much better shape than the previous one. The Gerudo led him forward, crawling underneath any open windows along the way, pulling Myde down with her.

The floor was covered in the bodies of dead legion soldiers and a couple of Remnant ones. At least not everyone had been caught in the chaos of the collapsing building. He hoped, oh how he hoped, that Ayla had managed to get away as well. The Gerudo headed up a flight of stairs. A large hole had been blown in the wall upstairs, giving them a view of the adjacent building, where a window had been broken. The girl made him stay at the top of the stairs and crept forward, leaning out of the wall and looked in the direction of the tower. Nodding to herself, she jumped, easily clearing the small gap between the buildings. She then motioned for Myde to jump with urgent hand gestures. He did so, almost tripping over a brick as he ran towards the hole.

In the air, he noticed the reason for why they had to stay silent. There were legion soldiers all over the square outside, carrying torches and looking through windows and doors. The icy-cold rain made their breaths steam. He felt the impact of his landing in his arm, which stung. He clamped a hand over his mouth, covering up his pained moan. The girl, confident that he wouldn't give them away, continued to lead him downstairs. There were Remnants everywhere, hiding behind corners, underneath windows, inside cupboards. The girl pointed him towards a single person sitting under a window that gave them a clear view of the artillery tower. He recognised her immediately.

"Ayla," he whispered, quietly joining her position.

She looked at him with a smile. "I knew you were okay," she said, though it sounded more like a mantra she had repeated to reassure herself. "I didn't find you after the chaos, but I was sure you were okay."

"What happened?" Myde asked.

"Bastards hit us with a catapult volley," Ayla said, hissing and pointing at the tower. They were in the building that was directly adjacent to the tower now, though the distance seemed far greater than it had done while planning the charge. "Took out over half our troops. Hell, they didn't even care that they were hitting their own."

"Which kills your theory about honour among mercenaries," Myde said jokingly.

"Hey, what happened to your arm?" she asked.

"Broken," he answered. "No idea how."

"Clumsy," she chided him. "But it doesn't really matter. We're stuck here. With the patrols and torches, there's no way we can sneak across to the tower. And we're too few to mount a charge."

"So what do we do?" Myde asked.

"What _can_ we do?" Ayla countered. "If we do anything, we will be slaughtered. I suppose we could try to make a distraction to draw their attention away from this exact place, but it would still take too long for any of us to make it to the tower itself." She was holding Vorpheus' explosive, rolling it between her fingers. "Guess I'm not much of a strategist, huh?"

"Don't blame yourself," Myde said, moving a little closer to her, close enough to feel her body heat. "I would have done the same if I came up with the idea. It was a sound plan, but the legion's lack of honour and loyalty ruined it."

"Thanks," Ayla said. "But I still got a lot of people killed."

"I'm sure they don't blame you for it," Myde said, looking at the faces around them. None of them were hostile towards the Gerudo. He sighed. "As for what we can do…well, it seems we either have to wait until we're rescued, or…"

"…or?"

"Or wait until the Remnant mount another attack on the tower and use that to our advantage."

"Even if they did attack, I don't think we can run fast enough to come within reach of the tower," Ayla said, shaking her head sadly.

"Who says you have to get close to the tower?" Myde asked, looking at the explosive ball.

"What do you mean?"

"How good is your aim?"

* * *

"You know what would be just our luck," Link said as he and Sheik grabbed hold of the massive door, preparing to open it.

"No," Sheik said. "What?"

"If this door was locked from the inside."

"…what is it with you and locks, Link?"

"I don't know, to be honest. I guess I'm just so used to them by now that I'm seeing them everywhere."

Sheik had to suppress a grin. Link was a person who could go through mood swings faster than anyone he had ever known. "That doesn't sound healthy," he said.

"Blame the temples, that's all I say."

"Take it up with the Sages once we're done here."

A silence fell over them as they stared at each other with their hands on the door. Link let go and scratched his neck, giving Sheik an embarrassed grin.

"We're really procrastinating here, aren't we?" he asked.

"Very much so, Hero," Sheik said. "But that's understandable, isn't it?"

"Understandable, maybe, but not acceptable," Link said, once again taking hold of the door. "It's time."

"Are you ready?"

"Yeah. Are you?"

"Yes."

"Then here we go."

They pulled. The door seemed to resist for a few seconds, but then budged, swinging outwards in a wide arc. Slowly, Link and Sheik went around the door and looked inside the chamber within.

There were a lot of windows. The entire room except the floor seemed to be composed mainly of stained glass windows, all depicting some "major" triumph of Ganondorf's, much like the door. The floor was covered in tiles, creating a mosaic of the Evil King himself on his steed, the midnight-black, red-eyed horse Sheik had seen a few times before. Nothing could be seen through the windows. But that was not what caught their attention.

Ganondorf was at the other end of the room, sitting in front of a gigantic organ the likes of which neither of them had ever seen. The noise level was unbearable, their eardrums threatening to shatter at any moment. Above the organ, suspended in mid-air, was Zelda, still trapped inside the large crystal, her unblinking eyes staring at nothing. The rage that filled Sheik upon seeing it almost made him charge at the man right then and there, and the Delta Force seemed to agree, itching slightly, as if egging him on. Link was glaring at the display and breathing heavily. At least Sheik's reaction wasn't irrational.

The music stopped. Ganondorf lifted his hands off the keys to the organ and slowly stood up and turned around, his long, red cloak billowing. His black armour gleamed, sharp and deadly. A large gem set in a golden circlet shone on his forehead. An arrogant smile displaying his sharp teeth was on his face.

Sheik felt his lips curl back, revealing his teeth in a snarl. How he wanted to pounce on the man and rip his throat out—

"The Triforce parts are resonating…they are combining into one again," Ganondorf said, raising his hand, showing the Triforce of power glowing through his gauntlet. Sheik noticed that Link and Zelda's pieces were doing the same…along with the Delta Force. Ganondorf took a step forward, the insufferable grin still on his face. "The two Triforce parts I could not capture on that day seven years ago…and the added bonus of the fourth piece that completes the puzzle. I did not expect they would be hidden within you three! And now, finally, all the Triforce parts have gathered here!"

"And we're taking yours away from you," Link said, looking at his own Triforce piece.

"Heh…heh…heh," Ganondorf chuckled. "You've got guts, kid, I'll give you that. No wonder the Triforce of Courage chose you as its wielder. And you," he said, looking at Sheik, "I'm surprised you survived my torture chamber and Hatra's treatment. He was getting sloppy, I admit, but you taught him a lesson about it, I suspect. The Delta Force chose a tenacious one."

Sheik winced at the mention of Hatra's name. He didn't even have to look at Link to know that the Hero was staring at him in confusion.

"And your princess…heh…heh…heh," Ganondorf said, looking back up at the crystal. "Wise and foolish—self-contradiction at its best. For seven years she has eluded my capture, but one mistake, and she—and the Triforce of Wisdom—was mine, and she dragged you two along with her. I would be questioning her _wisdom_ if I were you." He paused, looking at them expectantly. Sheik dared not look at Link. He couldn't be distracted. Not now. "What is this?" Ganondorf asked, his grin widening. "No clever remarks or comebacks? No witty, biting sarcasm to throw in my face? No brave, but foolish, claim of power and victory? My, my, have you both grown up so fast?"

"Why?" Link asked suddenly. Sheik tried to resist, but finally gave up and looked at him. The Hero was glaring at Ganondorf, his face set in stone, muscles barely moving as his mouth moved. "Why did you do all this? Why did you steal the Triforce?"

Ganondorf seemed amused by the question, chuckling for a bit before clenching his fist. "Power. Pure and simple. The power of the Goddesses, the power to make and unmake this world as I see fit. Who could possibly resist such a thing?"

"And damn all the people you hurt on your way?" Link asked quietly. He was angry. More than angry, he was livid, furious… _affronted_. "The thousands of people you have killed? The land you have corrupted?"

"Mere stepping stones on my way to true power," Ganondorf said offhandedly, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. "What do a few lives mean when I will be the ruler of the world? Billions will be looking to me for mercy…and I will grant them that, in exchange for unwavering loyalty and subservience." He slowly drew his sword. It was black, covered in serrated edges and looked every bit as evil as its owner. "I must admit…I admire your courage, kids. Coming all the way up here, fighting your way through my guards and monsters, stepping inside my sanctum as if it was yours…I am impressed."

"Surrender, Ganondorf," Sheik said, knowing the man would refuse. Zelda had always been a believer in forgiveness, even though not even she could go against Guilden's sentence. But Ganondorf… "You army has been defeated, your hold on this city is slipping…if you give up now and relinquish the Triforce of Power, the Sages might be lenient and forgiving…"

"Heh…heh…heh… Nice try, Sheikah, but trust me, the loss of the Legions is inconsequential to me. If they were too weak to repel your pathetic Remnant army, then they were not worth the gold and rupees I threw at them. No, I will not give up the Triforce of Power, and I will not surrender. You cannot defeat me, little boy."

"You can't defeat _us_!" Link countered, raising his hand and displaying his Triforce piece. "We have _two_ parts! You only have one!"

Something seemed to snap inside the Gerudo male, his stance suddenly freezing. His eyes seemed to grow darker, the grin turning into an angry snarl. "These toys are too much for you…" he growled. "I command you return them to me!" he shouted, holding his hand out. Dark light streamed out of it, washing over Link and Sheik as a dark tide. It hit them and pushed them slightly back.

"Don't give in!" Sheik shouted over the white noise. "The Triforce protects us!"

"Sheik!" Link screamed back. "Let's do this!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 141**

* * *

The waves of darkness were strong. For every step they took forward, they were pushed back another two. Sheik felt Link's hand on his shoulder, pushing him forward. They couldn't hear each other's words over the roar of Ganondorf's powers, but they could feel the intent, the meaning. Encouragement, enlivenment—even _cheer_. They both knew that if they gave in to this, the battle would be over before it even started.

The Delta force burned, seemingly screaming for the Evil King's blood. He felt his broken fingers instinctually clench in response to the pain, which only made it worse. Something popped into place, and the pain grew intesified. He clenched his jaw, using the pain, using the anger to push himself forward, assisted by Link who seemed to have developed a way of propulsion by leaning forward and mindlessly plodding ahead.

And all the while, Ganondorf laughed, his rough voice slicing through the noise as easily as a hot knife through butter. The room was growing darker, the waves extinguishing every source of light. They continued pushing forwards, finally making headway. They were halfway across the room when they were suddenly pushed backwards again, Ganondorf increasing the output of whatever spell he was using.

Link came up beside Sheik; hand still on the his shoulder, his other hand clutched around something Sheik couldn't see. He said something, but his words were lost in the waves. With what seemed to be a loud roar, he hurled whatever it was at Ganondorf, who looked surprised at their sudden proximity. His expression quickly changed into an evil grin again, however, as he saw them struggling to just stay on their feet. He laughed. He laughed so much that he paid no attention to the tiny crystal that was, miraculously, not caught by the waves. He noticed it too late.

Din's Fire exploded in his face and sent him flying backwards, crashing into the organ and sending parts of it flying through the room, the keys clattering to the floor. The waves of darkness stopped, leaving Link and Sheik to stumble forwards as they tried to regain their balance and bearings in the now significantly darker room. Only the weak light from outside the windows allowed them to see now—and it was not much.

With a sad, final cough, the organ broke under Ganondorf's weight, more or less falling apart. The Evil King growled as he tried to free himself from the bent metal pipes and wooden wreckage, his legs flailing about. Sheik would have laughed at the ridiculousness of the sight, had it not been for…well, the situation at hand. Link drew his sword and shield, and Sheik drew Kazuya, both sprinting towards the broken organ, hoping to reach it before—

Ganondorf roared as he used magic to propel himself out of the wreckage, the resulting air pressure sending the pitiful remains of the instrument exploding out the window behind him. He landed on his feet, his cloak tearing off in mid-air, already raising his sword for a strike. Link took it, the Mirror Shield almost buckling under the sheer weight of the Gerudo's blow. The Hero groaned, stumbling backwards. Ganondorf's foot caught him in the chest, knocking the air out of his lungs and sent him crashing to the floor. Sheik reached him one second later.

He angled his blade at one of the joints in Ganondorf's armour, hoping to the Goddesses that he didn't miss. But the Evil King was quicker and more agile than his frame and armour should have permitted and spun out of the way of Kazuya's tip, slamming the pommel of his sword into Sheik's stomach. He fell to his knees, gasping for breath and fighting the urge to vomit.

Ganondorf circled them as they slowly picked themselves up from the floor, chuckling to himself.

"Heh…heh….heh…so this is the legendary strength and skill the Hero of Time is supposed to possess? A single kick and you go down? Pathetic." He stopped at Link's prone form, the Hero trying to regain his ability to breathe. He glared up at Ganondorf, which only served to amuse the Gerudo. "You're a brave kid, I'll give you that, but if this is all you have to offer, I'm afraid the Goddesses made a mistake in entrusting you with the Triforce of Courage." He bent down to Link's level, looking into his eyes. "Surrender, kid, and give me the Triforce, and I _might_ just let you live. You, _and_ your friend, the Sheikah…"

"Screw you," Link choked out and slammed his forehead into Ganondorf's nose. As the Gerudo stumbled backwards, he got to his feet and attacked, Master Sword slicing through the air in a flurry. Ganondorf dodged most of the attacks, his speed still surprising Sheik and Link.

Growling, Ganondorf brought his sword to bear, blocking Link's strike, the serrated edge catching the blade. With a twist, Ganondorf disarmed the Hero and sent the Master Sword flying through the air. It clattered to the floor somewhere behind Sheik, who was finally able to breathe without feeling like he was going to throw up at any second. With a groan, he quickly crawled his way to the fallen blade, which was barely visible save for its glinting edge. Letting go of Kazuya, he gripped the Master Sword's handle and turned back to the fight.

"Hah!" Ganondorf exclaimed at Link, who was backing away with only his shield left to protect him. "What are you going to do now, O Hero of Time?"

Sheik almost grinned despite himself. It was such an invitation to problems, that line. His feet barely made a sound as he ran across the room, making sure Link caught sight of him and what he was carrying before he jumped at Ganondorf's back. He managed to scrape the blade against the Evil King's cheek before the man whirled around, ready to impale him. Twisting out of the way, Sheik tossed Link's sword back to him. The Hero caught it, yelling his thanks.

"You little runt!" Ganondorf said, focusing on Sheik now despite the fully armed, legendary hero behind him. The Gerudo was fast—frighteningly so—but Sheik was just a bit faster, managing to twist and dodge his way out of the sword's way. He backflipped, rolled and jumped. He had never been forced to rely on his skills like this before. He heard Link give his battle cry as he began attacking again, but Ganondorf easily knocked him aside with a ball of what seemed to be compressed air, fired at the Hero almost absentmindedly. Link cried out in pain as he hit the floor again, causing Sheik to break his concentration—

His feet were swept out from beneath him by the flat edge of Ganondorf's sword. He landed right on his hip, sending shards of pain all the way up his side. He saw something flash above him and barely managed to move his head out of the way of the sword point that buried itself into the mosaic floor, cracking the delicately laid tiles. He tried to roll out of the way for the follow-up attack, but found himself held in place by Ganondorf's massive boot on his chest, cutting off his air supply _yet again_.

"Too slow," Ganondorf said, the shadows of the stained glass window next to them falling upon his face menacingly, and pulled his sword out of the floor. "It's time to end this cat and mouse game of ours, don't you agree?" Sheik heard his armour plates clacking together as he placed both hands on his sword handle and prepared to plunge it into him. "Die!" he shouted, sword plunging downwards.

"No!" Link's voice shouted. He came out of nowhere, barrelling into Ganondorf from the side and sent the Evil King off of Sheik. He left the Gerudo no opening, pinning Ganondorf's sword downwards by the same serrated edge that had stolen his blade from him, rearing his shield back. With another battle cry, Link smacked the shield into Ganondorf's face and kicked him in the chest.

With an angered scream, Ganondorf tripped backwards and crashed through the window, disappearing over the edge.

"Get up!" Link screamed and jumped through the window, following the Evil King.

"Link!" Sheik exclaimed, racing to the edge and looking out. The ledge just outside the window was covered in tiles and sloped downwards, leading down to a large, balcony-like landing, an extension of the fortress' rooftop. The glow of the boiling lava and the burning Castle Town illuminated the fortress' exterior. Sheik could just barely see the form of Ganondorf struggling to upright himself on the landing below, Link already racing towards him.

Sheik quickly retrieved Kazuya and—with one last look at the still-suspended crystal containing Zelda—jumped. He slid down the tiles, clearing the small gap that separated the landing from the tower and landed on his feet, sprinting towards the two combatants. Link was knocked back by a massive blow from Ganondorf, and would have fallen if Sheik hadn't steadied him up.

"Thanks," Link said. He was bleeding from a cut over his eye, and he looked rather out of it.

"You…brats…" Ganondorf said slowly, limping backwards towards the edge. His left arm was bent at an unnatural angle, having probably broken upon landing. "It seems…that it is time…to stop playing." With a grunt, he hurled his sword off the edge, into the courtyard far below. "Let's see how you deal with true magic…heh…heh…heh…" his chuckles grew into a full-blown laugh, his voice echoing throughout the fortress.

Slowly, he began to levitate, lifting off the landing and floating slightly above them. Still laughing, he held out a hand. The telltale crackle of thousands of volts of electricity filled the air, and arcs ran along his fingers before a massive ball formed in his hand. Without warning he hurled it at Link and Sheik, who threw themselves to the sides.

The ball crashed into the roof, exploding violently. Tiles were flung everywhere, and the air smelled of ozone. Sheik looked up just in time to dodge a tile that surely would have bisected him had he not moved. He made sure Link was okay before looking back at Ganondorf. He was already forming another ball of lightning in his hand, grinning wickedly at them.

 _We didn't think this entirely through,_ Sheik thought.

* * *

The worst part of it all was probably that the red-haired bastard was enjoying it so much. His roaring laughter could probably have been heard miles away along with the muffled booms of the lightning that was slowly, but surely, taking his own fortress apart.

"You know," Link yelled as he dodged another ball, "this is really unfair!"

"What gives—gah!—you that idea?" Sheik asked. "The lightning, the flying or the fact that we can't even get close to him?"

"How about all three?"

They huddled behind what seemed to pass for a chimney, earning a temporary respite from the power mad Gerudo.

"What the hell do we do now?" Link asked, glaring at the crudely laid bricks of the chimney.

"Good question," Sheik replied, looking at the glowing mark on his hand. The Delta Force hadn't stopped burning at all. If anything, the pain was growing even worse, and it seemed to be spreading to his fingers. He tried to move one. A snapping sound and an intense pain told him it was not a good idea. He sighed and looked at Link. "I thought this was your area of expertise."

"Sheik, I'm not an expert at _anything_ ," Link said, glaring at him. "What gave you that idea?"

"I don't know, to be quite honest. I just figured that you would know what to do, being a hero and all…"

" _Don't_ start with me!"

" _Duck!"_

Sheik was barely able to push Link aside and roll away before the chimney exploded in a rain of mortar and bricks, showering them with heavy, and _very_ deadly pieces of masonry.

"What's wrong, Hero?" Ganondorf's mocking voice boomed. "You came here to fight, yet you hide like a cowardly dog! What a disappointing opponent you are!"

"Give me a damn chance, you bastard!" Link shouted from somewhere. Sheik felt a bit disorientated and his head was spinning from the blast. He stumbled across the roof tiles, trying to figure out which way was up.

"Sheik, over here!" Link's voice suddenly said, having moved quite a bit away from where he had heard it last. He felt the Hero grab his arm and pull him along, making him feel like some sort of ragdoll, a feeling which was only strengthened when he was all but tossed behind another of the crude chimneys. "What's the matter with you?" Link asked, panting.

"Dizzy," he answered truthfully.

"I _knew_ I shouldn't have let you come," the Hero said, growling to himself. "He's not even _moving_ from that damn spot."

"Why would he? It gives him a perfect view of the whole roof," Sheik said, ignoring the comment. For once, he was agreeing. Why _had_ he insisted on coming along? He wasn't exactly contributing at the moment.

 _Damn me and my pride,_ he thought bitterly.

"And that _laugh_ ," Link continued, eyes narrowing. "Oh, what I wouldn't give to bring him down a peg or two…"

It was only by chance that Sheik happened to glance at Link at that moment. His eyes landed on the sturdy bow on his back and the full quiver which, by some miraculous intervention, had not lost a single of the deadly projectiles.

"Link…" Sheik said, pointing at the bow and arrows.

"I _hate_ magic," Link said, seemingly oblivious to Sheik's indications. "And how come _I_ don't get to use it?"

 _What was Din's Fire, then?_ Sheik wondered. Growing sick of trying to subtly hint Link about his own damn weapons, he poked the Hero hard in the shoulder, demanding his attention. "Your bow, Hero. Thought about using it yet?" he said.

"Huh?"

"Your bow. It goes _twang_ and fires deadly, deadly arrows at the enemy."

Link gave Sheik a look that clearly told him to shut the hell up and equipped the bow, sliding one of the heavy-looking Light Arrows out of the quiver.

"One of these?" he asked.

"I suppose."

"…you could be a bit more helpful, you know."

" _You're_ the Hero, remember?"

"And you're supposed to help me."

"…you know, with the time you've wasted yelling at me, you could have hit him between the eyes, right?"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 142**

* * *

"Did you hear that?" Myde asked.

"Hear what?" Ayla said.

"The laughter."

"What lau—wait, now I hear it. Who is that?"

"I don't know, but I don't like the sound of it, come on."

They crawled their way through the ruined buildings. The angle from where they had been hiding had been too awkward for their plan to work, so they had been forced to relocate. The going was slow, both because of the fear of the buildings collapsing on top of them and the fact that legion soldiers were patrolling around the square, looking through the broken windows and doors.

At this point they seemed to be heading up a broken staircase, slowly climbing towards a hole in the ceiling through which light from the torches in the square shone. Myde did his best with his broken arm, but had to take a rest every few minutes to recover from the ache. He couldn't even remember why he had come along—Ayla could easily have done this by herself.

Because you're worried about her, an annoying voice in the back of his head kept saying. Because you like her.

He shook his head and grabbed the next ledge, pulling himself up by his healthy arm. Ayla waited above, standing by to help him should he need it.

"You alright?" she whispered, looking at him worriedly. "Maybe you should go back…"

"Nonsense," he replied, glaring at his useless, broken limb. "I've been through worse."

"For some reason, I don't believe you," Ayla said, shaking her head and reaching down. "Here, take my hand and I'll pull you up for a bit."

"I can do this by myself, thank you very much."

"Don't be ridiculous. You're going to exhaust yourself, loose your grip, fall and impale yourself on some piece of wood if you continue like this. Now grab my damn hand."

Grudgingly, Myde braced himself against the wall of debris they were climbing on and reached up with his still-functioning arm. Ayla grabbed his hand and pulled, doing a remarkable job of steadying herself and more or less lifting Myde up at the same time. Just how strong was this girl anyway?

"See? Was that so horrible?" Ayla asked, grinning at him. He glared back. "Aw, did the tiny little desert woman humiliate the fishie?" she said in a baby voice. "Did I hurt your masculine pride?"

Don't give in, he repeated mentally. Don't give in.

"Can we just get a move on?" he said after a few seconds. "I'd rather get this battle over with as soon as possible."

"Suit yourself, fishie," Ayla said and continued to climb.

"And stop calling me fishie."

"Right you are, trouty."

"Grrr…"

* * *

"And hold…press hard there to stop the bleeding…hm, you're quite good at this, kid."

"Uh…thanks," Hatra said, smiling nervously at the medic who had more or less manhandled him into helping him with a patient. His chest hurt like there was no tomorrow, and breathing made it feel like someone was sticking pins and needles into his lungs, but here he was—helping the enemy. No, not the enemy anymore.

The medic—a thin, wiry individual who looked to be living more on his nerves than anything else—smiled at him and took hold of the compress. "Thanks, that's all I needed you to do. You should talk to Kaura about a possible apprenticeship if you're interested in medicine."

"Waiting until the battle is over would probably be a good idea, though," Hatra said.

"Heh, good idea indeed. Wouldn't want to upset her, after all," the medic said, his face turning nervous as he probably recalled some time or another he had accidentally angered the purple-haired physician. "She's quite scary when she's mad," he added.

"I know," Hatra said, turning back to the pile of bandages and other supplies he had left on top of a conveniently placed crate in the field. He and Tao had been running all over the place with piles like this. Everyone seemed to run out of this or that at the exact same time, resulting in a lot of shouting and running—the running of course being limited to Tao, who wasn't struggling with what had previously been a very big hole in his chest. Speaking of Tao…

The boy was nowhere to be seen, which he found odd since Kaura had told the boy to keep an eye on him. Hatra looked around as he picked up the large pile and continued distributing the wares to those who needed it. He didn't really know what to make of the kid. There was a certain…discrepancy there. Sure, he looked like a little boy, but those eyes betrayed a far more mature personality, even though he acted the part quite well. It was a pity Tao couldn't speak, for Hatra was quite sure the little boy had some interesting stories to tell…

A distant boom told him that the battle still wasn't over, though it had calmed considerably. It was probably the artillery tower the Remnant were struggling with, he concluded. He had seen the thing being built. It was a like a whole little fortress in itself, filled to the brim with provisions, weapons and soldiers. If necessary, that tower could hold out for days, weeks—perhaps even months!

He nearly stumbled over a patient lying on a blanket in the dead grass, clutching what remained of her arm—a bandaged stump. The woman was wearing the armour of the royal army, and she looked up at him desperately.

"Please…something for…the pain," she pleaded, whimpering.

"I'm sorry," Hatra said, "I don't have anythi—"He paused, remembering that he had not been searched. He reached into his sleeve and pulled out the vial containing the same, painkilling potion he had given Sheik before they parted ways. He always kept a pair of them on his person, just in case. He dropped the pile of bandages and crouched down, uncorking the vial. "Listen, this is going to taste horrible, but it will definitely take away the pain," he said. "Do you trust me?"

The soldier nodded, her eyes locked on the vial. He helped her tilt her head back as he poured a few drops into her mouth. She swallowed, shuddering and gagging at the taste. For a minute, Hatra was worried that she was going to throw up, but when the gagging subsided, she was smiling—well, not _smiling_ , but the look of intense pain was gone, at least, her pupils dilated slightly. Had he mixed this one too strong?

"Thank…you," she said.

"You're welcome," Hatra said, smiling.

He continued passing out bandages and disinfectant until he ran out. As he headed towards the storage area to pick up more, he wondered where Tao had gone. The last he had actually seen of the boy was the tip of his ridiculous, green cap disappearing amongst a throng of people, on his way to a calling medic. After that, he had seemingly vanished.

Hatra moved the flap aside and entered the storage area—and froze. The storage area was almost empty now, most of the crates having been opened and removed. Only four or five large crates remained along with a four small ones. A lantern had been placed on the ground to light up the room, though it seemed to be running out of oil. But that wasn't what Hatra was looking at. Tao was sitting on one of the crates, glaring at him with an intensity such a young child should definitely _not_ have been able to summon, green eyes flashing in the flickering light.

"Oh, hi," Hatra said, unnerved by the anger the boy was projecting at him. "Er…where did you go? I thought Kaura told you to keep an eye on me, and…and…" he trailed off when Tao did not relent. "Is this about having to watch me? Are you angry about that?" he tried.

Tao shook his head and rolled his eyes, jumping down from the crate he was sitting on. He picked up more bandages and headed for the door, pausing by Hatra to hand him a small piece of folded paper. Then he was gone through the flap.

"What was that about?" Hatra whispered to himself as he unfolded the paper. There was writing on it. In crude, Hyrulian script, it was written:

_**You hurt Sheik. I hate you.** _

He stared at the paper for a few minutes before refolding it and placing it in his pocket. He sighed. He didn't deserve any less, he knew, but when a child like _that_ decides that he hates you, you've reached the bottom of the barrel.

I'll just have to prove that I'm done with hurting people, then, he thought, preparing another load of medical supplies.

* * *

"So this is going to work? Are you sure?" Link asked as he notched one of the Light Arrows. As if sensing its imminent launch, there was a faint glow in the centre of the crystal.

Sheik shook his head. "From what I've learned these past few months, Link, I can never be sure about anything. It _has_ to work; otherwise we are going to die up here, along with any hope of defeating Ganondorf."

"I don't like this plan," the Hero said as they both prepared to spring out from either side of the chimney. Ganondorf hadn't noticed _which_ one they had hidden behind and, given the rather impressive amount of chimneys on the roof, was currently destroying each and every one of them in rapid succession. They only had one shot at this. "I don't," he repeated.

"Does it look like I am any more in love with the plan than you?" Sheik asked, not deigning to look at the Hero. "Get ready…one…two…three… _now_!"

They ran in opposite directions, hoping to confuse the Evil King by presenting two targets at once. Link dove in behind another chimney just as the one they had hidden behind exploded into a million pieces, Ganondorf taking no chances. Sheik continued to run along the length of the roof, hoping to the Goddesses that he wouldn't trip over the many holes that had been blasted in it. Ganondorf's laugh bellowed across the roof as he was spotted and another lightning ball was prepared.

 _At least the first phase is going as planned,_ Sheik thought. He jumped, throwing himself out of the way of the ball, which sent pulverised remains of shingle and tiles raining upon him. Back on his feet, Sheik saw that Ganondorf was already preparing another ball—but by now it was too late for the king, surely. Sheik allowed himself a small grin as a bright light erupted on the other side of the roof, Link's silhouette appearing from behind a chimney. The Hero let the arrow fly. It streaked across the dark sky, carrying with it the hopes and dreams of freedom, the final ray that would vanquish evil from Hyrule forev—

"Hah!" Ganondorf whirled around and knocked the arrow out of the way with the bracer on his wrist. The Light Arrow, its crystal core broken, tumbled out of sight into the lava far below them. Sheik felt his stomach plunge. He hadn't expected the Gerudo to be _that_ fast. Ganondorf laughed as Link prepared another arrow, his face a mix of panic and frustration. Another bright light streaked towards Ganondorf, all too easily knocked aside again.

 _No…_ Sheik thought. _If the Light Arrows don't work…what do we do?_

"Shiny, expensive toys, children, nothing more," Ganondorf said, the ball of lightning winking out of existence in his hands. "But now that I've got you both in my sight…" He raised his arms—even the broken one—over his head, hands moving in a vague circle. The air began to feel colder, their ears popping as, slowly, a spot of complete blackness appeared within Ganondorf's hands, growing larger and larger and turning into a swirling mass as it absorbed the light around them. Sheik felt paralyzed, his legs refusing to move as something began to shine in the middle of the vortex. The Evil King screamed as he moved his hands away from the vortex, which immediately destabilised. Shining lights, each dragging what seemed to be a tail of sorts, erupted from the centre of the vortex, flying towards both Link and Sheik.

 _Move…move…MOVE!_ Sheik screamed in his head as his legs finally began to obey him. He sprinted across the roof, desperate to avoid this new devilry Ganondorf was throwing at them. The comet-like spheres weren't normal magic—they were actively following him. He lost sight of Link, who seemed to have been frozen in place as he dove forward, desperately tried to get out of the spheres' path. One of them collided with the roof where his foot had been one tenth of a second earlier. There was an ear-piercing shriek and a blinding light. Sheik felt himself being lifted off the ground and tossed away like a ragdoll, rolling along the roof. Then he registered the pain—and screamed.

It felt like liquid fire had been smeared all over his body, burning and scorching him beyond all repair—like needles were being inserted into every nerve he possessed—like something was digging behind his eyes and stabbing at his brain.

He finally came to a stop, inches away from the edge of the roof. He groaned, trying to rise, but each movement was pure agony. To his surprise, he hadn't been burned at all—despite feeling like he had been dipped in molten lava—but was covered in cuts and scrapes from flying debris. The part of the roof he had been on was gone. The building had been cut neatly in half, a wide gorge separating his part of the roof from Link's—

_Oh, Goddesses, Link!_

* * *

The Hero groaned as he opened his eyes, seeing only the dark skies above. His ears felt like they had been filled with gauze, and every sound came in muffled. One of those glowing comets had hit him head-on. He remembered being tossed across the roof, but other than that…

His hand was still clutched around his bow, having learned a long time ago to never let go off his weapon no matter the situation—a lesson Ganondorf had so helpfully reaffirmed when disarming Link just minutes earlier.

"Heh…heh…heh…" Ganondorf chuckled, floating just ahead of him. "Did you enjoy the light show, Hero of Time? I hope so, for your end is nigh." The air crackled as a lightning ball formed in his hand—apparently his signature attack.

Link tried to crawl away, but his muscles refused to listen, leaving him to stare wide-eyed at Ganondorf.

"You had a good run, kid, but it's over now," the Evil King said, hurling the ball at Link.

It was by mere chance that the Hero's right hand clenched around the Master Sword's handle at that moment, and that—on pure reflex—he pulled it out of its sheath. Ganondorf's grin faded as he saw the blade come between his magic attack and Link, bouncing it right back at him. He choked on his laughter, desperately raising his hand to ward the attack away. He deflected it, its path heading for Link again.

But now the Hero of Time remembered the same thing that had happened at Lake Hylia with another magical opponent, and he knew what to do. Gritting his teeth and ignoring the aching and protesting muscles in his body, Link got to his feet, bow in one hand and sword in the other. With a yell of effort, he hit the ball with the Master Sword, sending it back to its creator once again.

* * *

Sheik ran. He jumped. None of his limbs seemed to want to cooperate right now, and he was relieved when he cleared the gorge. The vortex attack had cut off an entire piece of the floating island itself, the lava below glowing strongly.

Panting, he hurried towards Link and Ganondorf, seeing the crackling ball lightning going back and forth between them. It was a sight so bizarre that he had to stop and take it in.

 _What is this?_ he wondered. _A badminton game gone horribly wrong?_

But then he realised what was going on. Link was trying to hit Ganondorf with his own attack! If anything was going to work, then surely that was it! But the Evil King had recovered from his confusion now and was easily deflecting the lightning as it returned to him with no effort whatsoever. And Link seemed to be getting more and more fatigued, his entire form wobbling with each strike he sent back.

Clearly, there was only one thing to do. Running towards the combatants, Sheik snapped up a piece of tile and prepared to throw it. He only hoped his aim with his left hand was good enough. When he came within the appropriate distance and saw Link deflect the ball, he drew his arm back and threw the tile as hard as he could at Ganondorf, who was too busy concentrating on the lightning to notice the Sheikah. The tile smacked into the side of his head. Ganondorf cried out in pain, taking his eyes off the approaching ball of lightning. It struck him in the side, and Sheik could see the volts making their way through his body, causing it to shake and convulse like he was having a seizure. But he remained floating.

"Link!" Sheik yelled, "the Light Arrows, use the—"

Link had already notched another of the sacred arrows, and this one seemed to glow brighter than the first two. He let it fly.

It hit Ganondorf in the chest, enveloping the Evil King in a cocoon of pure white, his agonised scream cutting off half-way through. It disappeared, and Ganondorf landed shakily on his feet, looking dazed. Kazuya was already in Sheik's hand as he and Link rushed towards Ganondorf. The Gerudo saw them coming, and tried to steady himself, but nothing could prepare him for the onslaught that was Link and Sheik attacking with their swords in tandem. Sparks flew as the bracers on his arms blocked their strikes, still too groggy to keep up with them.

Back they pushed him, towards the edge of the roof. The two attackers made no sound apart from that of their breathing as they tried to break Ganondorf's defensive stance. Sheik could feel his heart beating faster than it had ever done before, feeling such exhilaration!

Seemingly recovering from his daze, Ganondorf began to grin again. He took a step backwards to brace himself against the attacks—

Except the foot hit nothing but air. Off-balance, he chanced a look behind him, seeing nothing but the empty courtyard far below. Eyes wide, he pushed forward.

The Master Sword and Kazuya buried themselves in his chest at that moment, the slender Sheikah blade finding a gap in his armour, the broad-bladed Master Sword just punching through the metal.

"Argh!" Ganondorf screamed, falling to his knees, breathing heavily as Link and Sheik withdrew their blades. Blood poured out of the wounds, staining the tiles beneath him. "The…great King Ganondorf…defeated by children?" He coughed, blood spilling from his mouth like a great torrent. He looked at the Hero, reaching out with a hand. "Link…!" His expression changed from shock to pure rage, eyes bulging. Growling, he shambled to his feet, looking up at the black sky. "I will _not_ accept this!"

The roof began to vibrate as Ganondorf seemed to be gathering what little magic remained in the area, concentrating it in his body. A great roar began in his stomach, growing mightier as it made its way upwards and through his mouth.

"Is this a good time to run?" Link asked as he and Sheik took several steps backwards.

"I believe so, yes," Sheik replied, already turning on his heels.

With a mighty crack, Ganondorf released the energy. They couldn't see what was happening, but when they were thrown off their feet by the blast, they got a pretty good idea. They were almost blown off the roof, tiles and plaster flying over their heads. Overhead, they heard the tower rumble threateningly as its foundations were being put to the test, almost breaking under the pressure.

Sheik reached out and grabbed hold of—something. He wasn't entirely sure what it was, dust getting in his eyes and ruining his vision, but didn't buckle under his weight, and that was good enough for him. He could only hope Link had found something similar.

And then it was over. The energy explosion subsided as soon as it had begun, silence descending upon them, a gentle, warm wind caressing them. Rubbing his eyes to get the dirt out, realising he had been holding on to a drainpipe, Sheik looked around, trying to find Link. The Hero was clinging to a piece of broken chimney jutting out of the roof, his eyes firmly shut.

"You can let go now, you know," he said, crouching down and smiling at Link as he carefully opened his eyes, blinking to focus on him.

"We won?" he asked.

Sheik glanced over at the place where Ganondorf had stood. He was gone. Vanished.

"It appears so," he said, grinning. "Congratulations, Link, you fulfilled your prophecy."

He helped Link up. For once, he was actually prepared for the tight embrace the Hero enveloped him in.

"We did it," Link said, almost crushing Sheik. "We did it!"

They parted, just staring at each other. It was so hard to believe that after so many years (months for Link), so much pain and suffering, it was finally over. The sense of elation and relief was impossible to describe, their chests swelling with so many emotions, so many—

Something creaked, and a shadow fell upon them.

The sense of elation disappeared.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 143**

* * *

They both lost track of time as they stood there, frozen and waiting for the death blow—the price of inattention. However, when the shadow did not move, only hung over them like a veil, Sheik thought he recognised a certain familiarity in it. It was lithe, clearly feminine, and that ponytail was not to be mistaken…

"A little help?" Zelda asked. "Or are you going to be staring at your feet for the rest of the day, or night or whatever time it is?" In the blink of an eye their paralysis was gone, and Link and Sheik turned around. Zelda was clinging to the brick wall, suspended above the slight gap between the tower and the rest of the fortress. She looked tired and just about ready to drop. "I can't vouch for the strength in my fingers for much longer," she said urgently.

"Why don't you just jump?" Link asked, his relief at seeing the princess again clear on his face. "It's not that long…"

"I would if it weren't for you two idiots occupying the only patch of still-tiled roof in the vicinity," Zelda said, looking at them over her shoulder with fake annoyance—she too was relieved, her voice betraying her. "Here I finally manage to dispel the crystal, and I find you two in my way…"

But Sheik had a feeling that either of them was more relieved than him. The knowledge that Ganondorf was gone—that he was finally dead after so long—was…it was impossible to describe. It felt like claws of doubt, fear and hate had finally let go of his chest, making it possible to breathe freely again. He found himself grinning stupidly as he and Link moved out of the way for the princess, who landed on the roof with the kind of grace only a Sheikah tutor like Impa could teach. She didn't even let them open their mouths before she hugged them both tightly, her arms wrapping around their necks like a vice.

"Thank you, thank you both," she whispered, letting them go after at least a full minute, looking at them with a smile that could melt the hearts of the staunchest of cynics and pessimists. Her eyes focused on Sheik immediately after, however, her smile fading just a bit. "I'm fairly certain I told you to go back to the camp, Sheik," she said.

"Well, I…" Sheik said, trailing off when he realised there was no way he could excuse himself for this.

"Why is it that you've been disobeying so many of my orders as of late?" she continued. "I mean, I'm glad you've finally started to show _some_ independence, but you only seem to do so whenever there's a chance of you getting hurt."

"She's right, you know," Link chimed in, seeing an opportunity to fluster his lover a little.

"I…" Sheik said, unable to find the words for the feelings he meant to express. "I…couldn't leave you behind like that, not after Ganondorf took you," he finished weakly, cursing his own inability to formulate a good reply. "My duty—"

She interrupted him with another smile. "Sheik, you don't need to apologise. I understand. We are going to have a serious discussion about this later, however, and I might just contact Impa as well."

He _felt_ the colour drain from his face as he imagined what his aunt would say about his recent escapades. She would be livid, furious… _upset_. It didn't bear thinking, it really didn't. He was about to stammer forth a desperate request for her to keep this between them, even though he knew his aunt had probably seen it all anyway.

"But that is for later," Zelda said, grinning. "Come on, you two," she said, "show me some smiles. It's over, we've _won_! Or, rather, _you've_ won, but the point still stands." She hugged them one more time before looking around. "Where is he?" she asked. "I want to see him."

"Last we saw of him he was standing on the ledge over there," Link said, pointing at the location where Ganondorf had launched his final, desperate attack that had been meant to take them all out at once.

Zelda took their arms and led them over to the ledge, careful to avoid any unstable patches of tiling and pitfalls on the way. The entire island had fallen deadly silent after Ganondorf's suicide attack, not even a wind blew. Something was niggling at Sheik's attention, but he couldn't for the life of him put a finger on it. Something was wrong, that much was obvious.

"Ganondorf…" Zelda said, staring over the ledge. Sheik and Link joined her. In the courtyard far below them, they could see the twisted and broken remains of what had once been the most powerful man in the land, his armour no more than a flattened piece of metal by the looks of it. "Pitiful man," she continued, "he could not fully control the Triforce of Power…"

Sheik heard Link give a small snort, clearly not agreeing with her on that point. But Sheik did. He hadn't noticed it during the battle—probably because he was too busy with trying not to get killed—but Ganondorf had seemed rather…unaccustomed to the magic he was wielding. By the time Link had figured out that the Master Sword could bounce his attacks right back to him, the man had been shaking slightly, as if the exertion was too much. But how was that possible when the man had had seven years to learn the intricacies of it? He shook his head, no point in dwelling on such things now—Ganondorf was dead, and that was all that mattered.

"Right," Zelda said, turning around, having finished gloating over her fallen enemy, "I suppose it is time we—"

"Wait, that's it?" Link asked incredulously.

"What's it?" Zelda said.

"That's all you have to say? 'He couldn't fully control…'? This is the man who has caused an endless amount of suffering, killed thousands—and all you have to say is that?" He turned back to the ledge and did something Sheik had never expected him to—he spat at the body below.

"Link, show the dead some respect," Sheik said, the very idea of saying this about Ganondorf giving him the creeps, but it had to be done. "It's over."

"Respect?" the Hero said, spitting again. "He doesn't deserve it!"

"Perhaps not, but that is not for us to decide," Zelda said diplomatically. "The Goddesses will judge him Link, in due time. For now, I think it best that we get off this island before it—"

She didn't have time to finish the sentence, for a large tremor began to shake the island, large cracks appearing in the foundations of the buildings. Several sections of the roof they stood on began to cave in. Zelda quickly motioned for them to get away from the edge.

"Just as I thought!" she called over the roar of the cataclysm around them. "His will was all that held it together. With Ganondorf dead, the entire island is falling apart!"

"We have to get off this thing!" Link said—rather unhelpfully as it was quite apparent that they needed to be anywhere but there at the moment.

"But how?" Sheik asked. "There aren't any stairs here and climbing the walls in these quakes—"

Link interrupted him by pointing at a hole in the roof, the one just below the tower—which had begun to shift rather dangerously now, its foundations already broken beyond repair. It looked just about ready to collapse, in fact. They ran towards the hole, Zelda and Sheik realising at the same time that the floor below was not that far down—a story at the most.

"We'll get out through there, surely!" Link yelled, not waiting for them to answer before jumping down. Sheik and Zelda stared at each other for a few seconds, shrugged and followed him.

Too late did they realise that the building was, in fact, on fire. The intense tremors had shaken several lit torches off their wall mounts, which had landed on the expensive carpets and tapestries, igniting them. Running through the acrid smoke, they coughed and hacked, their eyes tearing up. Sheik quickly lost his bearings, his eyes burning. How could Zelda and Link stand this?

The Hero seemed to know where he was going, luckily, taking lefts and rights as if he had a mental map of the place—which was rather odd since he, as far as Sheik knew, had never been in this part of the fortress.

"This way!" Link shouted as he turned a corner. "Stairs down!" he warned.

 _At least we are on the right way,_ Sheik though.

The halls passed by in a blur as they ran, the many suits of armour blending into each other, an army melting into one. The tremors came and went with increasing magnitude, the building cracking and creaking warningly around them, which made them run all the more faster.

"Here!"

The shout was followed by a doorway. They went through it, emerging into a much larger room—a very familiar room, in fact. The central column, the entrance to the tower, had split on the middle, a large crack running around its entire circumference. The bridge had collapsed, no more than rubble at the very bottom of the tower. Knowing the exit was close, their feet picked up the pace even further on their own volition, dancing over and between the dead bodies that filled the entrance hall.

And then they were out. They panted heavily, breathing in the fresh air with vigour. Sheik remembered what he had done and hurried towards the mechanism for the slidebridge, hoping to the Goddesses and beyond that it still worked. His heartbeat quickened when he heard the familiar sound of grinding metal and the bridge began to move—

"Look out!" Link shouted, pulling Sheik away from the bridge and mechanism.

"What are you—!"Sheik had time to say before the spire—the very top of Ganondorf's tower—crashed to the ground where Sheik had been standing just before. Pebbles of all sizes rained painfully upon them as the crushed piece of architecture took out the bridge, the mechanism and much of ground beneath. It hit the lava far below them with a loud splorch-like sound, melting.

Sheik held in a moan. He had landed on his hand with the broken fingers and it felt like someone had stuck knives in them. He was helped to his feet by Link.

The three stared at the spot where the bridge had once stood, unable to believe that they were _so_ close, yet so far away.

"What the hell do we do now?" Link asked.

"The Sages!" Zelda exclaimed, closing her eyes and mumbling under her breath.

"Of course," Link said, slapping his forehead. "They made a bridge once, they can do it again!"

Sheik nodded to himself, hoping it was true, for if they could not…

Another tremor, stronger than any of the others, rattled the island, shaking it for all its worth. They were all knocked off their feet and were left staring up at the tower as it slowly began to topple—towards them. A collective gasp went through them. As the tower fell, Sheik noticed Link crawling towards him, his hand outstretched. Sheik took it. If they were going to die, so be it, but they were going to die together. He closed his eyes as the first of the loose bricks fell upon them.

* * *

"Let me help you with that—"

"For pity's sake, woman, I know how to fire a bow," Myde whispered harshly, interrupting Ayla as he fiddled with the weapon they had taken from a dead archer on the roof. The roof itself was unstable and could come crashing down at any moment—taking them with it—but this was their best shot.

"With one arm?" Ayla said, looking pointedly at the broken limb hanging uselessly by his side. "And your feet?"

"Bah," Myde said, notching an arrow on the loose string with his still functioning arm. With some difficulty, he held on to the arrow as he placed the soles of his feet on the bow itself, testing the wood. It could take quite a bit of weight, which was good. Firing like this, lying down on his back and using his feet as leverage—had never really been his style, but it would have to do. All he had to do was to create a distraction, after all.

From up here, they could see the entire square and had a perfect view of the artillery tower. Hidden behind a very convenient stack of crates, which were filled with weapons and ammunition of all kinds, they could observe the enemy without being seen themselves. Of course, they had been forced to take out the archers, but that had gone off without a hitch—or gasp, as it were. This position was even better than the one Myde had thought of to begin with. The artillery tower, while locked tight at the bottom, had several open windows on this level, probably so the men working in the lower sections could actually breathe. This would be a cakewalk, as Hylians said, though he didn't really understand that particular wording.

"You sure about this?" Ayla asked, noticing the strained look on Myde's face as he tried to aim the bow with his legs—a task easier said than done. "I mean, I could probably do the firing and you could do the—"

"My aim's not good enough with this arm," Myde said, nodding at his healthy arm. "And we only have one shot at this. It has to be perfect. If anything, I should be asking you if you're going to be okay since _you're_ the one who's going to be shot at once they realise what is happening and if they see you."

"Aw, how touching," Ayla said sweetly, holding the explosive. None of them could get over just how much power could be contained in such a small, insignificant ball. "All worried about me."

"Are you mocking me?" Myde asked, glaring at her. Shaking his head, he moved to a position where he could actually see a guard or two. Aiming carefully, he drew the string back. "Right, I'm ready."

"Me too," the Gerudo said, sounding slightly worried. "Are you sure about this?"

"Honestly?"

"Yeah."

"Not really, but we have to try."

"How…unsettling."

"That's life for you."

"Okay, as soon as you fire the first shot, I sprint like hell and…yeah."

"Exactly."

"Right."

"Right."

"Good luck, then."

"You too."

The bow was really heavy, and he had begun to sweat because of the strain he was putting on his legs. At least, that's what he told himself. He took one long look at Ayla as she prepared to go on a suicide run that would probably result in one hell of a mess for both sides. "Listen," he said, his mouth working on its own. "I just want you to know that…if it wasn't for you…we never really had a chance to…I mean…"

"Myde, save it for later," Ayla said, smiling at him. "Tell me after we've won the war."

Shoulder sagging slightly in both relief and embarrassment, he nodded. "Okay." A guard walked right into his line of fire and paused to light up a cigarette. That was their cue. He nodded for Ayla to get ready and lined up his shot. Not too far below, not too far above. There was no wind to take into account, luckily, and they were not too far away. This was an easy shot—perhaps it was just as well that he had given himself a handicap. After one final adjustment, he let go of the arrow.

It sailed silently through the air and struck the legion guard right in his throat. He gurgled, clutching the projectile that was sticking out the other side as he sagged to the ground.

The alert was sounded immediately, a large group of guards congregating on the fallen one, voices shouting for status reports, enemy activity and other things that would definitely not help them now. The bow had flown off in some direction or other, and Myde quickly got to his feet, coming into the view of anyone who happened to be looking up at the roof at the time. He was spotted. He grinned slightly. "Here we go…"

He took off across the rooftops, his natural grace—even when out of water—allowing him to manoeuvre more precisely. Beneath him, the building protested against his abuse of their roofs with creaks and moans, but the tinkling of arrows and other sharp objects hitting the tiles behind him took the priority seat in his worries.

"There!" a legion soldier shouted. "Archers!"

Myde ducked behind a chimney as an entire volley of arrows threatened to turn him into a piscine hedgehog. He paused for two seconds to allow the last of the volley to impact before he continued. By now he had reached the corner of the square and was heading for the most dangerous bit—the part directly in front of the artillery tower. Before doubt could seize him, he took off running, hoping to every deity that had ever existed in the universe that they did not decide to turn the big guns on him…

He was not that lucky. He heard the catapults fire as he ran, saw the fireballs descending upon his position in the corner of his eye, and smelled the burning pitch that coated the rocks…

He threw himself forward as the first of them struck the building he was running on. It crashed into the second floor and emerged through the first floor entrance, taking a good deal of inventory with it. He hoped no Remnant troops had been hiding in the building—but this was no time to be concerned for others! The fireballs crashed around him, setting fire to buildings and reducing them to rubble as they collapsed. If only he could get out of range.

He howled as he felt the searing flames singe his head fin, forcing him to run even faster. He hurled himself across a gap between a pair of buildings, almost missing his mark and falling. How long could they keep a volley like this up? How many damn catapults were there up there?

Then the bombardment was over, a mass of activity erupting at the top of the tower as the crews hurried to reload their weapons. He ducked behind a sloping roof, needing a quick breather despite the arrows raining around him. Surely Ayla would be at the mark now?

He risked a glance at the other side of the tower. At first he didn't see anything, but then he noticed the shadow of movement close to the tower. The figure drew back and then ran like hell was on its heels, seemingly jumping off the building. Myde drew a deep breath and held it as he too moved like he was being chased by a pack of ravenous wolfos. An exit, an exit, he needed an exit…

There was no exit. The only ways down from the rooftops were through locked and sealed doors.

"Forgot to scout, forgot to scout," he repeated under his breath, barely avoiding taking an arrow to the head. "Stupid, stupid, stupid…"

Perhaps it was a calculated error or just dumb luck, he had no idea what to call it in hindsight, but his stumbling at that moment probably saved his life. His boot caught on an edge and threw him off-balance. He tried to regain it, but went tumbling off the roof's edge. He expected a free-fall followed by a very close and personal encounter with Mister Cobble, but was surprised when his back hit something wooden—and brittle. He crashed through it, and another layer of it beneath, and another, and another before finally coming to a stop at street level, coughing up sawdust.

He barely had time to realise he had fallen onto—through, actually—wooden scaffolding. And just in time too. The ground shook, the roar of an explosion filling his ears. Above, a massive fireball enveloped the sky, bits of masonry already falling down. Myde coughed and crawled towards a doorway with an overhang that would shield him from the deadly shower, still feeling somewhat confused from the fall. As he waited for the storm to pass, his head spinning, he became of something crashing through the buildings. It looked like the frame of a catapult.

* * *

Sheik opened his eyes. He had half-expected to be crushed by now, but after the rumbling and tremors had stopped and the cracking sound of stone being split apart had stilled, he had begun to grow doubtful. Link's hand was still clutched in his; the Hero's eyes closed so tightly…

Zelda was standing above them, her hands outstretched as the air wavered around them. What really caught Sheik's attention were the rocks around them.

The princess was sweating, the strain of keeping tons of rocks from crushing them exhausting her. She looked down at Sheik and grinned slightly.

"D'you…d'you t'nk it's d'ne coll'psing nw?" she asked through clenched teeth.

Sheik listened. As far as he could tell, destruction and painful death had stopped raining from the sky, and the tremors had stopped.

 _Wait, what? What happened to the island?_ he thought. He squeezed Link's hand, both to rouse his attention to their lack of expiration and to get him to stop cutting off his circulation. The Hero opened his eyes and looked around, his face just as confused as Sheik felt.

"I think you can let go now," he told Zelda.

She nodded and, with one last push, dispelled the shield she had put up and focused the energy outwards, forcing away the rocks that had piled on top of them.

The island was still floating, although it was listing slightly to the right. There was nothing left of the mighty fortress, only rubble and a few pillars and broken walls here and there. The only thing that could even resemble any sort of intact structure was the archway on the far left of the island.

"What happened?" Link asked. "I kinda expected us to be dead. I actually got used to it."

"In all but five minutes?" Sheik asked, looking around. "So much for the impenetrable and indestructible fortress," he said.

Zelda was looking at the other side of the lava pit, where they had been trying to get to. "Something's wrong," she said. "I can't contact the Sages. It's like the veil is still here. But you took it down, didn't you?"

"Yeah, of course we did," Link said hurriedly. "We took down all the barriers, and, and…" He turned to Sheik. "We _did_ take down the veil, didn't we?"

"I thought the barriers were what kept the veil up, yes, so I believe we did," Sheik confirmed, feeling like they were being watched. "Unless Ganondorf was holding it up by himself this entire time…"

Zelda's eyes grew wide. "But that means…"

Link looked around nervously. "You're not saying…are you?"

"Since the island is still here, I think that is a very real possibility," Sheik said, his heart starting to beat faster. Someone—or some _thing_ —was definitely watching them. He could feel it.

A loud, drawn-out boom echoed across the chasm, making all three of them jump. They all drew their weapons at the same time, glancing around nervously.

"Hey, look," Link said, pointing towards Castle Town. A large fireball had erupted in the cityscape, blooming upwards as burning fragments of whatever had just exploded gently drifted across the sky. "What was that?"

Sighing in relief, Sheik relaxed his stance. He recognised that explosion. "That would be one of Vorpheus' explosives," he said. "Myde or Ayla just had a lot of fun, I believe."

The three shared a small laugh. It wasn't enough to take their mind completely off the threat that still loomed, but it took the edge off. Of course, they would have preferred that it took the edge, the blade, crosspiece, handle and entire pommel off, but one couldn't have everything.

"Alright, we can't avoid this," Zelda said, her eyes scanning the rubble and partially collapsed walls. "Ganondorf is not dead. We have to find him and finish him off." She probably meant for the words to sound certain and grave, but her voice trembled slightly, betraying her fear.

Sheik was afraid too, he was ashamed to admit (but only to himself). What kind of man could survive being stabbed in the chest, blowing himself up in a suicide attack, falling off a very tall building and _then_ have said building collapse on top of him?

 _Easy_ , his thoughts told him, _one who wields the Triforce of Power. And is very angry._

"But he should be weak, right?" Link asked. "There's no way he could possibly get up and fight even more?" His hand was gripping the Master Sword so tightly that it turned white.

"We can only hope," Sheik said, sighing, "but knowing our luck…"

"…he's probably stronger than ever before," Link finished, also sighing. "I hate being the Hero of Time!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 144**

* * *

The tide of wounded and dead soldiers had finally been stemmed. After the massive explosion in the city, the sounds of fighting and chaos had died down. The battle was over, messengers declared, the artillery tower having been taken down by some brave Remnant troops.

Hatra looked up from the arm he was splinting for a Gerudo and saw a large dust cloud, illuminated by the hundreds of torches burning in the city, rising upwards. He permitted himself a small smile. It was finally over, then. He had also heard that something had happened to the fortress. Apparently, Ganondorf's tower had collapsed.

Cheers and triumphant shouts could be heard all over the camp now. Even the wounded and dying seemed to grow livelier.

"Hey you, focus," Kaura said, suddenly appearing behind him, causing him to start. "You've spent far too much time on something that should take you no more than a few minutes."

"Sorry," Hatra said, embarrassed, and finished the splint. The Gerudo nodded her thanks and stood up, immediately heading back towards her unit, apparently. "I don't recommend—"he tried to tell her.

"No use, kid," Kaura said, patting him on the shoulder. "Those women won't listen to you unless you're giving them a tip on how to kill or steal from someone. That was a good splint by the way. In fact, I daresay that it was almost as good as the ones _I_ do."

"Thanks," Hatra said, nodding gratefully. "I'm trying my best. It's been a while since I've…helped people like this."

"And?" Kaura said, looking at him seriously. "How does it feel?"

"It feels good," Hatra answered. "It feels like I'm finally doing something right."

"Good, keep it that way," Kaura said, looking around. "Where's Tao? I'm pretty sure I told him to keep an eye on you, though I suppose you've proven that you were serious…"

"I'm not sure," said Hatra uncertainly. The boy had disappeared completely out of sight after giving him the particularly vicious note in the storage area. Hatra had looked for him, but there was no sign of him anywhere.

"You know something," Kaura said, giving him a look that could pierce several inches of steel. "Did you do something to him?" she asked, her voice taking on a poisonous tone that terrified Hatra more than Commander Nuviro had ever been able to do. "Spit it out, kid, before I fetch my scalpel…"

"I don't know, honestly," Hatra said, fishing the small note from Tao out of his pocket and handing it to her. "He cornered me in the storage area, gave me this and disappeared. He was quite angry."

"Huh," Kaura said slowly, her eyes going over the message again and again. "You wouldn't think it, but the boy's got a way with guilt and getting points across, even if he can't talk. Didn't know he could write…"

"What do we do?" Hatra asked. "I mean, he has to be here somewhere, but…"

"Well," Kaura said, looking around, "the battle seems to be over, so the workload should ease up a bit now, I think. I guess we can go look for him—"

"I already did, but I couldn't find him," Hatra interrupted her. "It's like he's been swallowed up by a hole or something…"

"…bad analogy, kid," Kaura said after a few seconds of incredulous staring. "Anyway, Tao's got a way with disappearing completely when he doesn't want to be found. Judging by his note, he's either hiding from you…"

"Or he's gone after Sheik," Hatra finished, seeing where she was going. "Does he even _know_ where he is?"

"Hell if I know, but knowing Tao, he'll find him. He's scaled sheer cliff walls before to get to him, so…"

They both fell silent for a few minutes, staring at the slowly settling dust cloud. The cheers from the city were growling louder and louder. Some rather overzealous Remnant troops were already unfolding flags and banners on top of the tallest buildings, reclaiming them in the name of Hyrule.

"They say the fortress has fallen, that Ganondorf is dead," Kaura said suddenly. "I wonder if it's true."

"I think so," Hatra replied. "I hope so."

"Knowing Tao…" she said again, crossing her arms in a huff, "he'll be right there, in the thick of it, trying to find the idiots."

"Which idiots?"

"All three of 'em."

* * *

He was slowly choking. The dust was coating him, getting under his clothes, into his scales, drying him out. Myde coughed, trying to clear his airways to no avail. His arm ached even worse now. He had probably landed on it after crashing through the scaffolding. Opening his eyes hurt, his vision was blurry and practically useless—all he could see were blurry shapes.

"Damn it all," he rasped, trying to find his legs, which he was quite sure were somewhere beneath his torso, though they felt like they had been shoved up into his chest cavity. Ah, there they were. They felt like rubber and did not do him much good, buckling underneath his weight. "Crap…"

At least the plan had worked, he thought as he coughed and rasped, realising that he was slowly choking to death. He hoped Ayla had gotten away, remembering her form streaking away from the tower. She had probably gracefully swung herself down from the rooftops instead of tripping, falling and breaking lumber with her back like he had done.

He gave up, lowering himself to lie on his stomach, resting in the middle of the street, as far as he had been able to drag himself. No point in fighting the inevitable, he supposed. But then he heard something—footsteps. Coming towards him. He tried to look up, but his eyes were completely useless, only serving him more pain as part of the delicious feast of agony he was currently experiencing.

The footsteps stopped next to him, the person studying him for a few seconds before crouching down to brush some dust off of him.

"Up and at 'em, trouty," Ayla said, chuckling at the nickname she had given him. "We're not finished here, far from it."

Relief filled his very being at hearing her voice. "I'm glad you're okay," he said, though it came out as "Im gha' yur ohy."

"What?" Ayla asked, gently turning him over on his back, brushing away more dust in the process. He felt her wince when she probably spotted his arm. "Speak up," she said.

He tried to form the words again, but when the sentence came out as the same garbled mess, he gave up. Instead, he settled for, "Wahter."

"Hm?"

He gave a colossal cough and hacked up a large wad of…things, spitting it out. "Water," he repeated, louder. "I'm…dehydrated…"

"Oh," Ayla said. "Shit," she added when she remembered what dehydration meant for the average Zora—death.

"Shith…in'eed," Myde said.

"Hang on, I think I saw a dead guy with a flask back there," Ayla said, carefully setting him down on the ground. "Don't go anywhere."

"Ha…ha…"

He wasn't entirely sure of how long it took for her to return, but she did not do so alone. The clattering of armoured boots on the cobbles accompanied her padded footsteps, and he soon felt himself being picked up by several pairs of strong arms and carried quite a distance through the streets, through many crowds of cheering soldiers.

"Over here," a male voice said. "The General needs water immediately!"

"Right!" another voice replied.

"Careful, careful," Ayla said from somewhere to his left. The cheering noises were suddenly cut off and muffled. He was being carried inside. "His arm is broken. On the table!"

"Medic!"

"What's going on—Myde?!" a familiar, comforting voice said. "What happened to him?!"

"Long story, Thea," Ayla said. "He needs water, quickly!"

"Water!" Thea shouted, her voice reaching that timbre that only certain people can under special conditions—such as when their brothers are close to dying.

It was getting harder to breathe by the second now. It felt like someone had stuffed a pineapple down his trachea, a large lump preventing him from drawing in enough air. He coughed. Suddenly, he felt a nozzle at his mouth.

"Here, drink," someone said. He tried, but he was only able to get a few drops down before he was seized by a coughing fit that wracked his entire body and made pain explode in his chest.

"Get his clothes off," Thea commanded. "Rinse him properly!"

He felt his tunic being ripped off, and then a cold, wet sensation as water was poured on his body. At the same time, a pair of hands began to massage his chest, making him cough even worse. But it helped, surprisingly. He gave another massive cough, finally ridding his throat of that ball of dust. It was followed by vomit.

"Ah, damn it!" one of the men who had carried him said. "Right on my boots!"

"Shut up!" Ayla said. This was followed by a loud slap and a whimpering soldier.

"That's right, Myde," Thea's voice whispered into his ear. "Get it all up, good boy…"

He was turned onto his stomach and more water was poured on him. Had this been any other time, he would have felt embarrassed for being exposed for the entire world to see, especially when another set of hands began to caress him all over to get all the dust out of his scales, including on a rather sensitive area _back there_. He yelped. Gradually, it was getting easier to breathe, and he groaned.

"Right, I think that's all the help we need from you boys," Thea said, "away with you. Ayla, help me turn him around again, I need to start working on his arm."

"Right."

"How are you feeling, big brother?" Thea asked as Myde felt water being poured into his eyes. He slowly opened them, blinking rapidly as he let the water wash away the abrasive stuff. They still stung, but at least he could see now. Thea and Ayla were looking down at him, smiling.

They were inside a small building of some sort. A large amount of candles were placed around the even smaller room, giving it an eerie atmosphere. Outside, voices could be heard shouting to each other and cheering loudly at their apparent victory.

"Where are we?" Myde asked, voice raspy.

"Command post," Thea answered, still smiling. "We cleared out a building and established an infirmary. You've even got your own room! Aren't you lucky?"

"What's wrong?" he asked, noticing an uncertain twitch at the corner of her mouth.

"Oh, nothing," his sister said, her skin flushing slightly, "I was just worried about you. Both of you," she added, looking at Ayla. "When we heard that the attack had failed, I feared the worst. The commanders were about to launch another attack, but then the tower exploded, and I just _knew_ you were involved."

"Almost got himself killed, too," Ayla said.

"No more than you," he replied, trying to cover his private area in a subtle way. "Just a slight miscalculation on my part concerning escape routes down from the roof."

"I noticed the mangled scaffolding," Ayla said, grinning. "Decided to take the more _direct_ route down, did you?"

"I tripped."

"Stupid trouty."

"Trouty?" Thea asked.

"He didn't like being called fishie, so I call him trouty," Ayla explained.

"Hm," Thea said, rolling the name around in her mouth. "I like it. Trouty it is!"

Oh, no, Myde thought, rolling his eyes. "May I remind you that my arm is broken?" he asked.

"Oh, right," Thea said, giggling, "I should probably do something about that, huh?"

"And probably cover him up, or something," Ayla said, laughing. "Hey, Myde?"

"Yeah?"

"Is it cold in here?"

"…I hate you both…"

* * *

Sheik stared at the bloody remains under the pile of rubble, grimacing at the smell. Whoever it was, they had not had an easy passing. It definitely wasn't Ganondorf, however, as there was not… _enough_ remains. This person had been small and squat, not gigantic. He let go of the block and let it settle back to cover the crushed cadaver.

"Any luck?!" Zelda called from her own spot. She was currently trying move a quite big boulder off a larger pile of stones that had, rather interestingly, settled into a large cairn—another joke from nature's side, he supposed.

"No!" he called back. "Just some other unfortunate bastard!"

"Alright," the princess said, going back to her work.

After their initial apprehension, searching for the apparently still-alive Ganondorf had turned out to be…remarkably dull. After half an hour had passed with nothing but silence and the distant cheering from the city breaking the silence, the sense of overhanging danger had passed, and they had started to relax as they looked.

"Godsdamned piece of crap!"

This rather eloquent outburst of annoyance came from the Hero of Time who, after an interesting and entertaining display of acrobatics involving skipping across several sharp, pointy rocks, had stumbled over another one of the aforementioned, sharp, pointy rocks.

"You alright, Link?!" Zelda asked.

"…yeah," Link answered after a few seconds. "I may have shattered a kneecap, but I'm fine otherwise."

"Good to know."

Making his way over to Zelda, Sheik glared in the Hero's general direction. "I don't see what he has to complain about," he said. " _He's_ got those magic gauntlets, after all."

As if to illustrate his point, a large boulder flew over their heads and over the edge of the island, disappearing into the lava far below them.

"Sorry!" Link shouted.

"I see what you mean," Zelda said, the boulder finally moving a bit. She pried it the rest of the way using a piece of bent metal from some unknown source. Beneath lay…nothing. The princess huffed in annoyance. "And frankly," she said, "I don't see why _you_ are even searching." She pointed accusingly at his crippled limb. "You shouldn't be doing _anything_ with that hand."

"The other one still works," said Sheik, flexing the fingers on his left hand. "Besides, it will simply not do for me to sit by and watch as you and Link do all the work. It's my responsibility—nay, duty—to assist."

"Oh, so _now_ you decide to be all obedient and disciplined?" Zelda asked, rolling her eyes. Sheik recognised that gesture—it meant he had won the argument. He rarely won their arguments.

"I know to pick my moments, yes," Sheik said, offering his hand to help her down from the cairn-like pile. She took it after a brief glare. She landed on the same piece of broken pillar he was standing on. They ducked as another huge rock flew overhead and Link apologised yet again. "Stop throwing them this way, you idiot!" Sheik called.

"Sorry!"

Zelda sighed, surveying the area. "Where could he be?" she asked no one in particular.

They had searched the area where they _thought_ the courtyard had once been, but had found nothing except bloodstains and some fragments of armour. This had worried them to begin with. If Ganondorf could still move, then he could very well attack at any moment, but when nothing happened they assumed that he had simply tried to crawl away while the fortress was collapsing and gotten trapped somewhere else—which was a mixed blessing since it meant that he was too weak to do something about them, but also meant that they had to actually look for the bastard.

"Hey, guys!" Link's voice sounded. "I think I found something!"

"Great, I bet he's found something shiny," Sheik said.

"That or a new, horrible cap," Zelda said, laughing.

"I can hear you, you know!"

* * *

It was the circlet. The golden frame was so bent out of shape it reminded Sheik more of a dodecahedron than a circle, but the gemstone looked intact.

Link had found it under one of the ruined arches, indicating that Ganondorf had gotten quite far during the collapse. The crown had been lying in a dried pool of blood.

The Hero picked it up and examined it. "Huh, not a crack in the stone," he said, showing it to the others. Zelda took it.

"Not so strange," she said. "It's a diamond, the hardest substance in the world. The only thing that will damage a diamond is another diamond."

"I've never seen a red diamond before," said Link, indicating the slightly red shimmers at the very core of the gem.

"They come in all kinds of colours," Sheik said, looking closely at the it. "But I must admit I've never seen such a strong red shade in one."

They all shared a look before Zelda tossed it over the edge. "No sense in risking a booby trap," the princess reasoned, and the Sheikah and Hero agreed.

They split up again and continued searching, though Sheik felt compelled to cast a glance at the city every now and then. The cheering was still loud and strong, which was a good thing, he supposed, but why weren't any troops coming to their aid? Surely the Remnant had been able to break through whatever Legion opposition that remained?

"I don't know," Zelda said suddenly, appearing behind him.

"Pardon?"

"I don't know why the troops aren't moving in," she clarified. "Perhaps they're still busy mopping up pockets of resistance."

"They've still a duty to check up on you, though," Sheik said.

"Hehehe…" Zelda laughed nervously, causing Sheik to slowly turn his head to look at her, his gaze like stone.

"They… _do_ know you're here, don't they?"

"Of course they do!" Zelda exclaimed. "It's just…well, I told them not to come until I send the all-clear signal. The commanders in the city have all been ordered to withhold their men until then. You should have seen Kaura's face when I told her..."

Sheik maintained his stare. "I cannot say that I find that tactically clever…"

"Would you rather that a battalion was here to get slaughtered?"

"…at the moment? Yes, I'd like that. With you at the very back and moving away very rapidly."

The princess gave her bodyguard a wry smile. "You need to start worrying less about me and more about yourself."

"I'm a Sheikah, it's my _job_ to be perpetually worried about you and develop indigestion."

"You're such a dork, Sheiky," Zelda said, moving away to begin moving another mountain of rubble.

They searched like this for another fifteen minutes before all three reconvened at a large pile of rubble at the very centre of the island, all empty-handed and tired. Well, Link was still rather peppy thanks to those damned Silver Gauntlets, but he sighed with exhaustion in an exceptional—and unneeded—show of solidarity which only served to further irritate the others.

"He's not here," Zelda said. "We've searched every damn inch of this island, and he's just not here."

"But he's still alive if the continued existence of this island is any indication," Sheik said. "Which can only mean one thing—he escaped."

Then it happened.

The sky above them cracked as lightning struck the ground between them, which exploded, sending fragments of rock and masonry flying in all directions along with the three of them, all landing far away.

Sheik collided painfully with one of the broken arches, barely able to avoid skewering himself on a spike just below by twisting out of the way. Instead, he landed on a patch of rough bricks, cutting and tearing at his robes. Rolling to a stop behind a boulder, he slowly picked himself up, suddenly aware of the sound of heavy breathing—and it didn't belong to either of his companions. Crawling out from his secluded spot, he noticed that a ring of fire had enveloped the entire island, the flames licking at the edges as if they were covered in oil. The air was growing warmer by the second. At the centre of the island, where they had stood not seconds before, however, something floated just above the ground.

"Heh…heh…" The shape continued to breathe heavily, slowly unfurling itself. Ganondorf's eyes were glowing, a bright yellow colour illuminating the rest of his face, which was frozen in a silent scream—whether it was of fear or rage did not matter, his intent was clear. Sheik felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he shivered. The malice that was flowing from the Evil King was so strong… Ganondorf raised his hand, on the back of which the Triforce of Power still shone. Slowly, steadily, a scream was rising from the pit of his stomach, emerging as a sound that could probably have rivalled that of an angry goddess. At the peak of the bellow, Ganondorf's body straightened out completely, light beginning to emit from his very being.

The light grew to such intensity that Sheik had to look away lest he wanted to lose his other eye as well. He could still hear, however, and Ganondorf's scream seemed to twist and contort, the pitch changing into something much darker, more bestial. When the light finally dimmed, all that could be seen where Ganondorf had been was a black, contorting mass of limbs—arms, hands and legs, forming and reforming into shapeless blobs, eyes appearing and disappearing in the gloop, teeth randomly appearing where teeth should not be…

Something touched Sheik's shoulder, making him jump slightly. It was Link. He looked panicked.

"I can't find Zelda!" he exclaimed.

Sheik tried to respond, but could not take his eyes off the mass, which was starting to assume a more solid shape now, having apparently decided that two arms, two legs and one head was the best way to go. And a tail, apparently.

The Ganondorf-thing gave a loud snarl as its face reformed into something resembling a pig's, only with more teeth, tusks and fur than what is usually found on a regular pig—and terrifying. And it grew. Standing as tall as at least three men, its massive, clawed hands flexed. Out of nowhere, two gigantic, crude knives—or swords, it was hard to tell—appeared.

"What is that?" Link asked, his breath hitching. Sheik found it hard to answer, almost choking on his own spit. He opened his mouth.

"Ganon—"

The thing let out another roar, the sound causing the entire island to shake under its power.

"Ganon?!" Link asked, he too staring at the monstrous creature that had once been a Gerudo.

"No, Ganon—"Sheik tried again, but was interrupted by Link this time. The Hero pointed at something moving behind the monster.

 _Zelda!_ Sheik thought, feeling paralysed as he watched his princess lift her sword, aiming a blow at the newly dubbed Ganon's tail.

The thing was fast, too, just like it had been when humanoid. With a snarl, it whirled around and knocked Zelda away with the pommel of one of its weapons. The princess disappeared behind a broken wall. Ganon made to follow her.

"Link!" Sheik exclaimed, realising that the Hero was already well on his way across the boulder, sword halfway out of its sheath. Sheik followed hot on his heels, charging the massive creature.

"Hey! Over here!" Link shouted on the way, drawing Ganon's attention. It snarled and turned to face them, its blades glistening in the firelight. It drew back and prepared a sweeping strike. The arc was unbelievably large—with the reach of what seemed to be two halberds—and reached them sooner than they reached it.

Link ducked and rolled, groaning as he most likely brushed against something very hard. Sheik, having been in the process of scaling another large boulder, was left with no other option than to jump. He somersaulted through the air, feeling a wind just above—below?—his head blowing by as the huge blade cut through the air. He righted himself, intending to land on his feet.

He didn't. His ankle exploded in agony as he landed on a slanted surface, bending to the point no ankle should ever do. He stumbled and almost fell on his face, righting himself up just in the nick of time.

He heard Link scream bloody murder as he engaged Ganon in close combat, not noticing his lover going down, and darted in and out between the monster's legs as it tried to get to him. Fast as it was, Ganon couldn't hope to keep up with Link with its lumbering frame. It could turn around fast, but that was about it.

But the blades more than made up for that. With a grunt, Link caught a blow with the Mirror Shield and, despite his strong frame, was forced several steps backwards. He blocked the next blow as well, but his arm was already beginning to droop from the strain.

Sheik got to his feet—ignoring the pain from his ankle—and continued his attack run, seeing that Ganon was exposing its backside. Its tail—an ugly, lumpy thing that reminded him more of a bruised turtle shell than an actual tail—swung almost lazily back and forth as it continued attacking Link. Kazuya flashed, stabbing into the disgusting body part, which spurted black and blue fluids. And then everything went black for a few seconds.

* * *

Sheik opened his eyes, his back aching, staring at the sky. Lightning continued to flash overhead, yet no sound could be heard except that of the snorting, grunting Ganon. He sat up slowly. The blow had come from nowhere.

 _Goddesses, it's strong_.

He looked up just in time to see Link try to defend from himself from another blow with the Master Sword. There was a pathetic clang as the sword was ripped from the Hero's hand and was sent flying away, embedding itself into the ground less than a yard away from Sheik.

"Uh, Sheik?!" Link yelled. "Now would be a good time to jump in!" He looked up at Ganon as the thing slowly approached, obviously enjoying the fear it was striking in its arch nemesis.

 _Sword, sword, sword,_ Sheik thought, looking for Kazuya. His fingers found nothing, and the Sheikah blade was nowhere to be seen. _Damn!_ Cursing inwardly, his fingers clutched around the Master Sword's handle. Jaw clenching, Sheik did his best to overlook the burning sensation in his ankle and pulled the sword out of the ground and began to run towards the Hero. Screaming, he tossed the blade to Link, diving between Ganon's legs as it swung out at him. It missed by inches.

"Hah!" Link shouted as he drove the tip of his sword into Ganon's wrist. It screamed in rage, dropping the sword it was clutching.

While Ganon was busy clutching its injured limb, Link dragged Sheik to his feet and pulled him behind a pillar, hiding them from view.

"You alright?" Link asked, grimacing at the haggard appearance Sheik was currently sporting.

"Do I look alright?" Sheik asked.

"Not really…"

"Where's your bow?" Sheik asked. "Maybe the Light Arrows would work—"

"The bow that snapped in half?" Link asked, peeking out at Ganon, which was looking for them, snorting. "Not sure."

"Where's Zelda?"

"I don't know, I just saw her disappear behind a wall, and—oh, no."

"What?"

"Look."

Ganon was moving in underneath one of the broken arches along the fiery perimeter, its gaze sweeping the ground for any sign of the three. But that wasn't what Link was referring to. Zelda was climbing on the arch itself, just above the creature, sword in hand. Her hair had come loose from the ponytail and flowed behind her. She was bleeding from a wound just underneath her ribs.

"This…won't end well," Sheik whispered.

"Come on," Link said.

They ducked out from behind the pillar and ran full speed at Ganon. Sheik realised that he was unarmed and was about to make Link aware of this fact when he suddenly felt something cold and metallic pressed into his hand. Link winked.

The Longshot.

"Aim for the face!" The Hero urged him.

"Aaaaah!" Zelda yelled, and the Sheikah and the Hero looked up just in time to see the princess drop down from the arch, driving her sword into Ganon's neck. Ganon shrieked, dropping its other blade, arms flailing around Zelda as it tried to knock her off, but she stubbornly held on, even as a massive claw raked across her face. She didn't notice the arch suddenly approaching very fast. She was knocked off, dropping to the ground just in front of Sheik and Link.

"Remember, face!" Link screamed, pushing Sheik off-balance to make him stop running before hurling himself between Ganon's legs, slashing at its tail in full frenzy. Sheik righted himself, his finger curling around the Longshot's trigger as he aimed. Ganon was lurching around, as if in daze, Zelda's sword still stuck in its neck, its face almost tucked into its own chest, making it difficult for Sheik to aim accurately.

Then Link must have hit a particularly sensitive spot on its tail, for Ganon suddenly threw its head back and shrieked, exposing its ugly face and snout. Sheik took a deep breath, and pressed the trigger. The tool jerked in his hand as the hook and chain were shot out of the small barrel with a loud click. The hook flew through the air and hit Ganon in the left cheek, easily digging into the soft flesh. And there it stayed.

Ganon bucked and screamed, seemingly unable to decide on what to deal with first—Zelda's sword or the Longshot. Sheik held on to the tool, though his hand was quickly losing its grip, having gone through too much in too short an amount of time to take it any longer. He was just about to let go when Zelda's hands clutched around his and her face appeared in the corner of his eye.

"Pull!" she shouted.

And pull they did. Ganon continued to buck and squirm, but the sword in its neck had done too much damage, and slowly it was pulled to its knees, drool and blood running down its face as its eyes focused on them—projecting all of Ganondorf's hatred at them.

"Link!" Zelda called. "Finish him!"

The Hero came running around Ganon's flank, sword at the ready. He slashed Ganon's face twice—sending blood splattering everywhere—before moving in for the coup de grâce. With a shout, he stabbed the Master Sword into Ganon's eye, not stopping until only the crosspiece and handle remained on the outside.

Ganon jerked and stopped struggling completely for a few seconds. Link then ripped his sword out of the gaping wound, tugging the Longshot's hook out at the same time.

Without warning, Ganon began to thrash, roaring and shrieking in pain, getting back on its feet as its arms flailed around uselessly, crashing through the arch behind it. Stumbling backwards, one of its hooves stepped into the fire, setting the entire creature ablaze.

"Sheik…help me," Zelda said, her body shaking. "Need…to…seal him…" But before she could do anything, the princess collapsed against Sheik, who was taken down along for the ride to the ground, dropping the Longshot in the process.

"Guys?!" Link exclaimed, hurrying to their aid.

Ganon gave a final, pitiful howl as it plunged over the edge of the island, its cry cutting off abruptly as it hit the surface of the boiling lava below.

"Zelda? Zelda!" Sheik shouted, trying to shake her awake. She was so pale…

"Sheik," Link said, pointing at Zelda's abdomen. Up close, Sheik realised that the wound the princess had suffered was much larger than it had looked, and she was bleeding through. "I…"

"Goddesses, no!" Despair filled him. They had been so close! She couldn't die. Not now!

As the fire around them died down, the island began to shake, the will of its maker no longer there to keep it together. Another large piece of it—not far from them—broke off and plunged into the depths below. Link took Zelda out of Sheik's arms and slung her over his shoulder and pulled the Sheikah up with his free hand.

"We can't stay here, come on!" the Hero shouted.

They stumbled their way towards the cliff edge, which was still so impossibly far away, tripping over the massive cracks that were forming on the surface of the island. Sheik felt like he was going to fall apart—not a joint in his body did not ache, not a muscle did not feel like it had come loose. Link kept pulling him forward, however, the determination on the Hero's face somehow filling him with that little energy required not to fall over.

The island was sinking, slowly descending as it broke apart. The cliff edge was not only getting further away—it was rising.

As they neared the edge, Link's voice once again filled the air.

"Don't think! Just jump!"

At that moment, the island broke in half, slanting inwards. It raised the edge they were running at just slightly, just enough so they could make the distance—they hoped. With panicked shouts, they jumped.

Everything went quiet as they sailed through the air, the jagged cliff wall approaching much faster than either of them cared for. Sheik crashed into it first, his hand desperately scrambling for purchase. He found it. As his fingers closed around an edge, he heard Link gasp. His and Zelda's weights combined were too much, and he wasn't going to make it. In desperation, Sheik threw out his right hand for the Hero—who grabbed it. The Sheikah howled in pain as his broken fingers were crushed together by Link's tight grip.

"Don't let go! Don't let go!" Link shouted, tears streaking down his face as he saw the pain he was causing his lover. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

Sheik bit through his cheek, blood filling his mouth as he tried desperately to keep his hold on the edge, but his fingers were slowly slipping. "Link!" He moaned. "I…can't…hold on!"

"You have to!"

There was a jerk, the last desperate movement of his muscles as he tried to hold on, but Sheik knew it was too late. "I'm…sorry…" he whispered.

He lost his grip, and they fell.


	10. Chapter 10

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 145**

* * *

Of all the things he expected to feel, free was not one of them. The air whipping by, the warmth enveloping him, the rush of knowing that absolutely nothing would change no matter what he did…it was liberating. They were falling, and that was it.

He had tried his best, he really had. He had summoned every last bit of strength in trying to hold on to that ledge, trying to keep them up, but the weight had simply been too much. And the pain… His fingers were probably beyond repair now. Not that it mattered—but he would gladly have given his fingers, his hand, his arm…his everything, if only he could have seen Link and Zelda climb to safety.

But that's not how it happened, and he couldn't for the life of him understand why he was running through different scenarios in his head in which the princess and Hero could have gotten to safety. He felt so…guilty. If only he hadn't let go…

The worst part, however, was the look on Link's face. As they fell, their eyes locked with each other, and they stared. The Hero's eyes were not filled with regret, anger or fear—but forgiveness and…calm? They were falling to their deaths, and Link didn't even seem to notice or care. A small, almost serene smile was on his face as he stared up at Sheik.

For what must have been the hundredth or two-hundredth time since he had met the Hero, time seemed to slow down for Sheik, and all sounds were muted, leaving only the stifling temperature to remind him of their predicament. And again there was that strange feeling of freedom—and it was all because of him, the knight in the tights and tunic.

But then he glanced at Zelda—his friend, his sister, his princess—and the guilt came back. He should have tried harder, should have held on longer. He had failed her—completely.

 _I'm sorry,_ he thought, mouthing the words. _I'm so, so sorry…_

Time sped up, and the glowing pool of melted rock and stone came faster and faster. It would be seconds, and then they would be experiencing the worst agony of their lives before passing. _At least she is unconscious,_ Sheik thought. _At least she won't experience the pain…_

But _they_ would. Involuntarily, they both closed their eyes tightly, waiting for the heat, the pain, death—for the second time, no less, in Sheik's case.

But then something happened. Sheik felt something pass through him, causing him to shiver and open his eyes just barely. Everything seemed to waver and blur around them, as if a massive, magical discharge was passing through the area. The lava's bright orange shade was losing its lustre. Link and Zelda seemed to be…morphing, their bodies contorting and twisting, going in and out of shape. Sheik blinked, and everything froze.

They hung listlessly in the air for a few seconds, confusing the Sheikah. Then the lava pool beneath them dropped out of existence, disappearing into the darkness below along with the rest of the world. It felt like Sheik's stomach had been left behind down there as he got the distinct feeling that they were falling _up_. Everything brightened, turning into a blindingly white veil, forcing him to close his eyes yet again. And all faded away…

* * *

He awoke to the sounds of running water and the feeling of the cold, wet, pitter-patter of droplets falling on his face. He slowly opened his eyes and saw—to his surprise—five huge pillars of water surrounding him, thousands upon thousands of gallons of water continuously flowing down. It seemed familiar, but he couldn't put a finger on it. The floor he was lying on was hard and felt like stone.

It hit him like an avalanche. He sat up immediately, looking around himself. The marble platform, the huge, carved Triforce mark, the six temple seals…

"The Chamber of Sages," he said to himself.

Link and Zelda were lying next to him, the Hero's arm still clutched around the injured princess. His eyes were still clenched shut, but upon hearing Sheik's voice, they slammed open.

"What…what happened?" he asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" a voice suddenly said. It echoed in the chamber. They tried to locate the source, but found no one. There was no one else but them there.

Someone giggled.

"Sages?" Link asked.

"Ah, brother!" a mighty voice boomed. "Still deductive as ever!"

"Do not mock my fiancé!"

Sheik and Link stared as coloured lights appeared over the temple seals, the forms of the sages appearing one after another. Rauru, Saria, Darunia, Ruto, Impa, Nabooru… They were all wearing big smiles on their faces, despite…despite Zelda—!

"Please, you have to do something," Sheik exclaimed, gesturing to the still unconscious Zelda. Link mirrored him, though he seemed to be unable to form the words. Perhaps he had gotten used to the idea of being dead… "She…she…!"

"Calm down, nephew," Impa said, leaving her seal and stepping into the water flowing from the platform. She stopped just short of where they sat, still smiling at them. "We would not let a fellow Sage fall to something as simple as this." She stared pointedly at the tear in Zelda's armour. "It will require proper healing, but she will live."

Sheik and Link inspected the tear, seeing that the bleeding had stopped, and she was breathing gently and steadily, though her skin was still pale. The relief was…palpable.

"She will not wake, however," Impa continued, looking down at her princess in sadness. "Which is why you two must pass on our message to her."

"Message?" Link asked. "What message?"

The Sages shared an uncomfortable look, their eyes downcast and smiles cut off. Ruto opened her mouth, slowly drawing a deep breath. "Things…did not go according to plan," she said.

"What do you mean?" Sheik demanded. "Ganondorf is dead, and the Triforce of Power is no longer in his possession. Surely that is what was intended all along."

Rauru, the heavy-set monk and Sage of the Temple of Time, cleared his throat and gave them a grave look. "While it is true that the goal was to take the Triforce of Power from the Evil King, his death was never meant to occur. At least…not yet."

"What?" Link asked, jaw dropping. "Are you saying I _wasn't_ supposed to kill him? I _wasn't_ supposed to punish him for everything he did?"

"He _was_ to be punished," Saria said, giving Link a sad smile. "And his death would come…eventually."

"He was to be imprisoned in the Sacred Realm," Darunia, the Goron chief said. "The Goddesses decreed this in the prophecy."

"Death was too good for him," Impa said, still standing ankle-deep in the water. She looked at Zelda, her eyes reflecting the love she held for the princess. "Zelda is our link to the mortal world, and she was supposed to let us know when to open the Sacred Realm and cast the Evil King into it…"

"Wait, what?" Link said, shaking his head in confusion. "You guys have been able to watch us this entire time, you created the rainbow bridge…and now you're telling us that you couldn't do anything? That's bullshit!"

"Link, you have to understand that the Goddesses left us with specific instructions," Saria said. "By creating that bridge and saving you from your fall just now, we violated those instructions."

"If we had just saved Zelda, on the other hand, we would have acted within our limits," Nabooru added.

"What are they gonna do? Come back and fire you?" Link asked, staring at his childhood friend. "I can't believe this!"

"Hero, please calm down," Impa said, trying to pat him on the shoulder, but Link twisted away.

"No!" he said. "You let us go through all this…this _crap_ , and you could have interfered the entire time, and now you expect me to accept that you couldn't have done anything because of something the Goddesses said thousands of years ago? We almost _died_!"

"Link, please," Sheik tried, reaching for his hand.

"Sheik, look at yourself," the Hero said. "All this could have been avoided if these… _people_ had gotten off their asses, and—"

"They were behind the veil, Link, don't you remember?" Sheik asked, trying to keep himself calm. "There was nothing they could do—"

"Then how did they create the bridge? How did they do that, hm?"

"They…I…I don't know," Sheik admitted, shaking his head, trying to avoid the gazes of the Sages, who were looking at them with interest. The Sages were the only ones the Goddesses trusted to watch over the world—surely they were only acting in their best interests, right?

"Hero, we understand how you feel, and we truly regret not being able to come to your aid sooner," Rauru said, suddenly looking much older. "But what is done is done. You are still alive, all three of you, and that is all that matters. Unfortunately, due to the circumstances…we will not be able to restore everything."

"Restore everything?" Sheik asked. "You…were going to reverse it all?"

"Within certain limits, yes," Ruto said. "With Ganondorf safely sealed inside the Sacred Realm, we could have turned back time—"

"But with him dead, doing so would only make the cycle repeat, and the war would have broken out all over again," Nabooru said. "And all your effort would have been for naught."

"We could have changed everything, though," Link muttered. "I could have warned Zelda, the king, everyone…Ganondorf would have been arrested and imprisoned, no one would have to die…"

"That would be most preferable, Hero," Rauru said, "but it would not have mattered. The war _would_ happen. Even if you were able to stop Ganondorf from entering the Sacred Realm on that night, he would have found a way to do so later."

"So, what are you saying?" Link asked. "That the Goddesses _wanted_ all this to happen?"

"It is not our prerogative nor our place to question the will of the Goddesses," Rauru said in a serious voice. "We were tasked with imprisoning Ganondorf, and we have failed our duty. _You_ , however, have fulfilled your part of the prophecy, Hero of Time, and have nothing to regret."

"Except all the people that died," Link said bitterly.

"Hyrule will recover, like it always has done," Rauru said. He opened his arms. "It is time to send you back now, and—"

"Wait, is that how we're going to leave it?" Link asked, rising to his feet, glaring at the Sage. "'Good job, too bad we can't do _anything_ , you're one your own'?"

Sheik noticed Link's hand shaking, as if he was trying to stop himself from drawing his blade and massacre the Sages—not that he'd be able to, but still… He tried to stand up himself, but the exertion he had put himself through the past twenty-four hours finally caught up with him, and he found that he couldn't. Instead, he looked pleadingly up at Impa, who nodded and stepped onto the platform, positioning herself in front of the Hero.

"Hero of Time, stand down," she said in a commanding voice. "We are not your enemies."

"But…but…" Link tried.

"No, Hero," Impa said, shaking her head. "The time for fighting is over. I know you are angry and disappointed with us for not doing something sooner, but we were truly bound by divine commandments. Do you honestly believe that I would have allowed my own nephew to go through such pain and suffering if it were in my power to prevent it?" She looked at Sheik. "No, I would not," she said, answering her own question.

"Aunt—"Sheik began.

"Silence, nephew," Impa said, cutting him off. "The Hero needs to understand that we are not free to do as we wish, even as Sages. There are rules—"

"Why can't you break those rules, then?" Link asked. "Why can't you just do what's _right_?"

A collective sigh went through the Sages.

"Do you understand the repercussions of what you are asking for, Hero?" Rauru asked. "Do you truly realise the amount of pain and suffering the world will go through once more if we turn back time? You will have to go through your quest once again, fight so many battles, and lose so many friends for a second time."

"But I know what will happen now," Link said. "I _know_ what to avoid and what not to do. I can stop my shadow, I can save Navi—"

"And how do you know that those decisions you regret making were not what got you this far to begin with?" Saria asked. "One deviation, one step in the wrong direction, and you could undo your success. It could even get you killed, Link."

"As long as Sheik is there—"Link began.

"And how do you know that my nephew will be there, Hero?" Impa asked. "If your fairy had not perished in that temple, then Sheik would never have had a reason to accompany you on your quest. He would remain in the shadows, working behind the scenes and possibly perish during the battle in the city."

Sheik stared at his aunt, wondering if this was something she had seen with her powers as a Sage or if she was simply making it up. Either way, he did not enjoy hearing it.

"If you save your fairy, Link," Impa said, using the Hero's real name for the first time, "you will never steal my nephew's heart."

"So that's it?" Link asked. "I have to choose between saving a friend and losing my love?"

"Among many other difficult decisions, that will be one of them, yes," Rauru said.

Sheik gulped. He understood Link's frustration, he really did. If they had been able to prevent Zelda from getting hurt, then everything…then all this could have been avoided. So many could be saved…but he didn't want to lose Link either…

He said, "Would…would we remember?" He looked at Rauru. "If you were to turn back time, would everyone remember, or just Link?"

"No one but the Hero will remember," the old man said, looking at him with somewhat moist eyes. Had they always been like that? "I am sorry, young one, but there are some things we simply cannot control."

Link looked between Rauru and Sheik, his mouth moving with no sound coming out of it. His hands were opening and closing, his entire form was shaking. It was a horrible choice to make.

"Link," Saria said, "I think Navi would have approved of leaving everything the way it is. She would have understood…"

" _Everyone_ would have understood," Ruto added. "You have done Hyrule a great service, and you deserve your rest and happiness. Link, as the woman who was once your fiancé, I beg you; let it go. I want to see you happy, not miserably reliving another war of this magnitude."

"I agree with the fish, brother," Darunia said, grinning in Ruto's direction, to which the Zora princess only huffed and crossed her arms. "Things are as good as things are going to get. Don't take it for granted."

"Kid, I told you to make Aveil happy," Nabooru said. "Are you going to go back on that promise by not letting her be with your princess? I'll kick your butt if you do."

"And do you not think my nephew deserves happiness?" Impa asked as she returned to her seal. "He may have been content in Zelda's service, but only when he has been with you have I seen him truly happy." She glanced at Sheik, grinning. "Besides, he needs to ease up on getting injured all the time unless he wishes to have the body of an eighty-year-old at the age of eighteen."

"I…" Link hesitated, looking at the Sages, whose faces were only filled with approval. Then he looked at Sheik. "What do you think I should do, Sheik?"

 _Oh, shit,_ he thought. He shook his head. "This is not my decision to make, Link. It is your destiny, not mine."

"Do you love me?" Link asked.

"What kind of question—"

"Answer me!"

"Yes, yes, I love you, with all my heart, Link, I love you!" Sheik said.

Link leaned over and kissed him right then, slowly moving his lips against the Sheikah's until the latter felt ready to faint. As they parted, Link took a deep breath and stared at Rauru. "I…I can't live without Sheik. Even though I'd meet him back in the past again, knowing what we once had…I couldn't."

Rauru nodded. "Then it is decided."

The Sages all looked pleased, Impa and Saria especially.

Sheik felt the corners of his eyes moisten as Link's words sank in. He knew the Hero loved him, but…he had never expected this. The two shared a look that spoke volumes.

"There's just the matter of the Triforce, then," Nabooru said, looking pointedly at the three on the platform. "We have the piece Ganondorf stole, but we still need the three remaining pieces."

"Three remaining piece—wait," Link said, growing agitated, "The Delta Force is the only thing that's keeping Sheik alive! No, I won't let you take it, I can't—"

"Hero, Hero, calm down, please," Rauru said. "We did not convince you of staying in this particular time only to take your love away from you. Trust us—when you return, you will find that Sheik of the Sheikah is more than capable of surviving without the help of a triangle. Now…sleep. You are all heroes, and you deserve your rest."

Link said nothing, only fixed Raura with his firmest glare, as if daring him to go back on his word.

Slowly, Sheik's eyes began to feel heavy and he began to yawn. But he couldn't. Not now. There was so much he wanted to tell Impa, so much to apologise for. He tried to stand up again, but his body still refused to cooperate. "Aunt..." he said. "I…I lost your sword."

"Yes, you did," Impa said, crossing her arms, looking somewhat stern, but then her gaze softened. "It was only a sword, Sheik. There are many more in the world. You will find another. Farewell, nephew, enjoy life."

His eyes slid closed as he did his best to nod and said, "I…will…"

* * *

Casualties were high, that much became obvious as Kaura and Hatra made their way through the city. As if that fact hadn't been apparent back at the field hospital. But the soldiers were still cheering and roaring at their victory, crowding around banners in the streets. It was strange to see Hylians, Gorons, Gerudos and Zoras all shaking hands and hugging each other (the Gerudos groping whatever they could get their hands on in the process).

"Now this is something I never thought I'd see," Kaura said as they walked across a square.

Someone had raided a Legion storehouse and cracked open a keg of ale, which was quickly being emptied and replaced by another.

"What is?" Hatra asked, looking around nervously. If someone recognised him, he was bound to be killed on the spot. Kaura didn't seem to notice this, though.

"Four different peoples celebrating a victory like this together," the physician said, stepping around a large Goron that was more or less crushing a Zora with a hug. "Gorons and Zoras, Hylians and Gerudos…in case you didn't know, they've all been at war with each other at some point or another. Every few decades there's a conflict, in fact."

"Huh," Hatra said. From what he was seeing, it was like the different races had never even _thought_ of fighting each other.

They exited the square and headed up one of the few streets that weren't blocked by rubble or wildly celebrating soldiers. The smell of blood and smoke still hung thick in the air, and it only got worse as they approached what seemed to be a collection spot for the fallen on both sides. Kaura hardly seemed fazed by the smell and sights, pushing on with a huff.

"So many dead…" Hatra said.

"And many more before the night," Kaura said, looking up at the sky. The darkness that had fallen upon the land seemed to be lifting little by little, the sky brightening more and more by the minute. "Count yourself lucky you had a change of heart last night, kid, or you would be dead as stone right now."

"I do that every second," Hatra said. "Where are we going?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Kaura said, looking back at him with a raised eyebrow. "To the fortress, of course."

"Is it safe?"

"Hell if I know, but that's where Tao and the moronic trio will be."

"Why do you keep calling them idiots?"

"Because they are, why else? The Hero is an idiot because…well, he just is. The Sheikah is an idiot because he doesn't know when to quit before he gets hurt or ends up dead—which has happened once already."

"Huh?"

"And Zelda," she continued, ignoring him. "Well, Zelda is an idiot because she willingly placed herself in a position where she could be captured by the enemy. That is _not_ a smart thing to do while in the critical stage of a battle, don't you agree?"

Hatra wondered about asking about Sheik's supposed death once more, but decided that it was not a good idea if Kaura had not answered him the first time. She seemed to be more about practicality than anything else. Instead, he said, "She's a princess, though. Doesn't she deserve more respect than that?"

"She ain't _my_ princess," Kaura said, huffing. "I'm from Termina. And no, she doesn't deserve respect just for being a princess. Respect is something you _earn_."

"And?"

"Hm?"

"Has she?"

"Look at everything she has accomplished in the past seven years, and ask yourself that."

"Oh."

"Yup."

"But how come…"

He trailed off as an agonised scream echoed through the street, coming from a place further down. Kaura looked up sharply and began to run towards it with Hatra on her heels.

When they rounded the corner, Hatra recognised where they were. They were a few blocks away from the artillery tower. There was still a slight fog of dust hanging in the air, but not enough to obscure sight. Nor did it hide the slaughtering ground in front of them.

Captured Legion soldiers—injured and healthy alike—were being hounded through a large crowd of Remnant troops, who beat, kicked and spat at them on their way to a large, open area in the shadow of the ruined tower. Blood ran thick as they were executed by beheading one by one to the loud cheers of the Remnant. Hatra could practically feel the rage rolling off the physician.

"They should know better… _they_ _should know better_ ," she said as she strode up along one line of Remnant troops.

"Yeah, kill 'em all!" a Remnant shouted. "Slaughter 'em like animals!"

Hatra was surprised to see that most, if not all, of the troops were Hylians. But it was only to be expected, he supposed. These were the people who had been chased from their own city, and now they were taking revenge. He supposed he should have been outraged right now, but he had stood quietly by and watched his own side kill Hylian prisoners—civilians, even. How was _he_ any better?

"Who's in charge here?" Kaura demanded, standing between the appointed executioner and the next Legion soldier—a middle-aged man who looked ready to soil himself. The elite. Hah. "I said, who's in charge here?!" Kaura repeated.

Hatra had never seen such a thing before. A ripple of fear went through the crowds as Kaura looked them over with her terrifying gaze—which conveyed the message of "I am your worst nightmare multiplied by ten _and_ an angry woman, so you had better do what I say" quite effectively.

"Right here, ma'am," a bored-looking Hylian officer said, getting up from his seat in a doorway and trudging up to her. He was a clearly a veteran, face covered in scars from various injuries, his armour covered in dents and dried blood. "There anything I can do for ya?"

"What is this?" Kaura asked in a low voice, gesturing towards the frightened Legion soldiers and the bloodstained ground.

"Justice," the officer said, pulling a pipe out of his pocket and filling it. "A little payback for seven years of hell." He even gave a little chuckle.

"So…you would say you are in the right in doing this?" Kaura asked, voice still low.

"Certainly," the officer said.

Kaura stared at him. "Under _whose_ authority are you executing these men?"

"My own—and the people of Hyrule's," the officer replied. "I'm pretty sure even her Royal Highness would approve of this—it's _her_ people these animals have been slaughtering, after all."

There was a crack as Kaura's fist connected with the officer's jaw. He fell, armour clattering on the ground. The Remnant troops made to protest against this, but another steely-eyed gaze from Kaura shut them up immediately. They had heard stories about this one, apparently. Slowly, with great care, Kaura crouched down by the swearing officer and pulled out her scalpel and placed it nonchalantly against his throat.

"Now, I'm not too familiar with all this rank-and-file mumbo-jumbo," Kaura said, "nor am I an expert on war. But I am quite sure, captain, that executing prisoners— _wounded_ prisoners, even—is endorsed by civilised nations such as Hyrule. In fact, I am quite certain that one of the rules of war is to treat prisoners and wounded with dignity and respect and leave them unharmed until they are either ransomed or have served a certain time."

"You…you… _bitch_!" the officer—a captain, as it turned out—cursed, glaring at her.

"Indeed I am," Kaura said, "no argument there. In fact, you can ask just about any person that has met me and they will all describe me as such. You can insult me all you want, but the fact is that I am holding a scalpel—a very _sharp_ scalpel, I might add—to your throat. Now, I'm going to let you go on the condition that you move the wounded prisoners to the field hospital and the unharmed ones to a more suitable… _prison_ area, without any more executions."

"Under whose authority?" the captain demanded, acting surprisingly composed while a blade was just one jerky movement away from slitting his throat.

"Oh, I don't hold any _real_ authority over the military," Kaura said, chuckling. "But you will do it because I can make the rest of your life—which isn't very long—quite miserable. My name is Kaura, _Doctor_ Kaura, and you will do as I say unless you wish to lose your manhood within the next five seconds."

All colour drained from the captain's face as he heard the name, and he only nodded fearfully as Kaura nodded and withdrew the scalpel.

"What will you do?" she asked.

"S-stop the e-executions, t-take the w-wounded to the h-hospital and move the r-r-rest to a safe p-place," the captain said.

"Good boy," she said, patting him on the shoulder. "Also, I was wondering if you have seen a little kid coming through here. He has a ridiculous green cap on his head and a matching tunic."

"I…I…I'm not sure, ma'am," the captain said.

"Aw, that's a pity. Well, then I shall require a couple of your men to help me search for him."

"Er…er…of course," the captain said and turned to the crowd, which had fallen completely silent in the aftermath of the physician's threats. "Reg, Briar and…Zeke! Go with Doctor Kaura and do whatever she says!"

"But Captain—"one of the men began.

"Do it, damn it!"

"…yes, Captain…"

The three Hylians didn't look too happy about their new task—most of all because they had been among the soldiers who cheered for the executions, and they knew they were already on thin ice with Kaura. At least they weren't far from the fortress now.

"So what's the kid look like?" one of the soldiers asked.

"He looks like a child," Kaura said. "How many children do you think are running around this warzone, Brian?"

"Briar."

"Whatever."

That had to sting, especially since Briar was a woman. Hatra wanted to chuckle, but he highly suspected he'd be clobbered over the head—either by Kaura or Briar.

"But to answer your question, he looks like any other kid except for the stupid hat," Kaura continued. "He's short, looks about nine-ish, though he is older. He's got a way with hiding, though, so keep your eyes peeled."

"Peeling, ma'am."

Hatra chuckled this time.

* * *

The dust road leading up to the fortress had not gotten any more cheerful since the last time Hatra had followed it. The lack of an ominous and terrifying tower on the skyline was a plus, of course, but the pale bones that littered the path were still more than enough to drag anyone's good spirits down and drown them in a sea of misery. Or lava pit of burning death, he kept forgetting which.

They all stopped when they reached the crest of the small hill, however, to stare at the gigantic hole in the ground.

"Wow," one of the soldiers, Zeke or Reg, said. "The whole thing is gone."

"So that means Ganondorf is gone, right?" Briar asked. "That means the Hero of Time was successful."

"Hopefully," Kaura said with a surprising lack of annoyance. "The real question is if the Hero made it out in time along with the princess and—"she cut herself off at the end, remembering the general opinion on the Sheikah that pervaded the public opinion.

"Wait, the princess was in there?" the third soldier—again either Zeke or Reg—asked, sounding outraged. "But…why weren't we told?"

"So you'd have something to ask about," Kaura said. "Now let's go before we waste any more time on inane and useless questions. Remember, we're looking for a kid here."

They spread out as they searched along the ridge. The remains of the guard houses and other structures from seven years ago still jutted out of the ground here and there, standing witness to more peaceful times. Just beyond the old guardhouse there was a small decline leading to a small field covered in boulders, terminating in a large, pillar-like piece of mountain sticking out of the ground.

Hatra stared down, trying to spot any sort of movement. There was none. He sighed and turned around, wondering where else to search—there was limited space along the ridge—when something moved in the corner of his vision down the small hill. It disappeared before he was able to turn around fully, but that was all he needed.

He scrambled down the hill, trying not to trip over the rocks along the way. He did anyway. He came to a stop at the bottom, slowly getting back up and hurrying towards the rock he had seen the shape disappear behind.

And there he was. Tao was sitting on his knees next to the robed form of Sheik, shaking him in an effort to wake him up. Next to the Sheikah the unconscious forms of the Hero of Time and Princess Zelda lay. All three of them were deadly pale, though they seemed to be breathing. Instinct took over, and Hatra crouched down by them. Tao gave him a glare, which he ignored as he felt for their pulses. The princess had a nasty gash in her side, he noticed, though her pulse was steady, as were those of the Hero and Sheik. He sighed in relief.

"It's a good thing you ran off like that," Hatra said as he looked at the glaring Tao. "Otherwise we wouldn't have found them until much later." He briefly considered asking the boy about how he had been able to sneak through the entire city like that, but decided not to. It wasn't like Tao could answer anyway.

The boy continued glaring.

Hatra sighed. "Listen, I know you don't like me very much—hate me, actually—but I'm _really_ trying to make up for my mistakes, here. It's not much, I'm very aware of that, but if Sheik was willing to spare my life and give me a chance for redemption after hurting him, then surely you can as well."

He didn't wait for Tao to respond in any way, only turned to look back up the hill, cupping his hands to his mouth, and shouted, "Hey, everybody! I found them!" He shouted twice more for good measure and turned back to the three unconscious ones.

"And if you're wondering," he said, finally looking at Tao, who was now more preoccupied with looking worriedly at their faces, "they're fine. A bit worse for the wear, but they'll live."

There was no mistaking the thumping footsteps approaching rapidly from up the hill. The good doctor had her own _sound_. He yelped as he was unceremoniously grabbed by the scruff of his neck and tossed away from the three.

"Sorry, kid, but these are _my_ patients," Kaura declared and began checking them over. She tsk-ed. "Idiots," she whispered. "Bloody idiots…"

The three soldiers reached them now, all panting because of their heavy armour. They stared in horror at the sight.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Kaura asked, looking up at them. "Didn't you want to save the princess' life? Get to work!"

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Chapter 146**

* * *

There was a loud crack as the finger snapped into place, and the pain went all the way up his arm, causing Sheik's entire body to give a violent jerk. A yelp tried to escape his mouth, but he bit it back, though he could do little about the slight wetness in his eyes. This was almost worse than having them broken in the first place. He would never make fun of Link again when it came to things like this. He bit his lip to stop himself from crying out again when the next finger was put back in its proper position.

Kaura looked up, narrowing her eyes. "Oh, don't be such a baby," she said, pulling the third finger as she spoke to Sheik's horror. "Your boyfriend over there didn't cry out like that when I fixed _his_ hand."

Sheik looked at Link, who was sleeping in the bed next to his. The Hero had yet to wake up, though Kaura and Hatra went out of their way to assure him that there was nothing wrong—he just needed it. He looked so peaceful, his face completely calm and without a grimace, quite contrary to the conflicted and pained mask he had worn in the Chamber of Sages. It was a horrible decision he had been forced to make, but Sheik was glad—albeit slightly ashamed—that he had chosen _them_. Smiling a little to himself, he looked back at Kaura, who was preparing to reposition his fourth finger—the index one.

"If I recall correctly, he was more or less ready to throw up the entire time," Sheik said, grinning slightly. The grin faded immediately upon the fourth snap. This time, a solitary tear escaped from his eye and streaked down his cheek. He wiped it away with a huff, regretting it when his joints ached in protest of the movement. His entire body felt like just one big bruise. It looked like it too, though the red potion Kaura kept shoving down his throat was going to remedy that very soon.

Kaura didn't answer, only prepared to bend back Sheik's thumb—the one he dreaded the most. He tried to draw a deep breath, but found himself almost hyperventilating. Kaura raised an eyebrow, patiently waiting for him to calm down.

"Need a minute?" she asked. At Sheik's nod, she sighed and let go of his hand, though she did not lift it down from the rather elaborate, scaffold-like construction she had made to prevent him from doing something stupid with the injured hand. She leaned back in her chair and stared at him.

They were in Zelda's tent, which had been converted temporarily into an extension of the field hospital. The princess had not given her permission, but Kaura had not let that stop her. Sheik, Link and Zelda's beds had been placed in the bedroom—and only them. The rest of the large tent was occupied by wounded Remnant troops. Kaura had sealed off the Moronic Trio's—as she called them—section, devoting herself to them and them only, assisted by Hatra and Tao, though those two were not there at the moment. No one else was allowed in—not even Aveil, who had protested heavily but had eventually backed down due to Kaura's skills at diplomacy. Details on when exactly threats of bodily harm and the removal of certain parts became accepted as a part of diplomacy were sketchy, but it was effective.

Sheik looked to his right, where Zelda was sleeping peacefully as well.

"How is she?" he asked, his breath slowly calming down.

"I've already told you seventeen times," Kaura said, not taking her eyes off him. "That's right, I've kept count," she added when Sheik raised his own eyebrow to mirror hers. "But if it makes you feel better, she will be absolutely fine. Blood loss and a rather bad puncture wound will keep her subdued for a while, but I think she will take it as a hint to get some rest."

"That's a relief," Sheik said. "If she had died…"

"…then we would all be mourning her loss right now, yes, but she didn't," Kaura said, "so there's no point in even thinking about the scenario in which she died. So stop it." She slapped his right knee, one of the few places on his body that was not marred by some bruise or cut. Then she laughed, for some reason.

"What's so funny?" Sheik asked, not liking the physician's laugh. It reminded him of what he always imagined Death's own laughter sounded like.

"Oh, nothing," Kaura said. "Just the irony."

"What irony?"

"That you, the most injured of your three, were the first to wake up. And then, as a cherry on top, you can't stop worrying about the others, who are absolutely fine—all things considered, of course."

"Well, I'm glad I can provide you with some entertainment," Sheik said bemusedly. He rolled his eyes and looked back at Link. He wanted to kiss the Hero so badly…

Kaura made use of this moment to replace his thumb.

"You snooze, you lose," she explained after Sheik was done glaring at her. "Not really a good analogy or metaphor in this case, but I look upon every surgery and procedure's success as something to steal." She began to prod his hand, which hurt like a son of a bitch, but Sheik kept it to himself this time. She was probably looking for any unusual bumps and other things Sheik knew little about. "Let's see," she said slowly, running her finger over his knuckles, "no splinters from what I can feel…try moving your fingers."

"Er…"

"Yes, it will hurt like the very fires of hell licking at your family jewels, but I need to know if there's something wrong with your ligaments or muscles."

Sheik gave her another glare as he did his best to flex his abused fingers. And she was right—it _did_ hurt like the fires of hell were licking at his unmentionables—a word he much preferred even though it usually meant something else—but at least they moved. The movements were not graceful by any measure, but at least his fingers still worked.

"Hm, good, doesn't seem to be any serious harm done," she said, reaching for her bag. She opened it and retrieved several rolls of bandages. "I'm going to have to ask you not to move your fingers for a few weeks, though."

"Naturally," Sheik said.

"Hmph." As she carefully began to bandage the hand, she smiled—though it was a sad smile. "You know, you made everyone worry with your little 'captured by the enemy' act. For a while, I was sure you were going to die for the second damn time."

"I'm finished with dying for a while, I think," Sheik said, looking at the back of his hand. The mark of the Delta Force was gone, which made him assume that the Sages had been true to their words. "How long has it been, by the way?" he asked. "I asked about it when I woke up but you conveniently overheard it."

"About three days, I think," Kaura said, her eyes focused on the bandages. "To be honest, I lost count myself, though the sun has risen at least twice more since we found you."

"Since Tao found us, you mean," Sheik said. The summary he had been given by Kaura ten minutes after he woke up—which, again, was fifteen minutes ago—on the aftermath of the battle had been short—very short. So short, in fact, that the only thing he could say for sure was that Hatra was alive, Tao had found them and that the battle had been won. His head felt fuzzy, too, which probably accounted for a bit of the lost information.

"Yes, since Tao found you, I mean," Kaura said. "And _he_ only found you because he refused to be around Hatra, whom he supposedly hates according to a note he gave him."

"What?"

"Yeah, go figure," the physician said, shrugging. "But Tao seems to be able to work together with him now, so I suppose there's been some sort of _magical_ revelation on that end."

"What about Myde and Ayla? I seem to recall you mentioning some injury or other…"

"Yeah, the Zora broke his arm in some stupid demolition accident."

"Huh…"

"You missed a lot, kid," Kaura said, tying off the first roll of bandages.

"It appears so."

"But, on the other hand, you get to go apologising to everyone for worrying them."

"Joy of joys."

"Stop complaining and rejoice in still being alive."

Sheik gave her a disbelieving look. "You don't exactly make it sound like a good thing."

Kaura shrugged again, stretching for a bit. "What can I say; I've never been a big fan of the mushy stuff. Anyway, are there any other injuries you want me to look at? Aside from your missing tooth, of course. There's very little I can do about teeth, especially when you don't have the original one. Come to think of it, Hatra really did a number on you, didn't he?"

"It was actually Nuviro who did the worst damage, I think," Sheik said, looking pointedly at his hand. "He broke my fingers, smashed my face apart and broke my ribs. Hatra only did the most painful things."

"The cuts and the salt and the acid."

"Yes, the cuts and the salt and acid."

"Remind me to slap him again when he comes back."

"Remind yourself," Sheik said, shaking his head. At least his headache had gotten a bit less vicious. "He saved my life, and for that I forgive him."

"Awfully big-hearted of you, considering he's an enemy and all…"

"I'm not very good at holding grudges," Sheik said. "In the short time I've been travelling with Link, I've done a lot of things I never thought I'd do out of principle, such as making peace with the Gerudo, my people's sworn arch enemy, and worked together with Vorpheus, whom actively worked against Hyrule for several years… It has made me realise that grudges aren't really worth it in the end."

"Wise words from an otherwise stupid young man," Kaura said, grinning.

He ignored the jibe. "Speaking of Vorpheus…what happened to him? Did he defeat his granddaughter?"

"From what I've heard, yes, but no one has seen him," Kaura replied, starting on a second roll of bandages, wrapping them around the fingers and turning Sheik's hand into an oversized boxing glove. "There's a huge hole in the middle of one of the markets, though, and they've discovered a whole slew of natural tunnels. They're currently searching for him."

"You think he made it?" Sheik asked.

"Not a chance," Kaura said. "When I last saw him, he looked like a man who had long ago made his peace with death. He left you something, though."

"Really?" Sheik tried to sit up despite the pain. "What?"

"I'm not sure," Kaura said. "It was wrapped in cloth, but it felt like a book, or something. It's in a chest in the corner, but I'm not letting you have it until later."

Sheik looked at said chest, wondering what Vorpheus had left—though he had a feeling he already knew the answer. He sighed and looked up at the tent's ceiling. The sun was high in the sky, it seemed, and it shone slightly through the woven threads. "He saved my life."

"He did. Or, rather, he gave you your life back—you had already lost it."

"Thank you, I did not need to be reminded of that—I was _there_ , after all."

"Semantics."

"No, it's not—eugh," Sheik said, giving up. "I just…it felt like I owed him, that's all."

"His loss for not breaching the subject with you sooner," Kaura said. "You helped him with his silly project concerning the liquidation of an innocent mountain, though, that's got to be good for something."

"You know, you're awfully cynical for someone who works in medicine."

"Kid, you won't find anyone _but_ cynics in my field."

"Oh, right, it kills your soul, after all."

"Bingo."

Realising that this conversation was going nowhere quite fast, Sheik stopped talking and let Kaura finish her bandaging. There was so much to think about, so much to process, so much to…feel. He had a feeling he'd be doing it for many years to come, in fact. And Link would probably not be much better off. In fact, he'd probably have it worse, considering what he had been forced to do by the Sages. And Zelda…how would Zelda react to it? She had worked so hard for such a long time to restore everything to its former glory, only for the plan to fail miserably because of a careless arm swipe made by the monster Ganondorf had turned into. It was all the stuff of nightmares.

"Any other casualties I should know about?" Sheik asked, trying to distract himself with a _cheerier_ subject.

"Well, I can't give you any specific names, but I _do_ know that we are collectively up in the thousands, and we've got more prisoners than we know what to do with. Caught an officer doing a bit of…political cleansing while searching for you three, in fact," said Kaura.

"Zelda would never stand for that," Sheik said, shaking his head. "I assume you stopped him?"

"Stopped him? Damn near castrated him right then and there. And I reported him to the high command after we found you. The Gerudo princess took care of him, I think." She clenched a fist. "Just because they brutalised prisoners doesn't mean that _we_ have to sink to their level. That's the thing I've never understood about war—everyone claims to be of moral superiority, yet they turn around and torture, rape and murder prisoners and civilians alike."

"Not this army," Sheik said. "At least…not the majority."

"Not anymore, no," Kaura said. She didn't sound very convinced. "The commanders issued an order that forbade any sort of abuse, but I'm not so sure that everyone follows it. It's a big city, and there are a _lot_ of soldiers."

Sheik didn't reply for a while, only looked at the physician. "I wish I had something more uplifting to say, but…"

"Meh, it doesn't matter," she said. "People don't change. I can only hope that Zelda will take control of the situation when she wakes, though I doubt she'll be in any shape to do so." She finished the bandage and closed her bag, looking him over. "Well, that's it for you, I guess. You just keep drinking that potion until I say you can stop."

"Thank you," Sheik said.

"Just doing my job, I—"

Sheik stopped her with his other hand, preventing her from rising from the chair. "No, really," he said, fixing her with a stare. "You've gone beyond what your job entails. You've helped us through more than just physical injuries. If it hadn't been for you… Thank you."

Kaura actually looked embarrassed for a fraction of a second, but then covered it up with a scowl. Scoffing, she pulled her hand away from Sheik's, finally rising from her chair. "See, this is why I don't get closely acquainted with my patients. They get all friendly on you, mushy-like."

Sheik looked down at his lap. So much for finding that human streak in the physician again.

"But you're welcome anyway," she suddenly said. "I don't really believe in true love and all that crap, but what you two have is the closest thing to it I've seen yet. So why not preserve it? You're bound to screw it up later, though."

"Thanks for the confidence," Sheik said.

"Gotta be realistic, after all."

"Of course."

"I need to get some more potion and things like that. I'll be back in a little while," she said, heading for the door. "And don't you dare try to leave the bed, you hear me? I'll make you regret it if you do."

"Understood. I wouldn't be able to even if I wanted."

"Good."

What he wouldn't give for some silence. The sounds of the wounded and dying had been somewhat muted by their conversation, but now that Kaura was gone the moans hit him with full force. Just how many people were lying around them? It was impossible to tell. He could feel the sting of his headache gently resurfacing just behind his eyes. Perfect.

"…no, I don't have any more, now stop pestering me for it," a familiar voice suddenly said from somewhere out in the hall, the volume rising rapidly as they approached the room. "Hello, you remember us from last time, right? Thank you."

Sheik felt the corners of his mouth rising as Hatra and Tao entered the room, the former glaring behind them.

"Hylians can be so rude sometimes," Hatra said, still staring into the hall. Tao had stopped to stare at Sheik, who stared right on back.

"Takes one to know one, is that not what they say?" Sheik asked.

Hatra turned around much faster than Sheik expected, his eyes wide. "I didn't expect you to wake up so soon," he said.

"I didn't expect to see you walking around after the wound Nuviro gave you, so I guess we're even on the surprise front," Sheik said, nodding to him. "How are—"

It was too late. Tao took a running start and jumped up on his bed, standing above Sheik and glaring at him. Sheik blinked, looking up at the child.

"Er…I'm sorry?" Sheik tried, looking as apologetic as he could.

Tao continued to glare and leaned down, giving Sheik a light slap across the face. It was barely a touch, really, but it got the message across—don't ever do that again. Then the boy gave him a tight hug, which Sheik returned the best he could, even though it hurt like hell to do so.

"Alright, alright, get off him," Hatra said, gently picking Tao up and setting him down on the floor. "He's got dozens of injuries all over him and giving him a hug right now might not be the best idea."

Tao rolled his eyes, but stayed put.

"He's been really worried about you, you now," Hatra said, looking uncomfortable where he stood.

Sheik nodded. "So I hear. And I was told that he hates you."

"Hate is such a weak word compared to what he unleashed on me," Hatra replied, reaching over to ruffle Tao's hair, though the cap Link had given him got in the way. "He even wrote me a note."

"I don't see much of that hate now, though," Sheik said, noting how close they were standing. "I'd almost say you're acting like—dare I say it?—friends."

Hatra and Tao looked at each other, both grimacing. "Well, let's just say that we've learned to put our differences aside until you have all recovered. I am guessing that he is still going to make me pay dearly for what I did to you in the tower…" He looked at his feet, ashamed. "I…I know there is no way I can ever make up for it, but—"

"We've been over this once before," Sheik said, interrupting him. "I am alive and well, and so are the Hero and the princess. As far as I'm concerned, you and I are even. Whether or not you and the _Remnant_ are even remains to be seen, though I would say you've started making up for what you did by helping Kaura."

"I certainly hope so," Hatra said. He looked around and leaned in close, his voice barely a whisper. "Is she always scary?" he asked.

Sheik looked at Tao, who grinned. He grinned back. "You have no idea, Hatra, you truly have _no_ idea…"

"Damn, I had hoped it was just a temporary thing—like the time of the month or something," Hatra said, groaning.

"Anyway," Sheik said, patting the edge of his bed for Tao to hop up—which the boy did—and leaning back, "you two haven't been sleeping for the past three days. Would you care to fill me in on what has happened?"

* * *

Link woke up a few hours later with a mighty yawn that would have broken anyone else's jaws apart. He looked confused for a few seconds before he looked around and realised where he was.

"I don't think this is where we fell asleep," he said slowly.

"No, you decided to take a nap in a great big mud hole up at the remains of the fortress," Kaura said, already herding Hatra and the unwilling Tao out of the room. "Don't get too comfortable, Hero," she added on her way out, "I'm going to scold the hell out of you when I get back."

"Geez, can't a guy catch a break?" Link asked, looking over at Sheik. The Sheikah was reading a book the physician had been so kind as to fetch for him—speaking with Hatra and playing with Tao had gotten a bit tiring after a while. It was the kind of book that could put anyone to sleep—politics, and _lots_ of it. But it was a welcome distraction from the worry that kept creeping up on him from behind as he waited for his lover and his sister to wake up.

"Guys, yes," Sheik said, closing the book with a snap. "Heroes, no. I'm afraid you're going to be a very busy man once you have fully recovered."

"Don't remind me," Link said, stretching out. "How are you feeling?" he asked with concern when he noticed that Sheik was more or less covered in bandages from head to toe—or waist, since Sheik's blanket obscured his lower body, but even Link's scarce ability of logical deduction could imagine what lay beneath it.

"I feel like I've been chewed on and spat out several times by a dodongo," Sheik said. "And my hand is going to be useless for a while, but otherwise…well, I am no worse than many others in the camp. How about you?"

"Just tired," Link replied, preparing to toss his blanket off and swing himself out of bed. He got as far as the blanket toss before he realised that he was not wearing anything. He yelped and quickly covered himself. "Why do I always wake up naked in these beds?" he asked. "Why?"

"Because Kaura is a pervert and she secretly wants to have her way with you," Sheik said, chuckling.

Link stared at him for a few seconds before shaking his head, scoffing. "I think I'll have to start wearing a chastity belt or something…"

"…do you even know what a chastity belt is, Link?"

"No, but I assume it's harder to take off than normal underwear is, which is something I need around here, apparently."

"Hm, I suppose that is somewhat true, but I don't think you would enjoy the many spikes that are usually involved in ones meant for males."

"Sheik?"

"Yes?"

"Why do you know so much about chastity belts?"

"…no reason."

"Uh-huh."

They were skirting around the main issue—they both knew it. With a sigh, Link wrapped the blanket around himself—covering strategic parts—and got out of his bed. "How's Zelda?" he asked, looking at the sleeping princess. There was a hint of worry in his voice.

"She's fine, Hero," Sheik said, wondering why Link had gotten out of bed. He wasn't looking around for his clothes, so…

"Good, good," Link said. "That's good." He cleared his throat, obviously trying to act nonchalant but failing. "Listen…"

"We need to talk about what happened," Sheik said, nodding. "I agree."

"Scooch over," Link commanded. Sheik did so, and the Hero settled down on his bed, carefully wrapping his arm around Sheik's shoulder. The Sheikah blushed slightly. It was weird, lying like this while Zelda was in the very next bed.

"So," Link said, staring at the tent cloth. "What do you think?"

"What do I think about what?" Sheik said, suddenly finding the rough edges of his book very interesting. It was bound in leather, of all things. Who would go ahead and bind a book about politics in leather? It was ridiculous, and—

"About what I decided back there," Link said, interrupting Sheik's attempt to think about anything else. "About…everything I sacrificed…so I could be with you. What do you think?" Link's nervousness didn't show, but Sheik could feel his heartbeat speeding up—most likely in sync with his own.

"I think…" Sheik began, his voice losing strength halfway through. "I think…" he tried again. "I…I don't know what I think, Link," he finally said. "As much as I love the fact that you chose me…I'm not sure if…if…I have no idea where I am going with this." He closed his eyes and drew a deep breath, trying to still his rapidly beating heart.

"Right," Link said, nodding to himself. "I guess that's…understandable. I…I like to think I made the right decision, but if you don't think I did…no, I made the right decision, I know I did."

"Good, good," Sheik said, resting his head against Link's shoulder. "All that matters is that _you_ are comfortable."

"Yeah," Link agreed, tightening his hold on Sheik just a little. "Yeah." He glanced over at Zelda and swallowed. "Zelda's gonna kill me, isn't she?"

"Several times over, I think," Sheik said, laughing slightly to make Link realise it was a joke.

They stayed like this for a few minutes, just enjoying each other. They didn't kiss, they didn't hug…they…just were.

"We won the battle, huh?" Link suddenly asked.

"Yes, we did," Sheik answered.

"That's good."

"Mhm. But there is still much to be done."

"It never ends, does it?"

"Never ever."

"I hate being the Hero of Time."

"Will you two just kiss already? I've got a whole shitload of stuff to do!" a voice said from the hall.

"Kaura!"

* * *

It took another three days before Zelda began to show signs of waking up, stirring in her bed and mumbling in her sleep. Link and Sheik kept glancing at her, hoping for those eyelids to flutter open each time. It wasn't until well after dinner—some horrible attempt at stew by Hatra—that Zelda's eyes opened. And they didn't flutter—they slammed. She went from lying from sitting bolt upright in the span of less than a second, her eyes scanning the room as her hand went for a weapon that was not there.

Kaura pounced on her immediately, trying to reassure the princess that she was safe and sound, that everything was alright. It still didn't stop the wave of questions that flooded from Zelda's mouth as her mind tried to catch up with current events.

"What happened? Where am I? Am I dead? Where's Link? Where's Sheik? What happened? Where's Ganondorf?"

"Calm down, girl, before you hurt yourself," Kaura said firmly, holding Zelda in place by her shoulders, doing her best to stop her wound from being aggravated. "You're fine, as is Sheik and Link. The battle is over, you won."

"Sheik! Link!"

"They're sitting right over there, you daft girl," Kaura said, pointing at their beds. Link was already halfway out of his—having almost knocked Tao off since they had been in the middle of a particularly bitter game of cards. He had been supplied with a pair of tights from Kaura, luckily, so there was no embarrassing incident.

The princess' head turned so fast that Sheik was sure he could hear something snap. Her panicked expression immediately vanished when she saw the two and her entire frame almost went slack, allowing Kaura to gently ease her back into a lying position.

"I…what…when…" Zelda said, unable to figure out which question to ask first.

"Easy, Zelda, easy," Kaura said, sounding concerned. "Much has happened, and those two will fill you in as soon as they can, but for now I need you to tell me if you are hurting somewhere else."

"I…I'm not sure," Zelda said, sounding almost afraid. "I was bleeding, and…"

"Right, I see," Kaura said, nodding slowly. She looked at Hatra, who was sitting on the other side of Link's bed, also participating in the card game. "Hatra, fetch the screen, will you? I need to give her another examination, and I can't bloody well have _men_ staring at us while I do so."

"Yes, doctor," Hatra said, disappearing out the door. He returned less than a minute later, carrying the dressing screen that originally belonged in Zelda's bedroom. He quickly set it up so that it prevented the others from seeing Zelda's bed and the immediate area around it.

"And a lamp, if you would be so kind," Kaura's voice requested.

Hatra lit an oil lamp and covered his eyes as he went around the screen to hand it to her.

"We haven't started yet, you bloody fool," Kaura said. "Open your eyes before you set fire to the damn tent!"

"Sorry."

"Now go away, and keep your voices down. There's no need for this to be awkward."

Hatra returned to his seat and picked up his cards, as did Tao and Link. Sheik did his best to focus on the political climate that had nearly torn Hyrule in half five hundred years earlier, but found it difficult to wrap his head around all the names and dates.

 _Strange,_ he thought as he read, _I never had problems with remembering dates before._ He glanced over at Link, whose forehead was wrinkling as he studied his cards carefully, as if willing them to be something better. _Has he really affected me this much?_ Sheik shook his head and skipped the chapter.

"Hey, did you steal a card from me?" Hatra suddenly asked, glaring at Tao, who merely smiled innocently. "You stole a card from me, didn't you?"

"He didn't steal a card from you," Link said. "Now, are you in or out?"

"I…he…gah, I'm out," Hatra said, tossing his cards into the small pile that sat in the middle of the three. "Useless, all of them."

"Tao?" Link asked. "In or out?"

Tao grinned brilliantly and carefully laid out his own hand. Sheik didn't know the game, but he assumed it to be a rather good hand judging by the intense look of displeasure that spread on Link's face as he too tossed his cards, muttering obscenities.

"Hey, that's _my_ queen," Hatra said, pointing at one of the cards Tao had laid down. "You stole my queen!"

Tao blew a raspberry.

"That's it, you little—!"

"Will you three shut the hell up?!" Kaura asked from behind the screen. "One more peep out of you and it's scalpel time!"

"I didn't say a word," Sheik said. He refused to go down with the others.

"You did now, shadow boy!"

"Shutting up."

"Good!"

The examination took close to twenty minutes, but Kaura looked pleased as she took the screen down herself, and Zelda seemed somewhat relieved, but looked extremely tired, her eyelids continually drooping.

"She's fine," Kaura told the others. She looked at Sheik and Link. "I suppose it's time for you to catch her up on everything that happened between the time she fainted and when she woke up, hm? And I wouldn't mind hearing about it myself, if that is of no inconvenience to you."

The physician didn't really leave any room for argument as she planted herself in a chair between the beds, looking expectantly at them.

Link looked at Sheik. "Do you want to, or should I?"

"I can start, I guess…" Sheik said, closing his book yet again.

* * *

It took a lot more time to explain everything than either of them had expected, and by the time they were finished it was late. Tao had nodded off at some point or another and had been covered by Link's blanket.

Zelda was looking at her hands, wringing them. "I…I failed in my task," she said slowly, looking close to tears. "I was supposed…I was supposed to signal the sages, but I failed, and it's all my fault—"

"It's not your fault," Link said hurriedly. He seemed to want to bounce out of bed, but didn't want to disturb Tao at the same time, resulting in a sort of ridiculous half-bounce. "It's no one's fault," he clarified, looking at both Zelda and Sheik. "We screwed up the plan, but people do that all the time. Ganondorf is dead, and the Triforce has been returned to the Sacred Realm—everything is fine."

On cue, all three looked at their hands where the marks of the Triforce had once been. Or, two of them stared at their hands; Sheik stared at the mitten of bandages that encapsulated his.

"Except that Ganondorf didn't receive his due punishment, and we couldn't reverse history to avoid all this bloodshed," Zelda said, definitely in tears now. Kaura reached over and squeezed her arm, but said nothing.

Link froze with his mouth half-open. "I…"

Sheik suddenly found the loose fluff on his mitten very interesting and pulled at it. They all knew what Zelda was thinking.

"I…" Link tried again. "I guess…I made the wrong decision, then. I should have told them to take me back…so we could try again, and make it right this time."

Zelda look at him with wide eyes. "What? No, no! You definitely did not make the wrong decision. Link, I couldn't…I wouldn't dream of asking you to willingly put yourself through all that again. Please, don't ever think like that again!"

"But I thought—"

"I'm disappointed that we could not do everything as was prophesised—which just goes to show how useful prophecies are as guidelines, I guess—but…no! I've already made you—both of you—suffer enough for my mistakes. No, what is done is done, and that's all there is to it. The fault is entirely mine, and I will take the responsibility for it." She rubbed her eyes, wiping away the tears that were threatening to spill over.

"If I might make an observation," Sheik said, raising a hand. "If it was not for the fact that I did not protect you from that blow Ganondorf in his beast form gave you, then you would not have fainted from blood loss, and then you would have been able to—"

"Oh, don't even start, Sheik," Link said, carefully extracting himself from his blanket without waking Tao. "That was just as much my fault as it was yours."

"Not as much as it was mine for getting hurt in the first place," Zelda said. "I guess I'm just not that great a fighter…"

Kaura rolled her eyes. "This is like listening to a religious argument," she said, glaring at all three in turn. "Listen, you fucked up. Everybody does it from time to time. Sure, it'd have been great if all this crap could have been avoided, but you missed the chance. So what? You still gave it your all and risked your lives, trying to save this kingdom—which you did. You've saved the lives of thousands, and that ain't bad, not by a long shot."

She stood up and made paced around the room.

"In fact, sitting here and talking about who's fault it was and how miserable you all are is actually quite insulting to all those who gave _their_ lives to bring you the victory in the city. So…well, I'm not going to say turn those frowns upside down, but stop moping about like a bunch of sour grapes and enjoy the peace you've created, alright? For pity's sake, you're not even twenty years old and you sound like jaded old fossils speaking of the good old days—which for some reason never sound that good."

Pausing, she looked at the three. "Eugh, what I'm trying to say is that you did great—all of you—and I…well, I'm proud of you, for what it's worth—which is probably nothing." The good doctor then did something none of them had seen her do before—she blushed.

Sheik, Link, Zelda and Hatra stared at her. That was the most words Kaura had ever spoken to them at one time, and the sight of her reddened cheeks, which only got redder and redder as they continued to stare, was...mortifying. Link was the first to break the silence, a fiendish grin spreading on his face, which Sheik decided could only spell trouble.

"Aw, we love you too, Kaura," he said.

All hell broke loose.

* * *

By the seventh day, exactly one week after the Moronic Trio had been found by the remains of Ganondorf's fortress, the Remnant—soldiers and civilians alike—were growing weary of not being able to see their heroes. People were chanting Zelda and Link's names—noticeably leaving Sheik's out, much to Link's annoyance, though Sheik himself didn't mind. He wasn't interested in drawing anyone's attention beside Link's.

Kaura fiercely resisted the masses and their demands, but even the vicious physician had to yield eventually, especially when Zelda said that she felt well enough to walk around. That was when Kaura had finally allowed the high command of the Remnant—at least those who could fit inside the tent—to enter the room.

A smile tugged at the corners of Sheik's mouth as he watched Aveil and Zelda barely being able to restrain themselves from jumping into each other's arms, conversing politely and inserting barely veiled innuendos and euphemisms that would have made the gathered officers blush if they had realised just what the two princesses were speaking about.

After wishing the princess a speedy recovery and promising her a full tactical and strategic summary as soon as she felt well enough, it was Link's turn to be congratulated. The Hero had been growing restless, wishing for the open air again instead of the stuffy tent, but Kaura had strictly forbidden him from leaving for some reason or other.

Link was given a much rougher and manly treatment than Zelda had. He was slapped on his back, shoulders—someone even gave him a headbutt, though the offender disappeared in the crowd of officers. Many hands demanded to be shaken. There were rousing cheers and promises of being made an officer in different companies should he decide to join the army and so on and so forth. Link was barely able to survive the ordeal, freezing his face in a mask of polite smiles and nods.

Sheik watched the spectacle in amusement, wondering just how uncomfortable they would be able to make Link before he demanded that they go away or something similar.

"Hiya, rookie," Aveil suddenly said, planting herself on the edge of his bed, having temporarily left Zelda at the mercy of a particularly enthusiastic Zora general—or colonel. Some sort of officer anyway. "Couldn't help but notice that you look the worst out of the three."

"That is what I get for letting myself get captured by the enemy, I suppose," Sheik said, raising his mitten-clad right hand in greeting. "Torture and merry bloodshed all around."

Aveil stared at him for a few seconds. "You have a really morbid sense of humour, you know that?"

"So I've been told."

"Heh. So how are you, Sheik-sama? I can't help but notice that you are being left completely alone while Zelda and the Hero are smothered in congratulations and praise." She looked around the room. "It's like you don't even exist to them."

"I'm a Sheikah," Sheik said simply. "I don't exist. But the Zoras are giving me a few nods, so I suppose they are acknowledging that I saved their princess shortly before she ascended." He returned a barely perceivable nod one of the piscine generals was giving him.

"You may be a Sheikah, but from what Zelda told me you've been an invaluable part of our victory in the city, both in the battle itself _and_ the death of Ganondorf." She leaned forward; looking at the healing bruises and cuts on his face. "Is it really so bad to wish for _some_ recognition?" she asked.

"I don't want it," Sheik said.

"Why not? It could give the Sheikah a better name and reputation…"

"My race is all but dead, Princess. What does our reputation matter when there are none of us left alive? Besides, Hylians will always be distrustful of us—nothing will change that. If you haven't noticed, it is really only the Hylians who ignore me completely—the others acknowledge me as part of the background, at least."

"And there's that awful pessimism a boy your age should not exhibit," Aveil said, sighing.

"It has served me well along with my scepticism," said Sheik, finally noticing that something was amiss with the group of officers—or, rather, _someone_. "I can't help but notice the absence of two officers," he said. "Where's General Myde and Ayla?"

"Well, I know that Myde is in the infirmary with a thoroughly broken arm," Aveil said, making humming sounds. "As for Ayla…well, she seems pretty much attached to Myde's hip these days, so I suppose she won't be too far from the infirmary either—if not in the very middle."

"How did he break his arm?" Sheik asked, wondering if he and the Zora general had something in common when it came to breaking parts of their bodies.

"He fell off a roof, I think," Aveil said.

Sheik couldn't help but snort at the mental image of the serious young man tumbling off Castle Town's skyline.

"That's what I said," Aveil said, adding her own, very un-ladylike snort. "Not the most gracious fellow in the world, that one."

"I'm just glad they made it," Sheik said. "They are…quite special, those two."

"Tell me about it," Aveil said. "You should have seen Ayla when she was just a kid, she was—"

"Alright, alright, alright!" Kaura shouted suddenly, tapping her foot impatiently on the floor. "That's quite enough back-slapping and hand-crushing! I want you all out of my infirmary immediately! These people are still injured!"

The crowd, including Aveil, tried to protest, but they were silenced immediately by Kaura's scowl, which was laced with acid-like qualities. One last round of congratulatory cheers and handshakes for Link and Zelda and disguised nods to Sheik was called before they were all hounded outside by Kaura.

"Can you believe it?" Zelda said after something resembling silence had fallen upon the room again, looking at Link, who was still just wearing a pair of tights and no shirt. "Can you believe it?" she repeated.

Link looked at the floor for a bit before shaking his head. "No, I can't," he said.

"That the war is over?" Sheik asked. "I can. In fact, I'm desperately wishing for it not to be a dream and—"

"No, not _that_ , you idiot," Zelda said, marching over to Sheik and lightly smacking him on a spot on his shoulder that wasn't covered in cuts or bruises. "The officers!"

"What about them?"

"They didn't even thank you," Link said, quickly moving to the other side of Sheik's bed. They loomed over the Sheikah like two very scary monsters, looking ready to explode at any moment.

Sheik sighed, rolling his eyes. "Not this again. Not you too. Aveil was bad enough…"

"Sheik, I know you don't want to be the centre of attraction, but you have to take _some_ credit here," Zelda said. "Without you, both Link and I would be dead by now, and Hyrule would no longer exist."

Link opened his mouth to add something, but Sheik silenced them both with a glare. He had just about had it with people who demanded things like this of him. "Listen, I appreciate that you want me to be honoured, but I do not want it, nor do I need it."

"You can't just sit there and—"Link began.

"Yet I _am_ just sitting here," Sheik interrupted. "And I do not feel like arguing with either of you about this." With that, he opened his book and began to read, trying not to let the fact that both Zelda and Link were staring at him like he had just slapped them. He heard—and ignored—their stuttered attempts at coming up with good reasons and arguments, though they gave up after a while. He smiled to himself.

 _Let_ them _have the misery of being heroes,_ he thought.

* * *

"Your Highness," General Kato said, bowing deeply. "It is good to see you up and about again."

"Thank you, General," Zelda said, nodding. The wound had left her with a slight limp, which had caused her to opt for her leather armour—which was easier to move in—rather than any of her dresses for the meeting. Link and Sheik were hovering behind her. Link was fully decked out in his equipment, having scrounged up a green tunic somewhere, though he had not been able to find another cap, luckily.

Sheik was dressed in a simple, loose cotton shirt and a pair of unflattering pants and sandals. He was still in the category of _injured_ , so he had not been given any weapons or armour—and yet Zelda had insisted on his presence at the meeting. He _had_ , however, been given a cloth to tie in front of his face to hide it. He had forgotten how much _safer_ he felt with something hiding his identity from others, even though his eyes always gave him away.

They were gathered in a wall-less tent that had been set up on the crest of the hill overlooking the Castle Town gates—or what remained of them, anyway.

The city itself was a mess—many buildings had collapsed under the combined artillery fire of both the Remnant and Legion catapults, others had been undermined by the Legion in order to trap and kill Remnant troops that entered them and some had simply…degraded over time with no maintenance. Many streets were completely blocked by rubble and would take weeks to clear. In fact, the only part of the city that was up to any sort of code was the slave quarters, into which—naturally—the slaves had moved back, though they took to their living quarters a bit more positively this time. The military were still camped out in front of the gates.

They took ten minutes to meet and greet each other properly again, introducing the new officers who had replaced those who died during the assault and such and such. And then came the reports.

Damage reports, casualty reports, treasury reports, supply reports, report reports…an everlasting stream of numbers, worries and woes that could put anyone to sleep. It certainly put the Hero to sleep. He was subtly leaning against Sheik, eyes closed and mouth slightly open. Sheik thought about waking him up, but decided not to when he thought about how grumpy he would be.

It had taken Sheik another three days to finally be able to vault himself out of bed, and even then he had been slightly shaky. But then the matters of the Remnant became too pressing for Zelda to ignore any longer, at which point she had admitted she did not feel strong enough to face everything on her own. Who was Sheik to deny her his support at the meeting?

Her bodyguard, of course, which would have put him in a very awkward position if he refused.

So there he was, barely able to support a subtly sleeping Hero of Time who was leaning against his left side while he listened to an officer rattling off numbers like it was the national pastime and something to be excited about. So far there had only been depressing numbers, ugly numbers.

"…and that is the conclusion of the statistics, Your Highness," the officer said, stepping back.

The princesses and generals had gathered around a table on which a map of Hyrule had been placed. The southern half was still filled in with red ink, which meant it was still dangerous there, though Sheik struggled with remembering why. He still wasn't at his mental peak yet, the punches from Nuviro having scrambled his brains something fierce.

"Very informative, Lieutenant," General Kato said, barely suppressing a yawn. "Now, I would like to remind you all that this war is far from over."

"Indeed," Aveil said, her hand tapping the red-inked part of the map. "There is still the matter of three legions rooting around in the Lost Woods."

 _Oh, right,_ Sheik thought, the pieces falling into place again. _Damn_.

"We cannot fight them," Zelda said, looking at the map. "Am I right?" She let her eyes roam around the military leaders in the tent.

"That is correct, Your Highness," General Kato said, his counterpart conspicuously missing. "At the moment, with our number of wounded and dead, we don't stand a snowball's chance in Death Mountain to fight off three entire legions of rested mercenaries."

"Even though they are the least experienced legions, their troops outnumber us by at least five to one," said a Zora general. "They cannot match us in quality, but since we do not have a properly fortified position to defend, only quantity and endurance will matter—neither of which _we_ can match."

"It is only a matter of time before some smartarse down there realises that something's happened up here," Aveil said. "And once those boys and girls start marching, nothing is going to stop them. They will run us down and slaughter us all."

"So what do we do?" Zelda asked, her good mood quickly fading along with Sheik's. "If we cannot fight them…negotiation? They certainly haven't tried to negotiate with _us_ the past seven years."

"Only because they were obeying Ganondorf's—"

A small hiss went through the officers, and Kato rolled his eyes.

"Only because they were obeying the Bastard Usurper's orders," he said again, still not able to adjust to Ganondorf's new nickname which, admittedly, was not very creative or catchy. "Now that they have no paying master, they might be more open to the idea of parley."

"Unless they see our weakness as an opportunity to finish us off and claim Hyrule as their own," Zelda said, pinching the bridge of her nose. Sheik wanted to do the same, but his left hand was occupied with holding Link up and his right…well, that was still enclosed in a cocoon of bandages. "Mercenary nations have existed before, after all."

"We will just have to make them an offer they can't refuse," Aveil said. "Perhaps some territories—"

"Unacceptable," Kato said. "We have not fought for seven years only to give away parts of our lands to those who stood against us. No, no territories."

"Money, then," Zelda said. "We give them…we give them half of the treasury to go away. That's enough money to support their men for several years at the least."

"We need that money to rebuild, though," a Hylian officer said, looking around hesitantly. "Our infrastructure's in shambles, and there are no crops to speak of. We need it to buy food and building materials…"

"Then what can we possibly give them?" Zelda asked. "The prisoners…well, that will only happen if they agree to leave."

"And they will only be released in smaller groups. Letting over a thousand men go at one time will only invite trouble," Aveil said. "And they will be escorted to the borders under heavy guard too."

"Then…we have nothing to offer them," Kato said, sighing. "At least nothing they will take."

"Or maybe they will see no point in fighting us anymore and simply leave," Aveil said, shrugging. "Perhaps they will find it too troublesome to deal with."

"If we ignore the possibility that someone in the leadership has personal grudges against us," Zelda said. She straightened herself and fiddled with the pommel of her new sword. It was of a simple, undecorated design, but it was perfectly balanced and that was all she needed. "We have no more money to spare; we will not give up any territories that are ours by right, we…" She trailed off, mouth frowning as she realised the stupidity of the situation.

"We still don't know if they will be hostile to towards us, though," Sheik said, finally deciding to pipe up when he had remembered something that could be relevant. "If we approach them before they approach us…maybe they will be willing to talk. And I seem to remember a certain warlock never picking up his reward—a reward that is worth…quite a bit."

"The cart with the gold and rupees," Zelda said, remembering the reward she had promised Vorpheus. The reward the ancient man had never had the opportunity to pick up. "Yes…that's not part of the treasury tally, correct?" she asked the officer with the numbers, who shook his head. "Then we can use that to bribe them."

"We still need to make contact before we can make promises, however," Aveil said. "And that will take days even with our fastest horses."

"No," Sheik said, knowing how ridiculous he must have been looking with Link's head lolling onto his shoulder. "It won't." He looked at Zelda, who was already realising what he was aiming at. "Do we have any deku nuts?"

* * *

"I don't like this," Link said as he and Sheik walked through the camp. "I don't like the idea of you going down there alone."

"Neither do I, to be quite honest," Sheik said. "But that's the best option we have."

Everywhere they went they—or Link—was greeted by cheers and whoops, though few dared to approach the Hero because of his companion.

Zelda had dismissed the meeting a few hours ago to prepare for the negotiation, sending word to the ones who guarded Vorpheus' reward to move it closer to the southern border. While they waited for the reply, Sheik was free to rest and prepare for the mission as he saw fit, though he was regretting the idea of taking a walk at the moment. Not for the glares and looks of mistrust he was receiving from the people around them, but for the way they annoyed Link.

"What if they attack?" Link asked, glancing worriedly at Sheik. "What if they decide negotiations aren't worth it?"

"Then I will simply teleport away, Link," Sheik said, showing the Hero one of the deku nuts Zelda had been able to scrounge up for him. He had five more in the pockets of his shirt. He was also armed with a pair of dagger stuck in his belt, just in case. "Nothing will happen to me, I promise you that."

"You say that every time, though," Link said, giving him a doubtful look. "And look what happened last time."

"A mere oversight," Sheik said.

"Where are we going, anyway?" the Hero asked.

"I am going to see a few friends of mine," Sheik said, grinning as he saw a large crowd of Hylian, Goron, Gerudo and Zora soldiers approaching them, arms already waving at the Hero of Time. He stepped slightly away from Link and put his healthy hand on the Hero's back, pushing him forward. "You, on the other hand, are going to be congratulated and celebrated. I'll see you when I get back." With a final shove, Link disappeared amongst the soldiers, who swallowed him up like a whirlpool of hands that wanted to touch the Hero of Time.

Nodding to the Gerudo and Zora soldiers who saw him, he took a left turn and headed for the field hospital, which had been expanded even more after the battle.

It took him a good twenty minutes, but he finally located the people he wanted to see—who were not even on the field hospital's grounds, but out on the field itself—and his jaw fell open.

Myde and Ayla was sharing a tender kiss, sitting under a slowly dying tree in the bright noon sun, a blanket protecting them from the chill. The Zora's arm was in a sling and was covered in a cast—making Sheik wonder why _he_ hadn't gotten a cast for his hand—but he seemed no worse for the wear. He slowly approached them, a grin forming on his face. He had _never_ seen this coming. When the two didn't notice him standing mere feet away from them, he cleared his throat loudly.

"I'm quite sure interspecies relationships violate some sort of natural law," he said.

Ayla and Myde blushed as they hastily withdrew from each, though the embarrassment was quickly covered up. They both rose, smiling at Sheik. Ayla assaulted him with a tight hug that left him gasping for air while Myde shook his hand vigorously.

"I was so worried about you," Ayla said, kissing Sheik on the cheek. "You look like hell," she added immediately after, looking him up and down.

"We thought we would never see you again," Myde chimed in. "What happened after you were captured?"

"Apart from the obvious?" Sheik asked, holding up his broken hand. "I suppose I can give you an abridged version…"

It was an incredibly short version he gave them, though they understood just how visceral everything had been, and when he reached the part where the island collapsed, their eyes were wide.

"That's…that's incredible," Ayla said. "I didn't think Ganondorf possessed such power."

"The Triforce of Power helped him a lot, I gather," Myde said. "And…that thing is now safely sealed away?"

"Apparently," Sheik said. "Though I am not entirely sure where the Sages have put the entrance to the Sacred Realm this time, or what functions as the key. Link still has the Master Sword, so they must have moved it."

"Huh," Ayla said. "Maybe it's for the best that no one knows where the Triforce is. We've seen enough war over it to last us several generations, I think."

"Agreed," Myde said. Sheik didn't miss the arm he subtly wrapped around the Gerudo's middle.

"So, how did this happen?" Sheik asked, gesturing towards the pair of them.

"Oh, it just happened, really," Ayla said, bumping shoulders with the Zora. "Though he wasn't too happy about it at first."

"Would _you_ appreciate it if I called you Fishie and Trouty and things like that?" Myde asked.

"First I'd wonder what the hell you were smoking since I'm not even _vaguely_ fish-like, Trouty," Ayla said, giggling at the grimace that crossed Myde's face. "They're just charming nicknames meant for fun, Myde. Anyway," she said and looked at Sheik, "you said this violated some sort of natural law? I can't really say that you and the Hero are any better. He's a Hylian and you're a Sheikah. Technically, you're members of different species too."

"Perhaps," Sheik said slowly, realising that he had never thought about him and Link in that way. "But we are physically similar enough to—"

"I don't see any long ears or blue eyes on you, kid," Ayla said, reaching over to flick Sheik's earlobe. "But if you're going after physical similarity…well, I've got two arms, legs, eyes, ears. One mouth, one nose, one set of genitals. Myde has the same, and that's all we need!"

"Forget I said that," Sheik said, not wanting certain mental pictures to appear before his mind's eye. They did anyway, and they were _horrible_. "Anyway," he said, trying to distract himself, "did your sister get out?" he asked Myde.

"I did," said a loud voice right behind Sheik, causing him to start. He turned around and came face to face with a rather strange creature. She looked like a Zora, but she had peach-coloured skin like a Hylian, and her head was covered in soft, brown hair. She had fins just like Myde's on her lower arms, though they were same colour as her skin, and her exposed midriff revealed the gills of a Zora just below her ribs. A strange tattoo wrapped around her right arm in a spiral-like design. She smiled up at Sheik. "You must be the Sheikah Myde and Ayla's been worried about."

"Yes, I am," Sheik said after overcoming his initial confusion about the girl. He offered his hand, but Thea gave him a quick hug instead, giggling.

"Handshakes are so impersonal, don't ya think?" she asked.

"I suppose so," Sheik replied, unable to figure out just what Thea was. Well, the most obvious answer was a hybrid of some sort, but he couldn't just blurt out the question either…

"And before you ask," Myde said behind him, voice level, "we don't know either. And we don't like to talk about it."

"Then I shan't ask," Sheik said, smiling at Thea. "It's nice to meet you. Myde kept talking about you the entire time we were in the city."

"Oh, no," the general said, groaning. Sheik was about to ask what was wrong when Thea flew past him and pounced on her brother, nearly taking him to the ground. She somehow managed to wrap her arms around his neck and swing herself onto his back, forcing him to give her a piggyback ride.

"Tally-ho!" Thea called, digging her heels into his side.

"My arm is broken!" Myde exclaimed, trying to shake her off, though she stubbornly hung on, making it look like some twisted rodeo.

"You love meeeeeeee, I love youuuuuuuu, we're a loving familyyyyyyyy!" Thea sang.

Ayla came to join Sheik in watching the spectacle, chuckling to herself.

"What exactly am I looking at?" Sheik asked.

"A brother and a sister reunited after seven long years of misery," Ayla answered, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Although the brother isn't too big on public displays of affection, which is why we chose to kiss under that three, where no one else could see us."

Sheik laughed. "So I heard he broke his arm while falling off a roof?"

"Nah, that was _after_ he broke his arm," Ayla said. "The break happened after a building collapsed on top of him after it was hit by artillery fire. Took him a good while to crawl out again."

"Do I even want to know what you guys were up to?"

"Probably not."

Myde tripped over his own feet and chewed some grass. Thea laughed hysterically and continued to harass him, urging him to continue the piggyback.

"So how come you're all decked out for a fight?" Ayla asked, looking at his daggers. "I thought you were going to spend several years recovering from these things. Look, your hair is even turning black."

"I'm being sent on a diplomatic mission, in fact," Sheik said, ignoring the mention of more black hairs. "In case you don't remember, we have still got three entire legions searching for the Remnant in the Lost Woods."

"Oh, right," Ayla said. "So…are you going to assassinate the leaders, or…?"

"Didn't I say I was going on a diplomatic mission?"

"Yeah, but when you're around, the word 'diplomatic' turns into something violent."

"Fair enough. But I'm actually going to negotiate for and possible bribe the legions to leave Hyrule and never come back." He shifted his stance. His hip still hurt a bit and standing still for too long made it ache.

"Think they'll go for it?"

"I doubt it, but we might as well try."

"Gah!" Myde exclaimed, desperately trying to shake Thea off.

"I think your boyfriend needs your help," Sheik said, laughing once more.

"So do I. I guess you've got stuff to do as well," Ayla said, already heading towards the siblings. "Good luck with the negotiations," she said over her shoulder.

"Thanks," Sheik said. Then he raised his voice. "Good to see you again, Myde! And nice to meet you, Thea!"

"Bye, Sheik!" Thea called. Myde was barely able to raise an arm.

As he walked away, Sheik noticed a small dot in the sky flying in circles above him. A sharp cry pierced the air, and he smiled as he recognised it. Kaiza tore down towards him, not slowing down until she was only a few feet away, lightly touching down on his outstretched arm. Sheik's smile grew as he continued to walk. "Hey, girl. It's been a while. Missed me?"

Kaiza nipped at his fingers as he tried to stroke her head, which took as an affirmative answer.

"So what have you been up to, besides getting into the falconer's hair?" he asked, noticing that Kaiza had a piece of paper tied around her leg. He clumsily opened it with one hand and read.

_**Sheik,** _

_**It's time. Report to the command tent for final briefing.** _

_**-Zelda** _

"Heh, time to risk my life again," Sheik said as Kaiza relocated herself onto his shoulder, where her talons dug painfully into his skin, though he tolerated it—mostly because trying to remove her would remove most of said skin in the process.

* * *

"Right, you'll touch down a mile or so away from the tree line," Zelda said, pointing at a small x on the map, in the middle of the red zone. "You've been there before—it is close to the rock shaped like an octorok, remember?"

Sheik nodded. "I remember. I can still picture it in my mind." Kaiza cooed on his shoulder, looking ready to fall asleep.

"They will definitely have posted sentries there in case the entire legions themselves are in the forest," Zelda continued. "Just wave the flag, demand parley and surrender your weapons if they ask you to—but keep a deku nut fisted just in case."

"Understood," Sheik said, slinging the backpack over his shoulder.

"And it is _imperative_ that the new commander of the legions sign the treaty," the princess continued, rolling together a piece of parchment. She put it in a tube and shoved it down Sheik's backpack, which contained more deku nuts and a white cloth flag—the symbol of peace. He hoped the legions recognised it. "It may be a mere formality, but if they betray us later we can use the broken treaty to convince other nations to not harbour them—perhaps they can even help us getting rid of them once and for all."

"Other nations," General Kato said, snorting. "They sure didn't come to our aid during the war—"

"Because of the veil, yes," Zelda said, cutting off the general. "But now that the veil is down, they should be able to help us. I've already sent messenger birds to all known allies of Hyrule. They must be wondering what has happened. I know Termina will at least provide us with supplies and food for the people."

Sheik decided it was time to go before any political debates could swallow him up. "I suppose I should go before the sun goes down—"

"I'll walk you out," Zelda exclaimed, just as eager to escape the debate as he was.

They walked a distance away from the tent and stopped. From the hill, they could see the massive town of tents that had been springing up the entire week. There more people outside Castle Town than in it, but that would change as soon as they were able to secure more buildings and repair the streets.

"I wish I could send someone else," Zelda said, sounding uncertain. "After putting you through so much, it feels horrible to make you do this as well."

"I don't mind, really," Sheik said, smiling at his surrogate sister. "The sooner we can get the legions to leave the better. Besides, I know when I'm overplaying my hand. If they show any sign of aggression, I'll leave." He moved his shoulder to wake up Kaiza, who took off with a dissatisfied cry and perched herself on Zelda's shoulder instead. The princess grimaced slightly as the talons dug into her shoulder—not enough to draw blood, but enough to cause quite a bit of discomfort.

"Good," Zelda said through a groan.

"Alright, Kaiza, leave her alone," Sheik said, giving the falcon a stern look until she relaxed her grip. Then he smiled at Zelda and nodded. "I'll be careful, don't worry."

"That's what you said last time," the princess said, frowning.

Sheik rolled his eyes. "Have _some_ faith in me, please. Seven years, and I screwed up _once_."

"Twice if you count the time you died," Zelda said.

"Okay, twice. But that's it. It'll be fine." He let his fingers roam over the knobbly surface of the deku nut he had in his hand. "Step back, please."

Zelda did so and watched him with a neutral expression as he threw it to the ground, where it exploded in a bright flash, temporarily blinding her. When she opened her eyes again, Sheik was gone, the only thing left behind being the sandal prints in the dusty grass.

"Come back, Sheik," she said, groaning when Kaiza decided to grip harder now that her other master was gone.

* * *

His head spun for a few seconds and everything was dark. All that could be heard was a deafening roar and the wind that whipped by.

And then it was over. Things stopped spinning immediately and everything went quiet. Sheik opened his eyes and looked around. He was standing on the top of a hill overlooking the entrance to the Lost Woods, a few hundred yards away from a large rock that was indeed shaped like an octorok. The sun was still high in the sky, warming only slightly as the world turned cooler in the face of the approaching winter.

He took a few seconds to realign himself with the idea that he had just moved many miles in the matter of a few seconds and then began to fish out the peace flag. He unfurled it and looked towards the tree line, hoping to spot a Legion scout. There were none.

Sighing, he began to trudge down the hill, realising that he actually had to _look_ for the damn legions. He headed west along the woods, hoping he would stumble upon a camp or something.

At least it was quiet. The Remnant camp was just one big maelstrom of noise, forever harrowing his ears and making him tired. He couldn't for the life of him understand how Link could stand it—his ears must have amplified the sound tenfold.

"Freeze," a male voice suddenly said among. It seemed to come from somewhere among the trees. Sheik stopped walking, but kept the white flag aloft—visible and non-threatening. "Who are you? What are you doing here?" the voice asked. The voice was accompanied by the familiar sound of straining bowstrings. He had walked right into an ambush.

"I am here—"Sheik began.

"Turn around!" the voice demanded. "Slowly."

Sheik slowly pivoted, looking down at his feet. The later he had to reveal his eyes, the better. If these were Legion troops—which was very likely—they'd shoot him on sight when they saw he was a Sheikah.

"I come in peace," he said, giving the flag a bit of a jiggle, just to get the point across. "I bear a message from Princess Zelda of the Hyrule intended for the commander of the Legion."

"The commander's in Castle Town," the voice said. "Nuviro is the one you want." The voice belonged to a man—a young one, by the sound of it, but he spoke with the kind of confidence one acquires through hardship and war.

"Nuviro is dead," Sheik said, slowly looking up, hoping that the revelation would shock his ambushers into…well, _not_ shooting him. "As is Amel. Whoever is in charge of the Third Legion is now the commander."

There were four of them, all dressed in light, black-dyed scout clothing. They all had their bows trained on him, but the strain lessened after hearing the names. Their leader—a Hylian who must have been around twenty-five, maybe, was too focused on looking at Sheik's eyes to care, however.

"You're that Sheikah," he said slowly, pulling his bowstring further back, aiming directly at Sheik's chest. "You've been murdering our officers through the entire war!"

"So I have," Sheik said, again giving the flag a jiggle. "But now I come in peace. The Remnant has taken Castle Town back. The First and Second Legions have been wiped out. Ganondorf is dead, his fortress lies in ruins. And I bear a message for the commander of the Third Legion."

"You're here to assassinate him, you mean," the leader said, narrowing his eyes. "Under the guise of peace."

"Believe me," Sheik said, "if I wanted any of you dead, I would come during the night and slit your throats in your sleep. Why would I come here in broad daylight carrying a flag like this?"

"If you're here in peace, then why are you armed?" another scout asked.

"You are more than welcome to disarm me," Sheik said, keeping his grip on the flag, far away from the daggers' handles.

"Do it yourself," the leader said. "But slowly."

"How do I know you won't shoot me once I drop the flag?" Sheik asked. "You Legion soldiers have never shown yourselves to be big proponents of the rules of war."

"You have my word that we won't shoot you unless you try something funny," the leader said.

"And you have mine that I won't try something funny," Sheik said as he dropped the flag and slowly pulled his daggers out of the belt and dropped them on the ground. He was taking one hell of a risk, he knew, but he was confident in his ability to quickly pull the deku nut out of his pocket and make a snappy getaway. "Now," he said, "will you please stop aiming those at me?"

"No," the leader said.

"The rules of war—"

"Sod the rules of war. You're a known enemy assassin, and I'm not taking my eyes—or weapons—off you for one second."

"Very well," Sheik said, sighing. "Then I demand that you take me to your commander so that he may hear the message from the princess."

"Sarge, we're not really believing him, are we?" a scout asked.

"We have to," the leader—Sarge, apparently—said. "This could be vital. Fine, Sheikah, we will take you to Commander Riner, but you had better be on your best behaviour. What's in your pack?"

"The message, a bag containing Amel's head and a bunch of nuts—for a snack. Wouldn't want to go hungry, after all, ha-ha."

"Ha-ha," the leader said. He made to search through Sheik's backpack, but decided not to, for some reason. He picked up the white flag, checked it and handed it back to Sheik. "Best behaviour, yeah?"

"Best behaviour," Sheik replied.

"Alright. The camp's a mile or so right ahead. Walk slowly, don't make any sudden movements and don't you dare go back on your word or we'll fill your back with arrows."

"Understood," Sheik said and began to walk.

The camp was less than a mile away. Unlike the Remnant, the Legion preferred sleeping without tents. It was easier to pack up camp if there were no complicated structures to take down. In fact, there was _one_ tent, and that belonged to the commanders. The camp was surprisingly small considering the number of men that comprised the three remaining legions, but Sheik supposed the rest were out in the forest, searching for the Remnant. The few soldiers that remained in the camp gave Sheik strange looks as he was marched towards the large tent—hostile looks. He did his best to look harmless.

"Halt," one of the guards in front of the tent said, stepping forwards. "What've you got there, Sergeant Nar?"

"Sheikah messenger, sir," the leader—Nar—said. "Claims he brings a message from Princess Zelda."

"I invoke the right of parley," Sheik said calmly. His heart was beating insanely fast, but otherwise…he felt serene. Maybe he was still riding high on the victory over Ganondorf. "I demand to speak with Commander…Riner, was it?"

"Speaking," a voice from within the tent said. "Let them in, Quarl."

"Yes, sir," the guard said, stepping aside to let Sheik and Nar inside.

Commander Riner was a fat man. A very fat man. He was as wide as Nuviro had been tall, though it produced a far less threatening effect. And he looked nothing like a soldier. In fact, he looked more like a kind, grandfatherly man. He was not wearing armour, preferring a set of loose-fitting robes that accentuated his portly frame. He was sitting behind a desk on which lay piles and piles of paper, most of them drawn maps of the Lost Woods which made Sheik smirk.

"Drawing maps of the Lost Woods is an effort in futility," Sheik said, not giving the commander a chance to greet him. "It is alive, ever changing. It will never look the same twice."

"So I have learned," Riner said, sweeping the maps off his desk. "And searching for your army is not an easy task either." He stood up and walked up to Sheik, studying him closely. "Are you the Sheikah who has been assassinating my officers left and right? The one who has thwarted our efforts for so many years?"

Sheik swallowed. "I am he."

He expected many things of the commander, but not for the outstretched hand.

"It is an honour to speak with the last member of the Sheikah tribe," Riner said. "Let me take that," he said, taking the flag so that Sheik could shake his hand. "A true honour."

"You…don't hate me?" Sheik asked, surprised. "You don't want my head on a plate?"

"Well, the fact that we are on opposite sides require that I wish your head on your plate, but since you've invoked the right of parley…" Riner trailed off, letting Sheik interpret the answer. "But no, I do not hate you, not personally. I respect you as a great warrior, and I admire your people and their adherence to the code."

"Code?"

"The code of the warrior, of course. Strength and honour before all."

Riner sat down behind his desk again, gesturing for Sheik to sit down in the chair before it. "Sergeant Nar, you are dismissed."

"But sir, what if he's lying and attacks you?" Nar said, sounding quite nervous.

"Have you disarmed him, sergeant?" Riner asked.

"Yes, sir, but—"

"Then you may leave. The Sheikah will not attack me unless I give him good reason to, am I correct?"

"You are correct," Sheik confirmed.

Nar tried to protest, but clamped his mouth shut and stormed out before he could actually say anything. Riner shook his head.

"Promising lad, but so impatient and brash," the commander said. He looked at Sheik with surprisingly friendly eyes. "Now then…er…I do not believe I caught your name…"

"You did not," Sheik said. "My name is Sheik."

"Ah, Sheik, Sheikah, hah, how practical," Riner said, smiling. "What have you come here for, Sheik? You had a message from the good princess, I understand?"

"Indeed," Sheik said, opening his backpack with slow movements as to not startle the commander and pulling out the scroll Zelda had given him. He handed it to Riner, who unfurled it and began to read. "It is quite long," Sheik explained, "but the summary is that Castle Town has been taken by the Remnant, Commanders Nuviro and Amel are dead, the First and Second Legions have been defeated and disbanded and that Ganondorf is dead."

"I see," Riner said slowly, reading each and every word carefully. "And you are…willing to let us leave Hyrule in peace _and_ pay us a large amount of money—enough to feed us for several years—if we stop fighting you…"

"That is the gist of it, yes," Sheik said, feeling his hopes rising. Riner seemed to be a reasonable man, unlike Amel and Nuviro. He shuddered at the thought of the latter, and his fingers stung in agreement.

"You do realise that this is quite hard for me to swallow without any proof," Riner said, looking at Sheik over the edge of the parchment. "For all I know, you could still be hiding in the forest…"

Sheik said nothing and continued rummaging in his pack until he found another scroll. He handed it Riner. "This contains the signatures and admissions of defeat from twelve high-ranking officers in the First and Second Legions. I also bring proof of Amel's death." He pulled out the wet bag and carefully placed it on the desk.

"Let me guess, his head?" Riner said as he slowly opened the bag. Amel's shocked, decomposing face stared back at him. "Head indeed." He looked back and forth between the signatures, Zelda's scroll and the head. "Hm…this evidence is indeed compelling, I know several of the men whose signatures decorate this paper—and the signatures do indeed belong to them. But tell me, Sheik of the Sheikah…launching an attack upon Castle Town must have left the Remnant quite weakened…what stops me from attacking and taking it for my own?"

"Nothing, really," Sheik said, putting as much confidence in his words as he could. "Other than the knowledge that we will fight tooth and nail to keep our hold on it and you will have to kill us all to win. We wield the combined might of the Hylian, Gerudo, Zora and Goron armies, and you will suffer heavy losses in trying to defeat us."

"Practical knowledge, that," Riner said, still studying the scroll. "And your troops are all seasoned veterans from the past seven years—while most of the men in the Fourth and Fifth are mostly amateurs…" He scratched his chin, which was covered in stubble. "Tell me, this money…where will we make the pickup?"

"At the southern border," Sheik replied. "It will be guarded by a group of Hylian soldiers who have been ordered to stand down and hand it over to you once your men have crossed the border."

"And then we are free to go?" Riner asked.

"You are, on the condition that you never set foot in Hyrule again," Sheik said, catching the commander's eyes and holding them with his own. "Violate that agreement, and we will bring the fist of Hyrule and its allies down upon you. There is no magical veil to protect you anymore, no master waiting in his fortress."

"The prisoners?"

"They shall be released in groups over the coming months and will be escorted out of the kingdom by armed guards."

"Reasonable, reasonable, though I do not see why you do not execute them."

"Her Highness does not believe shedding more blood will make things better. She believes in mercy and compassion, even if you and your men do not."

"I believe in mercy and compassion," Riner said, looking and sounding offended. "But my orders left me little leeway—and in the end, money was everything. I was paid to do it, and so I did it."

"And now we are paying you to leave," Sheik said, not wishing to engage the man in philosophical debate. "Do you agree to the terms or not?"

"Stop fighting, leave, take the money, never come back, is that it?" Riner asked.

"Correct."

Riner looked thoughtful for a few moments before nodding and smiling. "Then as commander of the Third…well, all Legions now, I suppose, with Nuviro and Amel dead, I accept the terms of our surrender—as it were, ha-ha—and will sign this treaty." He took an elegant quill pen, dipped it in ink and signed his name on Zelda's scroll, and then handed it back to Sheik. "And we will never set foot in this kingdom again. On that you have my word. Massacring kingdoms is bad for business, after all."

"Ha-ha," Sheik said, accepting the rolled-up scroll with a slight bow. "I am glad we could come to an agreement, Commander Riner. You are far more reasonable and wise than your predecessors. It was an honour."

"Please, the honour is all mine," Riner said, shaking Sheik's hand after he had replaced the scroll in the backpack. "I get to meet the last survivor of the Sheikah _and_ end a seven-year war in one day? It's been a pleasure."

"Then I shall take my leave and inform my princess of this happy resolution immediately," Sheik said, mind soaring. The fighting was finally over!

"I assume some army elements will be there to oversee our retreat, though?" Riner asked as Sheik was halfway out of the door. "To make sure we do not…rape and pillage the land any further on our way out."

Sheik looked at Riner over his shoulder. _This is a test,_ he thought. He took a breath, and said, "No. We trust you to keep your word. Besides, you raped and pillaged the land on your way in—I doubt it has had time or opportunity to recover."

"True, true," Riner said, nodding. "Then I wish you all the best, Sheik of the Sheikah, in your future endeavours."

"Likewise, Commander Riner."

Sheik was escorted from the camp by Sergeant Nar, who said nothing as he handed him his daggers back before disappearing among the trees. Sighing in relief, Sheik wasted no time in pulling the deku nut out of his pocket. Concentrating on the hill above the city gates, he threw it.

* * *

When he opened his eyes, he was standing on the hill. But he was not alone. The members of the high command were standing around him in a wide circle, having expected his arrival there. Zelda stepped forward, wringing her hands together, looking nervous. Link was beside her, also looking anxious.

"What did they say?" she asked.

Wordlessly and with a grim face, Sheik pulled the scroll out of his backpack and handed it to Zelda, who immediately unrolled it and looked for a signature. Her eyes widened, and she looked at Sheik, mouth opening and closing.

"It's over," Sheik said quietly, smiling.

"It's over," she repeated in the same low voice. Then she smiled too and looked at the high command. "It's over!" she shouted.

The high command broke out in cheers, clapping and embracing each other. Sheik was first seized by Zelda in a tight hug, and then by Link, and then by both at the same time.

"It's over," he said to himself.

"It's over," Zelda confirmed.

"It's over," Link repeated.

* * *

**Soul Mates**

**Epilogue**

* * *

The chair creaked as Sheik settled himself into it. It was an expensive, leather armchair, and he had a strong feeling that it had once belonged to the castle and the royal family. Now, however, it was placed in the largest inn in the city, the one that Nuviro had used for his headquarters. Zelda had appropriated it as her new, temporary home until the engineers could figure out what to do with the various structural and geographical weaknesses Castle Town had suffered because of Ganondorf's remodelling and the battle, which had undermined almost the entire area.

Next to him, Link settled into his own chair, sighing in relief. He had been on his feet all day, greeting and speaking to the refugees that had been coming in from the Lost Woods. Commander Riner had been true to his word—the Legion was gone, and nothing had been left behind. It had taken them a week, but the civilians were finally all settled in—either in the tent city in front of the city walls or in the various, cleared and secured buildings in the southern part of the city.

The fireplace in front of them was positively roaring, burning to keep the autumn chill out, casting flickering shadows across the floors and walls in the chamber. Footsteps approached from behind, and then a warm cup was placed in Sheik's healthy hand. Link was also given one. Sheik sipped at the tea, revelling in its warmth.

"Is it good?" Zelda asked, finally sitting down in her own chair across from them, a steaming cup of tea clutched in her hands. "I'm afraid I'm not of much use in the kitchen, but I've gotten compliments on my tea, at least."

"It's great," Link said, taking a sip. "I'm not a big fan of tea, but yours is actually drinkable."

"I'll take that as a compliment, then," Zelda said, smiling. "What do you think, Sheik?"

"It's delicious," Sheik answered, taking another sip. "Very fruity, yet quite…tea-like. Really puts the warmth back in you."

"Tea-like?" Zelda asked.

"That's the only way I can describe it."

"What, is your vocabulary broken or something?" Link said.

"I'm surprised yours even _includes_ the word 'vocabulary', Hero," Sheik replied, grinning at him.

The three shared a laugh.

Three weeks had passed since the battle, and life in Hyrule was just barely starting to return to normal. The areas closest to the city were still dead and covered in dust and ash, but the southernmost territories were starting to turn green again. A lot of rebuilding had to be done, but at least the population did not have to worry about mercenaries hunting them down anymore.

"So how are you two doing?" Zelda asked, sipping at her tea. The princess was so busy with organising everything these days that she had very little time to herself—much less for others. Sheik and Link were also busy, helping the army removing the rubble and collapsed masonry in the city streets so they could become habitable, but the going was slow even with the help of the strong Gorons.

The funny thing was that even though Sheik and Link's rooms were on both sides of Zelda's, they never really saw her unless she was coming in to sleep or going to attend another meeting. Tonight was the first time in days they had actually been able to exchange more than a few words, and that was only because Zelda had been more or less forced to take a night off by her advisors. So she had invited her two best friends for tea in order to not go stir-crazy.

"Oh, we're very busy," Sheik said. "Clearing out the streets turned out to be far more difficult than we thought. We've had several collapses of sinkholes close to where Vorpheus was seen last, and clearing them out is a pain."

"My pain, you mean," Link said. " _I'm_ the one who has to do all the lifting while you tell me where to put the rocks."

"I received very strict orders from Kaura not to do anything strenuous with my hand," Sheik said, lifting his injured hand. Kaura had removed the mitten of bandages, though she kept the innermost layer on so that he wouldn't accidentally re-break a finger if he moved them. He was still not allowed to do anything with it, though.

"Yeah, and you still insist on helping out with the backbreaking work," Link said sourly. "You should be resting, you know."

"I know, but I can't. I feel useless enough already, I don't need to add to it," Sheik said, taking another sip. "The idea of sitting around here while there is work to be done…it feels so wrong."

"I don't think so," Zelda said. "If anyone's earned the right to rest and recuperate, it's you. Both of you, in fact. I'm actually very close to ordering you to take a vacation, but I know you'd just disobey it." She sighed and placed her cup on a small table next to her chair and stood up. She was actually wearing a dress tonight, which made Sheik and Link—who were wearing just simple shirts and trousers—look like slobs in comparison. Her hair had been braided, which made her look very regal. She still refused to wear the circlet, however.

"What's with the finery?" Link asked, ignoring the not-so-subtle suggestion from the princess. "I thought you hated dresses and stuff like that."

"I'm not overly fond of them, no," Zelda admitted, standing in front of the window and staring at the dark city outside. Torches were lit all over, but very little could penetrate the darkness that fell over Hyrule in the fall season. "But I've an honoured guest to see later tonight, and putting these things on take far too much time for my liking."

"So, Aveil is coming over?" Link asked, giving Sheik a wicked look which made the Sheikah shake his head in dismay. Here came the endless teasing.

Zelda stopped breathing for a few seconds before resuming. When she turned around, her face was red with a very intense blush. "How did you know that?" she asked.

Link continued to grin and looked pointedly at the dress—an elaborate thing with plenty of laces and other things that looked far too complicated to actually be an article of clothing. "I've never seen you wear something like that unless Aveil is nearby," he said, "and you're wearing makeup too. I'd say you're pining for someone, and we know it's not a man, so—"

Sheik cut the Hero off by kicking him not-so-gently in the shin. "What he _means_ , I think, is that you only dress up like this on special occasions, and the victory celebration is tomorrow, not tonight."

"Exactly," Link said.

"Are you mocking me?" Zelda asked, her blush not receding one bit. If anything, it seemed to grow worse. "Because I have quite a bit of ammunition against _you_ two. I've no idea how long you two kept at it last night, but for pity's sake, please have Sheik bite down on something so I can actually close my eyes _without_ envisioning my little brother being violated in the very worst way."

Now it was the two boys' turn to blush.

An embarrassing and uncomfortable silence fell upon the small room. Link tried to occupy himself with rooting around in fireplace even though the flames were practically leaping out of it. Sheik decided that this was as good a time as any to do what he had been planning for the past few weeks but never had the opportunity to do. He reached over to the side of his chair where he had left the cloth-covered, rectangular package Vorpheus had left him and picked it up. Zelda watched with interest as he unwrapped it, revealing a leather-bound journal.

"What is that?" the princess asked.

"Vorpheus' journal," Sheik said, opening it and turning several pages. "Every spell he knew, every secret he possessed—the power to blow up a mountain, the ability to poison an entire lake, all of it contained within these pages."

"Where did you get it?"

"He left it to me. There was a small note that simply said, 'You know what to do'."

"And what's that?" Link asked, turning away from the fireplace.

"What do you think?" Sheik said, looking at the fireplace. "He wanted me to burn it."

"Isn't that kind of a waste, though?" the Hero said. "I mean, the guy was an ass, but he was useful. He saved your life—he saved a lot of lives, actually, now that I think about it. With all that power at our disposal…"

"The power he wielded was gained through evil actions," Zelda said, taking the journal from Sheik and looking at the writing on the pages. "How many people do you he made suffer in order to perfect these spells?"

"Too many to even imagine, I think," Sheik said, noting with worry the interest Zelda was showing. She was a Sage, and her magical power—while nowhere near that of Vorpheus'—could probably make up for her lack of experience it took to learn those spells. He gently pried the book from her hands and closed it, approaching the fireplace. "These are spells made from the pain of others—blood magic. Is that really what we want to possess?"

"No," Zelda said, shaking her head, embarrassed at her sudden engrossment. "I certainly don't."

"Then it's best to rid ourselves of it once and for all," Sheik said, tossing the journal into the fireplace. The flames devoured it immediately, the brittle pages disappearing within seconds as they burned to cinders. They watched the journal burn for a while.

"Are you _sure_ that's what Vorpheus wanted you to do?" Link asked suddenly. "What if he just wanted you to hold on to it until he comes back?"

"I certainly hope so," Sheik said, not doubting for one second that the warlock was dead and gone from the world. "Or he is going to be quite…cross with me."

They returned to their seats and talked for a while—mostly about the restoration of Hyrule and how to best proceed. At some point or another, an engineer had suggested abandoning the city altogether and found another capital somewhere else, claiming that trying to repair all that had been destroyed during the battle would be much a much harder and arduous task than simply building an entirely new city.

"That's ridiculous," Link said. "How long has Castle Town been around, anyway?"

"It has always existed in some form or another for the past millennium or so," Zelda said, shaking her head at the idea of moving the city. "It's had different names, certainly, and the castle it was named after wasn't built until…oh, three hundred years ago I think."

"But it has always been here," Sheik said. "And there's a certain tradition that cannot be broken."

"Tradition, yes," Zelda said, suddenly looking highly uncomfortable. "Speaking of which, there is _one_ tradition I should have done away with a long time ago."

"What's that?" Link asked.

"The tradition of…well, more like enslavement, really, of the Sheikah," Zelda said, looking ashamed. "I have no idea why my father did not do this once it became known that the Sheikah numbers were dwindling and that they would not be around for much longer." She walked up to Sheik's chair and kneeled in front of it, to his horror. He tried to stand up, but Link held him down, keeping him from rising.

"Sheik," Zelda said, drawing his attention back to her. "I have no idea how I can repay you and your people for your impeccable service to the royal family of Hyrule. I have no idea how I can justify keeping you and Impa oath bound for the past seven years—but I am ending it now."

Sheik tried to stop her from making this mistake, but Link seemed to have caught on to her plan and put his hand in front of Sheik's mouth, preventing him from voicing his protest.

"Sheik, you have showed impeccable skill, dedication and loyalty to the throne of Hyrule your entire life. Your people have shown the same for the many years they have protected my family. You kept your oath—and not a single time have you faltered. I—and the entirety of Hyrule—consider your oath fulfilled. I, Princess Zelda of Hyrule, matriarch of the Royal Family, hereby release you and your people from your service. You are free to do what you wish, as you wish, whenever you wish. I can only hope this makes up for the years of suffering you have been forced to endure."

She rose from her kneeling position, motioning for Link to let Sheik go. "I am so sorry I did not do this earlier, Sheik," she said, pulling him to his feet and into a hug. "You're my little brother, and it was wrong of me to keep you tied to my side this entire time."

Sheik tried to say something, but his mouth refused to cooperate, tongue flopping around uselessly and jaws opening and closing with no sound moving between them. "I…"

"Just say 'thank you', Sheik," Link murmured from behind him. "She's not going to change her mind about this."

"But…the oath…" Sheik tried, but didn't get any farther. "Fulfilment isn't…"

"Sheik, shut up and enjoy the moment," Zelda said.

* * *

It took about fifteen minutes of constant assurance and threats of bodily harm to calm Sheik down, and even then he couldn't really believe what had just happened. He had been trained his entire youth to be keep the oath until the day he died—and now it was...gone.

"Don't be silly, Sheik," Zelda said, patting him on the shoulder. "You still have a purpose: enjoy life. And pester Link with raised eyebrows and few words."

"Raised eyebrows?" Sheik asked, still not feeling very confident about this.

"You _do_ raise them a lot," Link said. "And you don't talk much…or you didn't do it in the beginning, I guess."

"But…who is going to be your bodyguard?" Sheik asked. "Who's going to protect you?"

"Sheik, I have an entire army to protect me," Zelda said in a deadpan. "While they may not be as individually capable as you, they are more than enough to take out any assailant. Besides, I like to think I'm no slouch with a sword either."

"But…what if you need someone assassinated—"

"I don't think I will need anyone with those qualifications for a long time, Sheik. And in case I do…well, there are many skilled assassins in the world."

"But…why? Why are you releasing me from my oath? Why _now_?" He was getting agitated again, his heart beating faster than what was strictly necessary.

"Because…I don't know, Sheik," she answered, pacing back and forth in front of his chair. "Maybe I wanted to do something nice, maybe I wanted to show you how much I appreciate everything you have done for me…but I can't say that either, can I? This was long overdue…but I'm not sure how I can show you my appreciation… Why are you so upset about this?"

Silence reigned once again. Sheik and Zelda stared at each other, both unsure of how to proceed. Link looked between them, sighing loudly.

"This is painful, you know that?" the Hero said. "Listen, Sheik," he said, making the Sheikah look at him, "Zelda wants you to be happy, but she thought that still being bound to protect her would ruin your chances of that, so she released you, right?"

"Right," Zelda said.

"Right, and Sheik is upset because…well, I can only guess that he feels that you're sending him away or saying that he's not good enough," Link continued.

"But that's not true at all—"Zelda began.

"No, it's not," Sheik said. "I…I'm grateful, Zelda, I really am, but…by doing this, you have…effectively robbed my life of any purpose. I am a Sheikah—my meaning, my purpose, the very reason for which I am alive is to be of service to the Royal Family. What am I supposed to do now? Where am I supposed to go?"

"You…you're not supposed to go anywhere," Zelda said, looking surprised. "Where did you get the idea that you had to go somewhere?"

"Well, I can't bloody well hang around the throne as a commoner, can I?" Sheik asked. "Kakariko has been destroyed, the tomb of my ancestors has been breached and vandalised…I have no other home…I…!"

"Sheik, I'm not sending you away," Zelda said, once again pulling him into a tight embrace that seemed to drain him of any strength whatsoever. "I'm never sending you away. I…I want you and Link to stay with me forever—you're my friends and I don't know what I'd do without you! Please—oh."

Sheik couldn't keep the gasp as the first of his tears escaped his eye and rolled down his cheek.

"Oh, Sheik, please don't cry," Zelda said gently. "I didn't mean for you to be miserable…I thought it would make you happy." She hugged him tighter, like she had done many times over the years—but this time it was different. They were no longer master and servant. They were friends, brother and sister—and only that.

* * *

"Are you alright?" Link asked as they trudged through the streets of Castle Town. The Hero was shivering in the cold, but Sheik felt surprisingly warm.

"I'm fine," he answered. "I…feel a bit embarrassed about breaking down back there, but…I guess I'm fine. With everything."

"Good," Link said.

Zelda had done her best to comfort Sheik, but it was ultimately Link who had to bring on the big guns and kiss him into submission, at which point Sheik had realised how silly he was being. Of course Zelda wouldn't send him away. Sure, he might not be her personal bodyguard and hit man anymore, but he was a fool to believe that the end of his oath would be the end of him. Five minutes later, Aveil had arrived—alone. They knew enough to excuse themselves at that moment and had decided to go for a walk instead of cruelly listening in on the princesses.

Zelda's inn was located quite a bit into the northern part of the city, in one of the few areas that were not collapsing in on themselves. Guards were posted everywhere, though they had learned to recognise the Hero of Time and Sheikah by now and let them through the checkpoints.

"Where are we going?" Link asked as they neared the first of the residential quarters that housed several garrisons of soldiers.

"I don't know," Sheik replied. "I was just following you."

"And I was following…crap."

"Heh."

They turned a corner and walked down a well-lit street. They were making surprisingly good time on the walk, having almost reached the other side of the city already. The remaining stub of the gatehouse poked out from among the other buildings, reminding Sheik that he was quite close to the place where he had embarrassedly blinded himself during the infiltration of the city. And then Tinn had saved his life. He stopped, wondering if the boy and the other slaves were okay. Had they survived the assault on the city? The slave quarters were hardly even touched during the battle…

"Why did you stop?" Link asked.

"I just…remembered something." He looked around. They weren't very close to the slave quarters, and it was quite late. Perhaps now was not such a good time… "But it's not important," he said, making a mental note to find Tinn in the morning and thank him properly.

"You sure?" Link asked.

"Yes, I'm sure."

"Good, then we can go to bed, right? I'm freezing."

"Are you quite certain that you wish to risk that?" Sheik asked. "Zelda and Aveil have a lot to make up for."

Link snaked an arm around Sheik's waist and pulled him closer. "As do we, I believe."

Sheik blushed.

* * *

The sun was high in the sky by the time Sheik had finally had enough of Link's antics and unceremoniously pulled the blanket off the Hero and opened the blinds to his window, eliciting a loud groan from him.

"It's still early," he whined, blindly groping for the blanket—which Sheik was keeping well out of reach—and screwing his eyes shut to protect himself from the evil sun outside.

"No, it's not, Hero," Sheik said, rolling his eyes. "It's noon, and I have already had the time to visit Kaura twice. Time to get your lazy self out of bed."

"I have a better idea," Link said, barely opening one eye to find out where his blanket was. "How about I _stay_ in bed…and you join me?" he said in a pitiful attempt at a sultry voice that was marred by sleep and fatigue. "We can have a lot of fun here, you know…"

Sheik thought about it for a few seconds. "How about…no?"

"Oh, come on, Sheik, I'm the Hero of Time!" Link whined loudly. "Surely I've earned the right to sleep for an entire day?"

"Probably, but that day is not today," Sheik said as he tossed Link's bundled-up clothing at him. "We don't have any work today, but we've still a lot of people to meet and greet. Plus, we've a celebration to prepare for."

"Oh…is that today?"

"Yes, it's today."

Surrendering, Link ceased curling up on himself and slowly began to get dressed. Sheik turned around and looked out the window, knowing that Link could get surprisingly modest when it came to his own nudity. Sheik's, on the other hand…

"Stupid celebration," Link muttered. "Why do _we_ have to go, anyway?"

"Because it's being held in yours and Zelda's honour," Sheik explained, watching a group of off-duty Hylian and Gerudo soldiers walking past the fence to the inn, laughing amongst themselves. Sheik had _never_ expected to see that. "And it's very rude of the guest of honour to not appear at his own party."

"I don't want a party…"

"Stop complaining and get dressed before I call Kaura on you. She promised she'd help me if you proved difficult to wake up," Sheik said. He counted to three internally and turned around, smirking when he saw that Link was fully dressed—surely he had broken some sort of record.

"Alright," Link said, eyes wide with fear and darting around as if he expected the physician to pop out from behind a piece of furniture. "Who're we seeing first?"

"That's a surprise," Sheik said.

* * *

The camp in front of the walls had grown quite a bit since the civilians from the Lost Woods had joined up with the rest of the Remnant. They had adjusted to the way of life quickly enough, even if this arrangement was only temporary until a building became cleared for habitation and people could move into the city again.

Sheik was subtly trying to lead Link towards the stables, where he had been earlier that morning. The Hero was too busy with shaking hands and receiving hugs from the people to notice. They passed by the hospital, where a covered cart was being loaded up with supplies. The smell of horses (and their leavings) began to fill the air as they walked up a small hill to where the cavalry mounts were fenced in, and yet the Hero did not notice.

"No, don't thank me, thank the princess," Link said, growing tired of having his shoulder slapped or back punched. "I didn't do anything; she was the one who started it." He sighed and jogged to catch up with Sheik. "Is it far? I'm not sure how many more people expressing their gratitude I can take…"

"We're here," Sheik said as they reached the hill's crest.

There were too many horses to count. The cavalry had seen little use in the battle since the outcome had been decided in the streets rather than on the field, and their riders had fought on foot instead of risking their mounts in tight alleys and dead ends. The "fence" was really just a series of poles placed around a wide area with nothing to bind them together, though the horses were so used to being fenced in that they rarely crossed the limit anyway.

"What're we doing here?" Link asked as they walked towards a small group of tents that stood closest to the hill on the border of the field.

"You haven't guessed yet?" Sheik asked. A man was sitting outside one of the tents, smoking a pipe. He noticed them approaching and stood up, waving. "Who do you think we left behind in the valley that I'd want you to meet?"

"I don't know," Link said. "I can only think of…wait, they're here?"

"Yes."

The Hero took off like a rocket, sprinting towards the stable master, nearly running the man down before demanding to know where Epona was. The stable master laughed and pointed in the direction of a particularly large throng of equines. Link gave him a quick thank-you and ran towards the horses, ignoring the man's warnings about being careful.

"Stable Master," Sheik said and nodded as he came up to the man. "I must apologise for the Hero's rambunctiousness."

"Bah, no need to," the man said, shaking Sheik's hand. "I know what it's like to miss a dear friend."

"There were no problems in getting them here, I assume? They _are_ here, right?"

"Of course they're here, lad," the stable master said. "My boys and girls came in with them and the other stragglers just as you left earlier today. The little one got away and had to be chased down, but they're here."

A horse whinnied and Link could be heard laughing wildly, though his form was obscured by the same throng he had entered. For a second, Sheik wondered if Link had been kicked in the head was so confused that he laughed about it, but then he remembered how prone to silliness he was when around Epona and sighed.

"I suppose I should go over there before he does something stupid," Sheik said, nodding to the older man. "Thank you for the help, Stable Master."

"'Twas a pleasure, lad. Just promise to take care of the little one."

"We promise."

The small herd was dispersing as Sheik approached, revealing Epona and Maladict standing close to each other, watching Link crouching in front of a small foal that was looking rather uncertain, legs moving unsteadily. Sheik noted with wonder how much it looked like its mother—with just a trace of its father. It had Epona's colours, though they were a just a few shades darker, though nowhere near as dark as Maladict.

Link noticed Sheik approaching and began to laugh again. The foal drew back at the loud sound, looking at its parents, who snorted with a sort of resignation, as if telling it to just bear with the silly boy with the long ears.

"Have you ever seen such an adorable little thing?" the Hero asked, reaching out to pet the foal carefully on the neck, which it carefully allowed him to do.

Sheik smiled, noticing the childish streak in Link returning, if only for a little while. "Not really," he admitted.

"Do you think it's a boy or a girl?" Link said.

"The stable master told me it's a girl," Sheik said, crouching down next to Link, smiling at the foal, which looked back with the same intelligent eyes of its parents. She was analysing them. "And she's quite fast."

"You're telling me," Link said. "I saw her galloping around in a circle among the horses…I swear, she's faster than Epona."

"We have to give her a name," Sheik said, smiling broader as the foal finally allowed itself to be petted without looking ready to bolt at any second.

"Got any ideas?"

"Well, I do remember an old name that means _swift_ , but I don't remember which language it comes from."

"Let's hear the name, then."

"Shun," Sheik said.

"Shun, huh?" Link said, staring into the foal's eyes. "Would you like that name? What do you think?" he asked the proud parents.

Neither Maladict nor Epona gave any sign of hating the name.

"Shun it is, then," Link said, smiling as she whinnied and took off running, nearly knocking them both down.

"I think she likes it," Sheik said, noting that the foal was indeed quite fast— _much_ faster than he had expected her to be, even at being a few weeks old.

The two turned to Epona and Maladict, who stepped forward and regarded their respective riders with looks that could only be described as hopelessness. Maladict bent his head forward, looking closely at Sheik and his bandaged form before bumping his head to the Sheikah's. And then he snorted him in the face, covering it with a slight sheen of snot.

"Gah!" Sheik exclaimed, wiping at the horrible fluid. "I know you disapprove of my injuries, but that is no reason to sneeze in my face."

Link laughed. But then Epona stepped on his booted foot again. She didn't rest her whole weight on it, but definitely enough to get the Hero to shut up and howl.

"Ow, ow, getoffgetoffgetoff!" he shouted, waving his arms like a madman. After the mare decided she had taught the Hero a lesson, she let go and tossed her head, probably laughing at him. "Was that because I called you fat once?" Link asked. "I already apologised for that."

"That'll be a valuable lesson to you, Link," Sheik said, glowering at Maladict, who seemed to be grinning back at him. "Females of any species can hold grudges for a long time."

"You can't blame me," Link said, patting the mare's neck in what he hoped was an adequate peace offering. He wished he had some carrots or something like that. "She…got pregnant very fast, right?"

"Surprisingly so," Sheik said, agreeing. "But you have to remember that Epona is a very—gah! Fine, Maladict too—are very special horses." He wiped another load of horse snot from his face, glaring fully at the stallion now. "I wouldn't be surprised if there's a fair bit of magic being passed down between them, which enhances both the pregnancy and foal. A normal horse pregnancy is usually around eleven months, but this one…how long did it last? No more than a month at the most."

"That's fast," Link said. "I'd ask you why you know so much about horse pregnancies, but that's just…a question I don't want to ask. Ever."

"Fast like Shun," Sheik said, ignoring the last part of Link's sentence. He watched the foal as she galloped along the length of the "fence", completing the circuit much faster than she should have been able to. "That is one fast filly."

"And we're her uncles," Link said, smiling.

Sheik decided not to comment.

* * *

By the time they were heading back into the city, the cart outside the hospital was almost fully loaded. Hatra was leaning against it, breathing heavily and sweating profusely. He had finally deemed it a good idea to remove his robes, revealing a surprisingly slim body beneath. He noticed Sheik and Link approaching and smiled and waved them over.

"I was wondering where you two had gotten off to," he said. "Kaura's been trying to track you down, and she's getting kind of…" He looked around and lowered his voice. "Crazy," he whispered.

"I heard that, brat," Kaura said, appearing from within the cart itself, giving the ex-Inquisitor a start that seemed to shut him down for a few seconds. She grinned at her own doing and turned her attention to the pair. "As for you two…why haven't you got the decency to hang around your palace all day so I can actually find you?"

"What palace?" Link asked. "In case you didn't notice, what remained of the fortress fell into the crater on the other side of town."

"Palace, inn, tavern, whatever. Different names, beds all around." She climbed out of the cart and landed on the ground next to Hatra, who finally rejoined the land of the living. "You need to get yourself something to drink, boy," she told him. "You're sweating like a waterfall."

"If you could just make up your mind about what supplies to take with you, doctor, maybe I wouldn't be exhausting myself," Hatra said, shaking his head in dismay. "I have lost count of how many times I've loaded and reloaded this cart."

"It'll be many more if you don't stop complaining," she said, slapping him upside his head.

"Are you going somewhere?" Sheik asked.

"Hell yeah I'm going somewhere," Kaura said, smiling.

"Where?"

"Home, of course."

"What?" Link asked, jaw dropping.

"You heard me, Hero," Kaura said, patting the cart she was leaning against. "The war is over, the situation's stabilised, the veil's gone…there's no reason for me to hang around here. I've got a house back in Termina I haven't seen in more than a few years now. Come to think of it, I'm not even sure if I _have_ a house anymore…maybe they sold it…hm, that'll be interesting to find out."

"But why?" Link said. "Don't you have a lot of patients to take care of? Hell, Sheik's not finished healing!" He illustrated this by grabbing Sheik's bandaged hand and holding it up for all to see. The Sheikah howled in pain and pulled away, giving Link his deadliest of glares.

"Nice one, Hero," Kaura said, looking at Sheik with a disinterested look on her face. "I think you've just bought yourself a timeout on the couch for at least a month. Oi, you alright?" she asked.

"Just fine," Sheik said, blinking away the tears of pain. "They're healing nicely," he said.

"I reckon another week or so and you can take off the bandages," Kaura said, doing a quick examination of Sheik's hand. "Keep chugging that potion and you'll be right as rain. You'll even be able to play that infernal lyre of yours."

"But why are you leaving?" Link insisted. "Don't you like it here? And what about Zelda? I thought she was your apprentice."

"I just feel like it's time to move on, Hero," Kaura said, climbing back onto the cart. "Hey, brat, catch!" she shouted as she hurled a small crate out of the covers. Hatra yelped and was barely able to catch it. "Why the hell would I need an entire _crate_ of socks, you stupid boy? Put 'em back where you found 'em!"

"Fine, fine," Hatra said, hefting the crate on his shoulder, giving Sheik and Link a resigned look. "Not like she asked me to load it up either…it was on the list, damn it!"

"It ain't now," Kaura said. She remained quiet until Hatra had wandered off with the crate before she peeked out from the covers again. "To be honest, I love this place—despite it being a warzone. The people here truly care for one another and I can't imagine that anyone would turn this place down. But the fact of the matter is that this is not my home, it never was and never will be. And as for Zelda…well, she's a princess and has a country to rebuild. I don't think she'll have any time for learning anatomy and stuff like that."

"Does she even know?" Sheik asked, feeling surprisingly sad about the fact that Kaura was leaving. She was terrifying, brash and mean, but she was…Kaura. She had become a fact of life for him. And now… But who was he to stand in her way if she wanted to leave? No one, and she'd kill him if he tried anyway. "Or are you leaving quietly in the night?"

"Night?" Kaura asked, looking up at the sun. "Still a bit early for calling it night, isn't it? But yeah, she knows. Where do you think I got this cart from? She said she understood and agreed wholeheartedly with my assessment of her spare time. And before you ask, she found out right after I sent Tao to get you, but you were already gone."

"Wait, you sent Tao?" Link asked. "How could he possibly relay those questions and answers?" He yelped when something hard was shoved into his lower back. Spinning around, he found Tao grinning at him, holding a small piece of chalkboard along with some chalk.

"The kid can actually write, as I discovered the other week," Kaura said, waving to Tao. "He had quite a long conversation with the princess, in fact. Even gave him some chocolate—and no, I don't have any more, you ate it all," she added, glaring at the boy.

"Won't you get lonely, though?" Link asked after ruffling the Tao's hair, glancing longingly at his cap while doing so, probably regretting ever giving it to Tao in the first place. "Termina's not far, but it's at least a couple of week's journey alone…"

"Who said I was going alone?" Kaura asked. "I'm taking an apprentice, you know. Two, actually."

"Who?" Sheik asked.

"Three guesses," Kaura said as Hatra emerged from the hospital tent, carrying an even bigger crate.

"They didn't have any smaller crates of rubbing alcohol," he said, holding it up for Kaura to lift onto the cart. The physician went to grab it, but then she seemed to remember something, stopping mid-grab, much to Hatra's chagrin.

"Come to think of it, I guess it's a bit wrong of me to rob the Remnant of valuable medical supplies," she said, withdrawing her arms. "You know what; take that back to the supply tent. And all of this, too," she said, pointing at the crates she was climbing on. "I don't need it back home."

"What?" Hatra asked, looking ready to collapse.

"You heard me, now chop-chop," she said, climbing down from the cart again. Once again she waited for him to disappear inside the tent before giving Sheik and Link a devilish grin. "If he's going to be my apprentice, he's going to work for it," she said. "Plus, he's got a lot to make up for, and I figure getting a bit of manual labour out of it isn't too bad a trade, right?"

"Poor guy," Link said.

"Meh, he's not some fragile flower that'll wither at a simple touch," Kaura said. "Besides, he could do with getting some real work experience under his fingernails."

"And splinters," Sheik said.

"Splinters too."

"Who is the other apprentice?" Sheik asked, looking at Tao, who had suddenly begun to frown, looking dejected. "You're taking Tao too?"

"I'm taking him with me if he wants to, but he's not the other apprentice. He's still a bit young for that."

"What do you mean 'if he wants to'?"

"He hasn't decided yet," Kaura said, glaring at the boy. "And time is running out, tick-tock, tick-tock, so you'd better make a decision before three o'clock. But yeah, he's not sure if he wants to stay here with you two or going to Termina with me, Hatra and Malon."

"So Malon's the second apprentice?"

"Bingo. She's off saying goodbye to her father right now. And we're not even halfway through packing." Kaura huffed and pushed her spectacles further up on her nose. She looked at Link. "Speaking of packing…I _could_ do with another pair of strong arms. You in a voluntary mood, Hero?"

"Uh, not really…but I don't have much of a choice, do I?" Link asked, giving Sheik a desperate look.

"Nope. Now take this crate into the supply area at the back of the tent, will you?" Kaura said, throwing a crate in Link's general direction. The Hero grumbled, but did as he was told, knowing better than to contradict her. "And no using those magic gauntlets of yours, you hear?" she shouted after him. "As for you two," she said, turning to Sheik and Tao, who both suddenly felt a pit of dread forming in their stomachs. "Take a walk."

"Pardon?" Sheik asked. Tao made a question mark on his board and held it up for Kaura to see.

"You heard me, take a hike," she said. "Tao's too weak to be of any use in lifting things—no offense—and you're too injured to be of any use—offense meant."

"I still have one good hand, you know," Sheik said.

"Yeah, but it's your left one. You're right handed, not ambidextrous, which means it's your most useless hand, which means you're not as strong in it, which means that you, in turn, are useless to me. So you're going to take Tao for a walk through the city and make him come to a decision before I clobber him over the head and kidnap him."

"Yes, ma'am," Sheik said, thoroughly defeated.

"And don't call me ma'am. Old women are ma'ams, I'm just 'doctor'. Got it?"

"Yes, doctor."

"Good. Now off you go, and don't come back until you've got an answer for me."

* * *

"Still not talking, I see," Sheik said after walking in silence for a few minutes. Tao looked up at him and nodded. "I would have thought you'd revealed it by now, but I guess you're still not too fond of the whole being able to communicate with the outside world business."

Tao tapped his board.

"That does not count."

Tao made hand gestures.

"That will serve you well…if you plan on becoming a mime," Sheik said, chuckling.

Tao sighed loudly and pulled Sheik into an alley, where he leaned against a wall and crossed his arms, glowering at the Sheikah. "Why is it so important to you that I talk?" he asked. His voice was still strangely tired-sounding, and far more mature than his physical appearance would suggest.

Sheik took half a second to getting accustomed to hearing Tao's voice again and then mirrored the boy's pose against the opposite wall. Passersby gave them strange looks, but the two ignored them. "I just don't think it is a good idea to continue giving Kaura the impression that you are mute. It's also unfair to Hatra and Malon that they are being kept in the dark—"

"Hatra knows," Tao said, looking slightly ashamed. "He found out when we were playing cards before you woke up." He adjusted his tunic, still looking eerily like an eleven-year-old Link. "But I guess you're right…Kaura should know… _if_ I'm going with her."

"Which brings me to my next question," Sheik said. "Why are you even contemplating staying here? Hyrule is not going to go back to normal in an instant, you know. It'll take years before the infrastructure can be rebuilt, and life will be hard in the meantime. I would gladly jump at the chance to go to Termina."

The last part was said with clenched teeth as even the _name_ Termina brought up images of a certain someone he knew lived there. It was not a person he was overly fond of.

"I _want_ to go there," Tao said, throwing up his arms in a huff. "I _want_ to! Kaura's told me so much about it, and I really want to see that huge city with the mechanical clock…but I also want to stay here with you. You saved my life, and I owe you both, and…I like you too much to leave…" He gave Sheik a look of despair and sat on the ground, staring at him. "But I want to go with Kaura too…I want to go with Hatra…"

Sheik sighed. "Hyrule isn't going anywhere, Tao. Your chance of going to Termina, however, is leaving at…what was it, three o'clock? Imagine how much of the world you will be able to see if you just step over the border. Imagine how different your life will be if you go there. Link and I are going to be busy helping to rebuild the kingdom, and I'm not sure—and I'm sorry to say this—how much time either of us will be able to spend with you."

Tao nodded, but said nothing.

"I'm not saying that I don't want you to stay, Tao," Sheik said. "Link and I…we love you like a little brother, but I just want you to have the best life you could possibly get. And the only way to get that is if you go with Kaura, otherwise you will be stuck in this miserable, war-torn land forever."

Tao remained silent, staring at the cobbles under his feet. Sheik wondered if he should hug the boy or something similar, but thought that it would just seem awkward. He looked up, not really sure where they were—they had just taken random streets here and there—and hoping to spot a landmark.

There was the remains of the gatehouse once again, its parts scattered all over the city. Again Sheik was reminded that he was awfully close to the slave quarters—and he had forgotten to go there earlier that morning. Smiling, he reached out a hand for Tao and pulled the boy to his feet.

"Listen, you don't have to make the decision just yet," he said. "But think about it. In the meantime, there is someone I want you to meet. And you will _speak_ to him like a civilised person."

"Fine," Tao said sourly, clearly not enjoying being put on the spot. "But just for the record: you speak awfully big about being civilised even though what you and Link do at night isn't—"

"Tao!"

* * *

Link groaned as he and Hatra lifted a big crate from the cart and carried it inside the tent. Kaura herself was leaning against the cart, smoking a cigarette and keeping a close eye on the two, narrowing her eyes at every moan that came from either of them.

"I don't get it," Link said as they emerged from tent again, looking at Kaura. "Why aren't you sticking around for the celebration? It's going to be one hell of a party according to the soldiers."

"That's the exact reason for why we are leaving before it starts," Kaura said, flicking ash from the end of the cigarette. "Parties like these never work out for the best. You are just in for a night of mistakes, misunderstandings and embarrassment."

Link had no idea what made him say what he said next. "Says you, who seemed to have a very eventful night with Vorpheus back in the desert—"

"One more word out of that big mouth, Hero, and I'll sew it shut," Kaura said, an unmistakeable blush creeping up on her face. "And my romantic liaisons are none of your business."

"Wasn't very romantic if I remember it right—ow!"

"Oh, sorry, did I burn you with the cigarette?"

"Yes!" Link said, rubbing the burned, black spot on the sleeve of his shirt.

"Should've looked where you were going, then," Kaura said, stomping out the cigarette on the ground, not stopping until she was absolutely sure that the dead, dry grass underfoot would not catch on fire. "Anyway," she said, finally grabbing a crate of her own and carrying it inside, "this wasn't some sort of tyrannical decision on my part. It was the result of a unanimous vote, as a matter of fact."

"Unanimous?" Link asked, blinking.

"We all voted the same thing," Hatra said, sensing the Hero's confusion at the unfamiliar word. "We all wanted to leave before the celebration."

"But why?" Link asked.

"We all have our reasons," Kaura said from within the tent, her voice muffled by the contents of the storage area. "None of which we are forced to share, but if you really want to know mine, it's because I'm afraid of growing any more attached to this place than I already am. And if you tell anyone I said that, I'll kill you."

"I…see…" Link said, having yet to see any of her threats actually carried out, but knowing that he would be looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life if he defied her. "What about you?" he asked Hatra.

"I'd…rather not say," the Hylian replied, looking uncomfortable.

"Can't be any worse than Kaura's reason," Link said, patting Hatra on the shoulder (and dodging a haphazardly thrown boot that flew out of the tent).

"If you only knew, Hero of Time," Hatra said, noticing that they were out of boxes to move. "The truth of the matter is…well…there are certain people I've wronged who I am trying to avoid. Many of them, and I'd rather not stick around long enough for them to recognise me."

Link watched the other Hylian carefully, narrowing his eyes. "You do realise how…incriminating that sounds, right?"

"Oh, it's nothing like _that_ ," Kaura said, throwing a pair of cloth sacks onto the cart, which seemed to be the entirety of her luggage. Then she added three bedrolls, putting one aside, probably for when Tao came back with a decision. "I do believe there was a stolen heart involved, eh?"

"You…could say that," Hatra said.

"Oh, okay, say no more," Link said, tapping the side of his nose to show that he was in the know. "I understand what you mean."

"I doubt it," Kaura said, coughing. "Anyway, as for Malon, I believe she just has an innate desire to explore the world before it's too late, and starting in Termina isn't too bad of an idea."

Link wondered about what Talon had to say about this and voiced this concern.

"I think _he_ was the one who put her up to the idea, actually," Kaura replied. "I guess he wants his daughter to spread her wings and work up some life experience before possibly returning." She looked closely at Link and made a humming sound. "How about you, Hero? Don't you feel a certain…desire to see what the rest of this big world of ours has to offer? Hyrule is just a small part of it, after all."

Link slowly nodded, the thoughts he sometimes had at nights these days resurfacing. "I… _have_ been thinking about it, actually. Just taking Epona and riding somewhere…but…I don't know."

"What's stopping you?" Hatra asked. "I mean, you're the Hero of Time. You pretty much have free reigns to do whatever you want right now, surely?"

"That's the thing," Link said. "I don't think anyone would even _try_ to stop me. But I couldn't leave…him behind."

"Oh, no, not this again," Kaura said, rolling her eyes. "I'm pretty sure nothing would stop your little, suicidal boyfriend from going with you either. Zelda would grant him some time off; methinks, after everything you two did for her."

"But then there's Shun, too…I don't know enough about horses…"

Kaura blinked. "Who the hell is Shun?"

"Epona and Maladict's foal," Link said, feeling slightly foolish.

"Wait, your horse has been pregnant?"

"Yeah."

"When?"

"Last month."

"But that's now how…pregnancies aren't…I…"

The physician fell silent, staring at the Hero with silent horror and wonder. Hatra leaned over, looking terrified.

"I think you broke her," he whispered.

* * *

Sheik sighed, nodding his thanks to the man as he walked off. That had been the twentieth person he'd asked for the whereabouts of the many slaves in the city, and the twentieth negative answer he had gotten. They had been wandering up and down the ex-slave quarters for half an hour now, looking for any sign of Tinn, Kira and the others. The house he had escorted the children to so many nights ago was filled with completely unknown people who had no idea where the original inhabitants had gotten off to.

The end of the war and emergence of the civilians had resulted in a sudden influx of residents in these quarters, and a lot of chaos had naturally followed. Few knew each other, and no one had any idea where anyone lived. It was annoying.

Had they been anywhere else, Sheik was sure that Tao would have been smiling smugly and enjoying the Sheikah's misery and annoyance, but right now…well, Sheik had trouble remembering if he had ever seen him more terrified. His eyes were darting around wildly, looking nervously at the new, unfamiliar people, hand clinging desperately to Sheik's.

 _Okay, Sheik, this was a bad idea,_ he thought, regretting bringing Tao. What had he been hoping for, anyway? That someone with an encyclopaedic knowledge of everyone being housed in the district would suddenly pop up with names and addresses? He made Tao stop and simply looked around for a bit. By chance, his gaze happened upon a man sitting behind a desk, a large number of papers spread out in front of him. A line of people carrying what seemed to be luggage was standing in front of the table. The man seemed to be taking names and—Sheik couldn't believe it. _Why didn't I see him before?_ he thought.

A quick consultation with the man behind the desk—and a quicker argument with the first man in the line about cutting—Sheik was finally able to find the series of buildings that the ex-slaves had been housed in. These were of a slightly higher standard than where they had lived before—probably as a reward for many years of humiliation and abuse—and a large team of medics and doctors were currently giving them thorough examinations for diseases and other ailments and injuries.

There were less people in this particular street, only a few guards standing here and there to ensure peace. They recognised Sheik as they passed by and either gave him scowls or friendly nods, both of which he returned. He was _not_ going to suck up to people who wouldn't even give him a chance to prove their prejudices wrong. Tao glared at them too for good measure.

They stopped outside the door to a building that had clearly belonged to someone wealthy at some point or another, judging by the sheer size of the building itself, not to mention the front door, which was also decorated with elegant carvings of horses. Sheik took another look at the number on the side of the brick wall just to be sure before he knocked.

He felt Tao's hand snaking around his again, and looked down at the boy, smiling. "You don't have to worry," he said, "they're quite friendly."

The face that appeared in the doorway, however, was not. The man was basically a mountain, his frame filling the doorway entirely even with the door fully open. His armour told Sheik that he was there on official business, but he still couldn't stop his hand from groping for his weapons—which, naturally, were back at the inn.

"What do you want?" the man asked, his face—jowls, creases and folds and all—appearing more and more threatening by the second. "This house is off-limits to anyone but residents and officials."

"I am just here to visit some friends," Sheik said, knowing that the trick to convincing anyone was to appear confident and certain.

"Sorry, can't let you in," the guard said, frown growing bigger. "If you're not a doctor or someone from command, you're not getting in."

"But I just—"

"No can do. Goodbye." The guard began to close the door.

"Do you even know who this is?" Tao suddenly said, stepping forward with the most fearsome scowl Sheik had ever seen on his face.

The guard looked bemused for a second, frozen by the forcefulness in Tao's voice. "No," he said. "Who is he?"

"He's Sheik of the Sheikah, Princess Zelda's bodyguard and personal friend. If he wants to come inside, you'd better let him inside," the boy said, holding the guard's gaze steadily.

"Yeah, and I'm a Zora," the guard said, breaking away from the little boy who was terrifying him and closing the door another few inches.

"Look at his eyes!" Tao shouted before he could close the door fully. "They'll prove it!"

The guard hesitated, opening the door again. Narrowing his eyes, he stepped closer and leaned forwards, staring intently into Sheik's eyes. There was a sharp intake of breath, and then a look of utmost horror spread on the guard's face. He immediately stepped aside, bowing deeply.

"I apologise, master Sheikah," he said, almost falling over due to the weight of his armour. "I…I did not realise…I did not recognise you without your uniform, and your face…"

Sheik hesitated. He had forgotten to wear his face cloth today. Who was this guard and why did he react to him in such a way? Sure, he had gotten several handshakes from soldiers who knew what he had been doing over the years and some grateful compliments, but never… _fear_. _Cowering_ fear at that. "I…that's okay," he said finally, noticing that Tao was looking just as surprised as him. "I really am here just to visit some friends of mine. Tinn and Kira, do you know them?"

"Aye, the kids," the guard said, looking almost afraid to straighten up. "They told me what you did for them."

 _Ah, there we are,_ Sheik thought, remembering a similar man saying very nearly the same thing when he brought Tinn and the others to safety. He nodded. "I only did what was right."

"Too few are willing to do that these days," the guard said, motioning for them to enter the house. "Refreshing to see youngsters with morals these days." He closed the door after them.

The entrance hall was massive. Two large staircases on either wall converged into a large balcony on the second floor, which again split off in at least five different directions. Directly in front of them was a pair of large, stained glass doors, behind which many shadows and lights were flickering and voices could be heard shouting. Two hallways on either side of these glass doors led off into the rest of the cavernous house.

"You showed up at a very busy time," the guard explained, looking at the shadows moving behind the doors. "There are so many people living in this building that lunch is taken in shifts."

"How many people, exactly?" Sheik asked, noticing that Tao was once again looking quite nervous. He really wanted to know what was wrong…

"Fifty, give or take a few, and that's not counting the guards," the guard said. "Even with so many people living in one building, they're all quite comfortable. Private rooms and all."

"What is this house anyway?"

"It used to belong to the wealthiest merchant in the city before the war," the guard explained. "It was used as headquarters for the Legion command, and we've spent the last couple of weeks clearing out the trash they left behind."

Sheik nodded again, looking around. "Where are…eh…"

"The kids are upstairs in the west wing," the guard said. "Third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh on the right respectively."

"Right, thank you," Sheik said, bowing to the man. "And I appreciate that you did not recoil in horror or disgust."

"If anyone does that in here, just let me know and I'll teach 'em to insult one of Hyrule's best," the guard said, saluting.

"I sure will," Sheik said, smiling. He liked this one.

They followed the guard's directions and headed upstairs; counting the huge number of doors that covered the walls. Counting his way along one, Sheik raised his hand to knock on what he hoped was the right door. Would they even recognise him without red and runny eyes?

"Are you ready?" he asked Tao, who looked uncertain. "They're nice people, I promise." After Tao nodded slowly, he knocked. He felt Tao tugging at his shirt and looked down. "Hm?"

"Are you sure?" Tao asked, voice almost trembling.

"Of course I'm sure, why wouldn't—"

The door opened at that point, and Sheik was assaulted. He felt multiple arms encircling him, squeezing at his healing wounds and ribs. He smiled, however, when he recognised the voices.

"Sheik!"

* * *

Myde concentrated, watching the pieces on the board with the eyes of a hawk. He bit his lip as he carefully picked up one of his pieces—it was red as blood—and moved it around the grid pattern. Taking a deep breath, he let it go, satisfied that he had made the right decision. He leaned back, watching his opponent with a smug smile on his face, daring them to beat his move. His opponent looked at the board—and grinned. Myde gulped, looking down as well, noticing his error too late. He groaned as nearly all his pieces were bounced around and picked up.

"Too slow, big brother," Thea said, tossing his pieces aside.

"Wow, Myde, you suck at this game," Ayla said, leaning over his shoulder. "And you're supposed to be a general? Can't be much of a tactical position…"

"I _am_ a general," Myde said, scowling. "The youngest Zora to ever be promoted to one, in fact, and there is _nothing_ wrong with my tactical mind."

"Yet you lose horribly against your little sister in a simple game of draughts," Ayla said, clicking her tongue. "One has to wonder about how you climbed the ranks of the Zora military."

"I bet he kissed a lot of butt," Thea said, giggling.

Myde sighed, trying to ignore the two harpies as he made his last move, hoping to the Goddesses that this was the last time Thea demanded that he'd play her. Thea easily finished him off, smiling triumphantly. He sighed, wondering why he couldn't wrap his head around the decidedly easy game.

"What's that, like the tenth time you lose?" Ayla said, laughing.

"Try sixteenth," Thea said. "We've been at this all day, but he spends so much time thinking about what to do that a game can stretch on for hours."

"Well, that's his problem, isn't it?" Ayla said, depositing herself into Myde's lap and wrapping an arm around his neck. "He thinks too much, worries about useless details, doesn't know when to look at the big picture…"

"Is there a point to all this?" Myde asked, staring into Ayla's eyes. Her lips were looking quite soft today, he noted after casting a quick glance over her face as well. "Or are you just trying to insult me as subtly as possible—which, I might add, is not very subtle at all."

"We're just saying that you need to relax and start having fun," Thea said, rearranging the pieces on the board. She giggled at the sight of a Gerudo draping herself across her brother. "Isn't that right, Ayla?"

"That's right," the Gerudo said. "You're too uptight. You're just like Sheik in some ways, actually."

"Except that I don't get myself killed, get resurrected and then rush right off to get captured by the enemy and almost get killed again," Myde said sourly.

"Hey, don't be mean to Sheiky," Ayla said. "Just because he's more unlucky than most others doesn't mean he's not doing his best. Besides, he thoroughly kicked my ass when we fought."

"Do I want to know that story?" Myde asked.

"Probably, but I'm not really in the mood to tell you at the moment," she replied. "But Goddesses know that that boy needs to loosen up a bit. And maybe take a course in how not to get lured into traps."

"So what _are_ you in the mood for?" Myde asked.

"What'd you think?" Ayla said, kissing him.

"Aw, you two are adorable together," Thea said after they parted, leaning forward. "Come on, let's see some tongue, and then—"

"I'm not putting on a peep show for my little sister," Myde said, glaring at her.

"You're no fun."

"Yeah, you're boring," Ayla agreed.

"What did I do to deserve this?" Myde asked no one in particular.

"You don't sit back and smell the roses enough, I thought we had already established that," Ayla said.

"And you don't tackle the cold very well," Thea piped in, laughing insanely at the look on Myde's face.

"Okay, that's it," the general said, gently placing Ayla to the side and standing up from the chair he was sitting on. "I don't have to listen to this." He strode out of the room, careful not to knock his casted arm into the doorway, and headed for the roof.

The building they had been more or less occupying was one of the more ramshackle ones in the city, but that didn't bother them very much. They had more than enough room, easy roof access and a great view of the cityscape and that was all they needed. He emerged into the sunlight and closed the door behind him, drawing in a deep breath of fresh air.

"Ah, silence," he said to himself as he walked over to the railing that ran along the roof's edge, leaning against it. He could see most of the lower part of the city from here, could see all the work that went on. He felt guilty for not being able to join in, but of how much use could he be when he could not even move his arm without crying out in pain?

Some Zoras down in the street recognised him and shouted their greetings, which he answered with a wave and a nod. He heard the door behind him open and close and light footsteps approaching.

"Hey," Ayla said, sounding quite subdued. She leaned against the railing next to him, watching the city for a little while. "I didn't mean to upset you—neither of us did."

"You didn't upset me," Myde said, looking at her. "It's more…well, I upset myself. The constant barrage of noise from you two only enhanced it."

"Glad to know I'm not a disturbance, then," Ayla said, mock-glaring at him. "So how did you manage to upset yourself _this_ time? Are you worried about junior? 'Cause I have to say that it's above aver—"

"No, it's not that," Myde said, wondering if any kind of conversation with the Gerudo could ever _not_ end up on the subject of a carnal nature. "It's just…don't you wonder where we're going with it?"

"With what?" Ayla asked.

" _This_ ," Myde said, pointing at them both. "We're together here and now, but what is going to happen when the Remnant disbands? When we all go back to our respective homes?"

"Good question," Ayla said, humming. "I'm not sure. I was thinking maybe you could leave the army and come live with me. Both of you," she added.

"As flattered as I am by that thought," Myde said, sighing, "it would not work. The heat would kill me. I could barely stand it when we briefly camped in the valley, remember?"

"Hm, I guess you're right," Ayla said. "And we'd be camping in the desert for a long since we've one hell of an infestation to deal with in our fortress…"

"Maybe…maybe you could come to the domain?" Myde tried. "I mean, it's a shorter journey, and…"

"I'm not so sure about that," Ayla said, and it was her turn to sigh. "I enjoy water as much as the next Gerudo, but I think an entire kingdom _made_ of it…well, it would be a bit too much, I think. I'd probably accidentally drown myself or something."

They continued watching the city for a while.

"So we're hopelessly doomed, then?" Myde asked, looking at her with a hint of worry in his voice. "We're too different biologically anyway, so…"

"You know, why does everything have to end just because we're not sure how to proceed?" Ayla asked, turning to face him fully. She wasn't wearing any makeup today, Myde noticed. She looked even more beautiful without it, in his opinion. "What we're doing right now is great, isn't it?"

"Sure, but—"

"So why can't we let it continue for as long as it lasts, and _then_ we can decide what to do when we reach that impasse? Why worry so much?"

"I…guess I didn't look at it that way," he said, smiling a little. What she was saying _did_ make sense, and he didn't want to whatever they had to end…

"No, you didn't," Ayla said, reaching out and stroking his head fin, which more or less turned him into butter in her hands. "And that's because you think too much, about too many things. Stop trying to predict the future and enjoy the now, eh? What do you say?"

"I suppose I could give it a try," he said, wrapping his healthy arm around her middle. "You should go into diplomacy, with your silver tongue, I mean."

"Heh," the Gerudo laughed. Then she looked around, noticing that very few buildings around them were of the same height. "Do you think anyone can see us?" she asked, fiddling with the hem of her shirt.

"Hm?" Myde asked, not picking up on her ploy. "What do you mean?"

"Let me show you…"

* * *

Sheik finally managed to extract himself from the tight embrace, breathing heavily. He looked up and saw Tinn and Kira's smiling faces, both of them looking ready to pounce him again. "Hey, you two," he said. "How are you?"

"How are we?" Tinn asked, looking surprised. "How are _you_? You look terrible! What happened to your hand? What happened after you left? What—"

"Okay, okay, I'll answer your questions," Sheik said. "But one at a time, okay?"

"Fine," Kira said, brushing her golden hair out of her eyes, eyes practically sparkling with excitement. "But we want long answers." She glanced to the side and finally noticed Tao, who was looking a bit forlorn. She smiled and crouched down to his level. "Hi, I'm Kira, who are you?"

Tao smiled nervously back, but did not answer. Sheik gave him a pointed look. Tao glared back.

"Is something wrong?" Kira asked, looking concerned.

"He is not comfortable around strangers," Sheik said, putting a hand on Tao's shoulder and pushing him slightly forward. "And he does not enjoy speaking. His name is—"

"Tao," the boy said, shrugging off Sheik's hand. "My name is Tao." His voice was shaky and uncertain, though it had a bit of a defiant tone to it as well.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Tao," Kira said, shaking his hand.

"My name is Tinn," Tinn said and shook Tao's hand as well. "I'm glad to see we're not the only ones who like Sheik around here."

"Oh, but now we are being rude, Tinn, leaving them standing out here," Kira said, pulling Sheik and Tao inside the room. "Come in, come in, have a seat."

Sheik looked around. The room was quite small, but comfortable for one person. A wardrobe took up most of a wall, while a large bed stood in a corner of the room, in which clearly more than one person had slept. Kira noticed him looking at it and smiled embarrassedly.

"We don't really like to sleep alone, so Tinn and I share a bed," she said.

"I understand," Sheik said, nodding. "I can't help but notice that the others aren't here…"

"Oh, they're downstairs eating lunch, I think," Tinn said. "We're so many in the house that we can't all fit in the dining room at the same time, heh."

"And they're…okay?" Sheik asked, not really wanting to say anything that could bring back bad memories.

"They're perfectly fine," Kira said. "We were safe during the battle since very few Legion soldiers ever came here. We were well protected anyway. Mr. Silas has a mean punch and took care of the ones who came too close."

"Mr. Silas?" Sheik asked. "The man I escorted you to?"

"Exactly."

"But enough about us," Tinn said. "Tell us what happened after you left! We heard a bunch of explosions and stuff but we didn't hear anything about you."

"It's long story," Sheik said.

"We've got time," Kira said, pointing at the bed. "Sit down and tell us, please."

"I wanna hear it too," Tao said, almost inaudible.

Nodding, Sheik sat on the bed. Tinn, Kira and Tao sat down on the floor in front of him with looks of intense interest on their faces. This made Sheik feel a bit strange, as if he was much older than he really was and had long and wise stories to tell, though he tried to shrug it off. "I suppose I should start with what happened after I left you in the capable hands of Mr. Silas…"

* * *

By the time Sheik was done with the story, the three were riveted to his every word.

"…and here we are right now," he finished. "I came here because I wanted to make sure that you were all okay. And because I wanted you to meet Tao."

"I'm glad we did," Tinn said, drawing Tao closer. The three had immediately formed a connection, probably because of the horrible things that had been done to them all, even though Sheik hadn't said anything about it. They just _knew_.

"I'm sorry you got captured," Kira said, looking at Sheik's hand sadly. "I knew bad things happened to captured spies and agents, but to think they'd stoop to that level…"

"What are you apologising for?" Sheik said. "It's not like you had anything to do with it. This was a long time after I dropped you off with Mr. Silas, and it was really own fault for not seeing such an obvious trap before it was too late. I'm just glad my companions got away, or they would probably have been dead right now."

"Yeah, but still…"

"No buts and no stills," Sheik said, glancing over at Tao and Tinn, who had stopped paying attention and were playing some sort of game that involved making certain hand gestures and responding to them—not unlike the rock-paper-scissors game that Zelda had taught him many years ago. He was terrible at it. "Those two have hit it off, I think," he said to Kira.

"Tinn's like that with everyone he meets, especially kids," Kira said. "He just…becomes their friend instantly."

"And Tao's not really _that_ receptive of strangers," Sheik said. "I'm amazed he's already playing with him."

"Where did you find him?" Kira asked, lowering her voice even though the two boys seemed far too engrossed in their game to even notice her. "I mean, you said you found him in Kakariko, but…you didn't really elaborate."

"Well, the Hero and I were returning from the mountains to the east when we were forced to take a detour," Sheik said, remembering the chilling scream from Tao that had drawn them inside the Shadow Temple again. "We found Tao with a group of legion deserters. He was their prisoner, and we freed him and brought him back to the Remnant." He purposefully left out what exactly the deserters had captured him _for_ , but he knew that Kira had read between the lines anyway, her eyes being the dead giveaway.

"Oh…" she said.

"Yes. But I made sure the bastards paid for it."

"Good." Kira looked uncomfortable for a second and then stood up, pulling Sheik after her. Tinn and Tao looked up in confusion, but the look the girl gave them was enough to make them continue with their game. "Can I talk to you in private for a few seconds?" she asked Sheik, even though she was already pulling him out of the room.

"Certainly," Sheik said, wondering if he had done something wrong.

Well out in the hall, Kira closed the door; made sure no one else was nearby and leaned against the wall.

"I wanted to thank you for what you did for us back there," she said.

"You've already done that," Sheik said, smiling at her. "Besides, I only did what was right, which anyone—"

"But you're not anyone," Kira said. "You're the warrior who took it upon himself to make sure that a bunch of slaves made it to safety even though it wasn't even part of his job. It's…you're…amazing." She looked up at him, blushing.

 _Oh no,_ Sheik thought. _Not this!_

"Kira, I don't—mph!"

The girl interrupted him with a kiss, surprising Sheik greatly. He didn't want this; it wasn't fair to her, to Link! Kira drew back when he didn't respond, looking disappointed.

"Is something wrong?" she asked. "Did _I_ do something wrong?"

"I…you…" Sheik said, stuttering.

Kira looked saddened for a few seconds, but then covered it up with a small smile, nodding. "I understand. We don't even know each other that well…I just wanted…to show my appreciation. I don't even understand what I was hoping for…"

 _Why must everything be so complicated?_ Sheik wondered as he awkwardly squeezed Kira's shoulder in a comforting gesture that seemed more like a nervous tick than anything else. "Listen, Kira, you're a nice girl, but…there's…something…"

"Someone else, right?" Kira asked, smile widening just a little bit. "I understand that. It's the Hero of Time isn't it?"

"…how did you know that?" Sheik asked. "Why is it that _everyone_ knows it before I tell them?"

Kira laughed. "Well, you blush a little whenever you say his name, plus I've been hearing rumours. I think it's adorable that two boys can find love like that."

Sheik sighed and knocked the back of his head against the wall. "Seems nothing can be kept secret anymore," he said.

"Well, maybe you shouldn't," Kira said. "Maybe everyone would be _glad_ to hear that their Hero has found someone to love."

"I'm not too certain about that," Sheik said. "People in Hyrule aren't too fond of that sort of thing…"

"Then why care about their opinions? If they disapprove, then they're too stupid to realise how great you are, and that makes them irrelevant. Cheering for you both is the least they can do for you since you've worked your asses off trying to save them." She shook her head, probably damning everyone who'd disagree in her head. "Anyway, I'm sorry I did that," she continued, referring to the kiss. "I should have realised."

"That's alright," Sheik said. "I'm sure this kind of thing happens all the time."

"Probably," Kira said.

They went back inside the room, where they found Tinn and Tao still engrossed in their game, though they were sitting considerably closer now. This was the fastest Sheik had ever seen Tao get accustomed to someone, and, judging by the way he was smiling, he had probably made a mistake in taking him here. Now he would never get to Tao to go with Kaura… He looked out the window and noticed that they were dangerously close to their deadline.

"It seems we are running out of time, Tao," he said, drawing the boy's attention.

"Already?" Tao asked, disappointed.

"Are you going somewhere?" Tinn asked.

"Some friends of ours are leaving for Termina in about…half an hour, give or take," Sheik explained, "and I'm trying to convince Tao to go with them."

"And I don't want to go," Tao said defiantly. "I like it here. I like spending time with you and Link and Tinn and…" He looked ready to cry at the end of the sentence, looking as miserable as the day they had found him in the Shadow Temple.

Sheik tried to say something, but found that the only thing he could come up with was the same things he had said to Tao not long before, and he hadn't been very successful back then.

"Why don't you wanna go?" Tinn asked. "I'd jump at the chance to go to Termina." Without giving Tao the chance to reply, Tinn stood up and looked out the window, watching the destroyed spires and towers that littered the city. "It's gonna take a long time for everything to go back to normal…if they ever will. Why wouldn't you want to get away from it all?"

"Because I don't want to leave my friends…" Tao said, though he sounded unsure.

"I'm sure Sheik just wants what is best for you, Tao," Kira said. "And it's not like you can't come back later, right?"

"I…guess not…" Tao conceded, looking at his feet.

"And I'll be right here too," Tinn said. "You know, in case you want to play or something when you're back."

"Really?" Tao asked, causing Sheik to briefly wonder why he cared more about Tinn being there than Link and himself. But then again, Tao wasn't very easy to figure out in the best of times.

"Sure!"

"..okay…" Tao said slowly and turned to look at Sheik. "I guess…I'm leaving, then."

"You make it sound like a death sentence," Sheik said, pulling Tao's cap off and ruffling his hair. "It won't be so bad. I mean, you know how to push Kaura's buttons, you can endlessly torture Hatra and Malon…well, you'll like her. She's nice and sensible. And, as Kira said, we'll all be waiting for you here."

"Do you promise?"

"Of course I do."

"Alright."

Sheik took another look out the window, noting with alarm that their deadline was approaching _fast_. "Speaking of which, I think it's time to leave, or Kaura is going to have my head placed on a pike." He smiled at Tinn and Kira. "Tinn, Kira, it was a relief to know that you are alright."

"Sheik, can I ask you something?" Kira said. "In private?"

"Again?" Sheik asked.

"It's not about _that_ ," she said hurriedly, blushing.

"Okay, I think that's our cue to leave," Tinn said, ushering Tao out of the room, giving Kira a wicked grin before closing the door.

"What is it now?" Sheik said, his tone sounding more irritated than intended, though Kira didn't seem to notice.

"I was just wondering…" Kira said, pausing. "This person who's leaving for Termina…do you…do you think they'd take Tinn too?"

"Tinn?" Sheik asked. "Why do you want to send him away?"

"My parents are still alive," Kira said, frowning. "As are the others'. But Tinn's…I got the message a few days ago, but I haven't told him yet. I'm not sure how he'll react…"

"And you want him to just leave without knowing?"

"Not without knowing…but I think he'd handle it better if…he went somewhere else that's not a war-torn wasteland." Kira looked at him. "I'm sorry, I know I'm imposing, but—"

"You're not imposing, Kira," Sheik said, shaking his head. "I understand your reasoning, and I may even agree…but the question is if Kaura will. She is already taking on two apprentices plus that she is taking care of Tao on the side. One more person to look out for—"

"But Tinn can take care of himself," Kira said, interrupting him. "He doesn't eat much, he's hardly a bother at all! He can even work for this…Kaura person if he has to. Please…I'm begging you, just ask."

Sheik wanted to say no. He was already treading on thin ice with Kaura (not that he wasn't doing that _constantly_ , but this time seemed more poignant). But how _could_ he say no? Besides, it was just a simple yes or no answer, right? Hesitantly, he nodded. "I…suppose I could have a word with her. But if she agrees, then Tinn needs to be ready to go immediately. They're leaving before sunset. But I don't want to get your hopes up—Kaura's very…hostile."

"But you're her friend, right? Surely she'll listen?"

"Kira, she's hostile to _everyone_ ," Sheik repeated. "But she'll listen, yes, though she will probably hurt me."

"And you'll definitely ask?"

"Yes, I will definitely ask."

"Great!" she said, hugging him tightly. "Go outside and wait a couple of minutes. I'll just gather some of Tinn's things."

"Shouldn't we tell him?"

"Better not get his hopes up, right?"

"I guess."

* * *

Kira had rather elegantly explained that they were going to see Tao off and that she had packed the younger boy some things for the trip, which Tinn accepted at face value, to Sheik's amazement.

The walk back to the camp was filled with idle chatter from the three, though Sheik kept silent, wondering how the hell he was going to word this request to Kaura without angering the physician. Did she even have the _resources_ to feed four kids? He was sweating with nervousness.

By the time they reached the hospital tent, outside of which Kaura, Link, Malon and Hatra were sitting and chatting, his heart was racing. A pair of strong-looking horses had been rigged to the cart, and they were looking anxious to get going. Kaura noticed them first, her eyes narrowing upon noticing Kira and Tinn. She stood up and marched over, looking at Tao.

"Your decision?" she asked.

Tao looked at Sheik, who shook his head in exasperation. When was this going to end? "He's going," he answered for Tao.

"Good, then maybe we can finally get goi—"

"I need to talk to you."

"Speak, then."

"Not in front of everyone else."

Kaura adjusted her spectacles and nodded at the tent. They went to the storage area, which was the innermost chamber of the tent. "I have a request," Sheik said before Kaura had a chance to speak and seize control of the conversation.

"And that is?" she asked.

"…it's more of a question, really," Sheik said, knowing he had lost control already.

"What is the _question_ , then?" Kaura said.

"Do you…do you have room for one more?"

"One more what?"

"One more person."

Kaura stared at him. "And who is this person?"

"The boy outside," Sheik said. "He was a slave in the city, and his parents are dead, and—"

Kaura groaned. "Another one? Kid, are you _actively_ gathering every orphan in the entire kingdom and unloading them on me? I am operating on _very_ limited resources here."

Sheik stared at her, noting but not mentioning the fact that Kaura had not said _no_. "There's nothing for him here," he said. "And he won't just sit around, either. He'll work for you, and I have it on good authority he does not eat much."

"Of course he'll work," Kaura said, glaring at him. "I'm not taking on any freeloaders here. Tao's going to work too, you know."

"So you'll take him?" Sheik asked.

Kaura rolled her eyes, sighing as if he had just asked her to bear the weight of the entire world on her shoulders for the rest of her life. "I guess so. I may not be the nicest person in the world, but I'm not going to a child suffer needlessly. What about the girl?"

"She wants to stay," Sheik said, unable to stop himself from smiling. "This was her idea, by the way."

"Yeah, I kind of figured that out," she replied. "You're too skittish around me to possibly have come up with a plan like this. Anyway, yes, I'll take him, but he'd better pack fast."

"Kira has his clothes in the bag."

"…you were really counting on me to say yes, weren't you?"

"We were, yes."

"I'm just too predictable, that's my problem," Kaura said, mumbling to herself as she exited the tent. Then she began to shout: "Alright, you, you, you and you, get aboard the damn cart before I regret ever coming here! Yes, that means you too, Dark-Haired-Boy-I've-Yet-To-Say-Hello-To! Hello, my name is Kaura. Tinn? Okay, Tinn, get on the damn cart!"

Sheik emerged from the tent to a scene of chaos in which Tinn was looking rather confused and distraught while being hoisted onto the cart by Kira, who was surprisingly strong for her small frame.

"But I don't understand—"Tinn tried.

"You will," Kira said, "I promise. It's for the best, Tinn!"

"But I—"

"Just trust me!"

Link came up on Sheik's side, looking rather disturbed. "What's going on, and who's that kid?" he asked.

"Kaura's taking Tinn to Termina," Sheik said. "And Tinn's someone I met in the city. He practically saved my life."

"Okay," Link said, leaving it at that, probably not wanting to know more. "And the girl?"

"Tinn's friend."

"She's going too?"

"No, she's just seeing Tinn off. This was her idea."

"Ah."

Kaura, Tinn and Kira were arguing with each other at this point, drawing the attention of a lot of people around them. Hatra and Malon sidled up to them, wincing every time Kaura's voice rose an octave or two.

"I suppose you're the one we have to thank for this commotion," Hatra said, holding out his hand to Sheik. The Sheikah shook it. "I wanted to thank you, for everything," he said, sounding very awkward. "If I hadn't met you when I did…"

"You're welcome, Hatra," Sheik said. "Just…don't accidentally kill anyone while learning, yes?"

"Heh, I'll do my best," Hatra laughed. Then he shook Link's hand. "And I'm honoured to have met you, Hero."

Sheik ignored the conversation to his left, noticing that Malon was giving him a smile. "Thank you," she said. "Without you, who knows what Ingo would have done?"

"It was my pleasure," Sheik said.

Hatra was climbing onto the cart when Tinn finally seemed to give up on resisting and allowed himself to be placed on it, scowling.

"Right, let's have another bedroll, then," Kaura said, throwing it into the back of the cart.

Right then Sheik felt a tug at his hand. He looked down at Tao, who was definitely crying now, tears flowing down his face. It was a tragic sight that almost made Sheik cry too. Wordlessly, he picked the boy up with one hand. Tao immediately wrapped his arms tightly around Sheik, hugging him.

"I'll miss you," the boy whispered.

"I'll miss you too. Stay safe, and listen to Kaura," he answered.

"I will."

The boy went from hugging Sheik to hugging Link in one, seamless movement, probably exchanging the same words with the Hero. Then Link lifted Tao up on the cart, where he made himself comfortable next to a sad-looking Tinn, who was gripping Kira's hand tightly.

"Don't do anything stupid, Tinn," Kira said, looking close to crying herself as he handed him the sack of clothes.

"I won't," he answered.

"Right, is that everyone?" Kaura asked, counting the number of people on the cart. "One, two, three, four…alright! Are you guys ready? Said your goodbyes? Good."

She turned to Link and Sheik, giving them a serious look. "I'd say how much I am going to miss you and how much I appreciate having met you and blah blah blah, but we all know that I would be lying. You two are responsible for more grey hairs on my head than this entire damn war. In fact, I ought to beat you both with a stick."

"We get the point," Link said. "And we'll miss you too."

"I don't do this mushy stuff, you know, so you're not getting a hug from _me_ ," she said.

"Of course not," Sheik said, grinning. "That would be out of character for you."

"Exactly, and if it's one thing I am, it's consistent," Kaura said. "Oh, what the hell…"

The hug came out of nowhere, the woman moving faster than anything Sheik had ever seen. It was short, but firm. By the time Sheik recovered from the shock, the physician was already in the driver's seat of the cart, holding the reigns of the horses.

"Right," she said, coughing. "If you're ever in Termina, don't you dare come knocking, you hear?"

"We promise," Link said, looking equally shocked.

"Good," Kaura replied. "Now, is everyone aboard? Everyone ready? Then we're off. Take a good look at the city, boys and girl, this is the last time you'll se it in such a state."

Hatra, Malon, Tao and Tinn (who yelled a thank-you to Sheik) waved at them as the cart rolled away, leaving Sheik, Link and Kira to stare and wave back until the shapes were too far away to make out.

"And that's it, then?" Link asked. "They're gone. Kaura, Hatra, Malon, Tao…and Tinn."

"That's it," Sheik said.

"I'm gonna miss them."

"As will we all, I think." Sheik turned to Kira, who was openly crying now. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm alright," Kira said, wiping the tears away. "You…you just never realise how much you love someone before they're gone, you know? I'm sure he'll have a great time…even if Kaura scared the life out of me."

"She's tough, but fair," Sheik said. "Did you tell Tinn about…you know…?"

"No, but I wrote him a letter which I put in the sack," she answered. "He'll understand…I _know_ he will." She smiled at him. "Thank you for everything. Saving us in the city that night…that's one thing, but this…this is more than I could even imagine. Thank you."

 _Lots of hugs today,_ Sheik thought as he was once again embraced by Kira. _And cheek kisses._

"Right, I'll get out of your hair, now," Kira said, composing herself. She curtsied to Link. "I am glad to have met you, Hero of Time. You're a lucky man." With a last glance at Sheik, she walked off, disappearing among the throngs of people that had suddenly realised that there was a celebration to be held in just a few hours and that they were nowhere near ready for it.

"What a strange girl," Link said, staring after her.

Sheik smiled and began to walk, heading back to the city. "Come, we've a party to prepare for."

* * *

Everyone was celebrating that night. Torches burned all over the city and camp, people were dancing in the streets to lively music, and it was impossible not to feel a certain elation with the knowledge that peace had finally come back to Hyrule in the back of one's head.

Although said elation was heavily dampened when Sheik saw the clothes that had been laid out on his bed by someone unknown, though he knew perfectly well who had ordered it. He glared at the outfit. Link was standing behind him, grinning.

"I thought I had burned these clothes," Sheik said distastefully, holding up the minimal piece of cloth that served as shorts and wrinkling his nose. "Twice now I have been forced to wear them, and twice I have voiced my utter distaste for them." He shivered slightly, having stripped down half-naked before he had spotted the "clothes".

"I happen to think you look good in them," Link said, standing directly behind Sheik and placing his hands on the younger teen's bare hips. "Plus, they hold a special meaning to me since that's what you were wearing the first time we—"

"Yes, yes, I'm quite aware of that," Sheik replied, blushing and hoping that Link had remembered the lock the door. "But I still don't want to wear them. Not tonight, anyway," he added when Link's face fell. "Maybe some other time…when we're alone."

"Do you even have any other clothes?" Link asked as Sheik pulled out of his grasp and began to go through the desk drawers, looking for something, anything that would be more dignified than the concubine outfit he had gotten from Aveil.

"I certainly hope so, or else I won't be attending the party downstairs."

Zelda and the high command were celebrating at the inn, which had a living room the size of a small ballroom. While it was _supposed_ to be a private party, it didn't stop the street outside from being filled up with cheering crowds, so Zelda had decided to open it to the public—resulting in a lot of noise and a lot of people Sheik did not wish to seen in the concubine outfit by.

"Want me to see if I can find anything?" Link asked, sounding disappointed.

"Would you?" Sheik said.

"Sure," the Hero said, sighing heavily and heading for the door. He opened it, coming face to face with Zelda, who had her hand raised to knock. "Oh, hi, princess," he said, smiling.

Sheik immediately picked up the pathetic excuse for a shirt and held it up front of his bare upper body, blushing. Decency was one thing he liked to maintain. "Z-Zelda?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I had some thoughts about what you were going to wear tonight," Zelda said, pushing Link aside and striding into the room. "And I remembered that outfit you were wearing that night in the desert and…well, Sheik, it's not really appropriate attire for a night such as this, is it?"

"I agree wholeheartedly," Sheik said, noticing that the princess was carrying something in her hands. It looked like cloth, but shimmered slightly in the lamplight.

"Which I think is too bad since I happen to find you adorable in that outfit," Zelda said, sniffing. "I kind of wish I could wear the clothes Aveil picked out for me that night too, but I'm afraid this evening calls for something far more…formal." She glanced down at her dress, which was even more elaborate than the one she had worn the night before. "I hate these things," she added, glaring at the golden circle on her head. "Anyway, I was rooting through my luggage the other day and I happened to come across the remains of one of the plans we laid a year ago. Remember that one? The one where I took on your identity?"

"Oh, right, that one," Sheik said, remembering the short-lived scheme they had initiated with the help of Impa. It had not been very successful due to some rather pressing physical and anatomical issues. They had even made her wear a—he paused, looking closer at the shimmering cloth. "Is that…?" he asked.

"That's right," Zelda said, unfurling the exoskeleton on the bed. "I thought we had thrown it away, but we kept it, apparently. And it should fit you perfectly, though it might be a bit loose across the chest."

Sheik touched the exoskeleton gently, remembering the feel of the unique fabric and how strong it was. It was the exact same one he had worn before it was ruined, though they had attempted to customise this one for Zelda—and failed miserably.

"I also took the liberty of having this made for you," Zelda added, holding out another piece of fabric she had hidden behind her back. "Can't have my brother not being recognised, can I?"

Sheik took the tabard and let his fingers roam across the crimson eye that was painted across the chest. It could even be pulled up and cover his face…

"You're not getting a turban, though," Zelda said, grinning playfully. "That hair of yours is too gorgeous to cover up," she said and ruffled it. "And…wait, are you crying?"

"No," Sheik said, turning away and wiping at his eyes. "I just got something in my eyes. Will you let me change, please?"

"Of course," Zelda said, pulling Link with her out of the room. "Now, Link," she said as she closed the door, "how do you feel about epaulettes?"

Link's answer was muffled by the door as it closed, but Sheik was pretty sure it was one of outrage. He grinned to himself as he slipped out of his trousers and slid into the exoskeleton, savouring the feeling of it. He pulled on the tabard and adjusted the collar so that it covered the lower half of his face, feeling comforted by the protection it offered. The brown boots didn't exactly match the blue fabric, but he didn't particularly care either.

He opened the door and found Link halfway through putting on a maroon-coloured shirt with golden swirls covered the sleeves over his regular shirt, not looking particularly amused. He caught sight of Sheik and stopped, whistling quietly.

"I'd forgotten how revealing that thing was," he said, eyes travelling up and down Sheik's body.

"Alright, alright, no ogling my little brother," Zelda said, coming out of her room. "And why are you changing out here? Go to your room, Link."

"But I—"

"I won't have half-naked boys running around in my home," she said and tossed him a pair of trousers of an unidentifiable, dark colour.

Link caught them and skulked inside the room on the opposite side of Zelda's, grumbling about the unfairness of not being allowed to expose his body to the world.

"No epaulettes?" Sheik asked as Zelda studied him closely.

"He did not like the idea of them," Zelda said, adjusting Sheik's tabard. "Said it made the clothes think they're better than they are. It didn't really make sense to me, but he _is_ the one we owe our lives and freedom to, so I didn't argue. But he _is_ wearing that shirt, however. How is the chest? Too loose?"

"The chest is fine," Sheik said, allowing himself to be manhandled like this. "Perhaps a _bit_ loose, but not enough to be distracting."

"That's good," the princess said, stepping back and looking him over once again. She reached out and pulled down his collar down. "Please don't hide your face, Sheik," she said softly. "You're too beautiful to cover yourself up like this…"

Sheik nodded, though he wanted nothing more than to pull it back up.

"Now, if only Link can hurry up and get dressed we can join the party. I don't want to miss Aveil's arrival, after all."

"Are you ever going to make it official?" Sheik asked. "Your relationship, I mean."

"Why ever would you ask that, Sheik?" Zelda asked, looking out the window at the celebrators in the streets. The windows were tinted in such a way that people could look out, but people could not look in. They were celebrating rambunctiously, singing and dancing. "You know it would cause a political scandal. As the sole remaining member of my line, I will be required to produce an heir, and I can't do that with Aveil…" She looked saddened for a moment, but then a wry smile crossed her features. "Heh, knowing Hyrule's history, the people are probably expecting me to marry Link…"

She must have seen the brief look of horror that crossed Sheik's features, for she assumed one of her own. "Oh, no, don't get the wrong idea," she said hurriedly. "I wouldn't dream of marrying Link and stealing him from you. I wouldn't be able to…he's just a friend to me…"

Sheik cleared his throat. "Well, that's good to know…"

Link's door opened and the Hero stepped out, dressed in the outfit Zelda had picked out for him. He looked decidedly uncomfortable, but the clothes suited him, the shirt reminding Sheik of the fire tunic's the Gorons had made Link. The shirt fit close to his body, showing off his strong frame, and the trousers were shimmering slightly, similar to Sheik's exoskeleton.

"Are you seriously expecting me to wear this?" Link asked, fiddling with his earring, as if he couldn't decide whether to keep it in or not.

"Yes, I am," Zelda said. "You've walked around in ugly clothes for long enough. It's time to show Hyrule that you can clean up just like everyone else. Now come on, boys," she said and linked her arms with both Link and Sheik's. "It's time to enjoy ourselves."

* * *

It was insane. The inn was filled with far too many people, and the noise level was almost unbearable, especially when Link was nearby since everyone shouted for his attention and an opportunity to have a drink with him. Surprisingly, Link did not drink any wine this evening, only sipping at a cup of juice he had procured somewhere. Zelda had been whisked off by various military officers, many of whom were probably already looking for an opportunity to further their political careers. Sheik, on the other hand, preferred to skirt around the edges of the crowds, nodding to and greeting those who acknowledged him.

He noticed Link giving him a pleading look from across the room, but he only smiled back and turned away. If Link was not strong enough to politely tear himself away from dull conversations than that was his own loss.

The volume of the conversation din suddenly rose as another large group of people entered the living/ballroom. If it hadn't been for the dark skin and red hair, Sheik would never have recognised the Gerudos in their Hylian-made dresses. They still kept the exotic jewellery and makeup, but the dresses…

Aveil was probably the one who drew the most attention of the desert people, however. Her dress was a pure white one, which clung tightly to her body, looking similar to a wedding dress, but with dark red lacing and other details that made her look stunning.

Zelda was at her side in an instant, nearly assaulting the princess of the desert with conversation and hugs, which made Sheik grin. He was surprised that no one had made the connection yet. He then spotted a pair of familiar faces a few paces away. Moving through the crowd, he gently tapped Ayla's shoulder, gasping when she turned around.

She too was wearing a dress—a bright pink one. Oh, it fit her perfectly and made her look quite womanly and pretty—but it just wasn't Ayla.

"Ayla," Sheik said, "you look…nice…"

"I hate this thing!" Ayla exclaimed, mirroring Zelda's sentiment. "It makes me feel like such a…a…"

"Girl?"

"Exactly!"

"I happen to think it suits her, but she nearly punched me in the face when I told her so," Myde said, grinning next to her. He was wearing some sort of navy-blue dress uniform, though it made him look slightly puffy, like a blowfish. His broken arm was kept stiffly pointed downwards, the cast making it impossible to bend it.

"Shut up, Trouty," Ayla said, though her smile lessened the impact. "So?" she asked, looking around. "Where's your prince charming this evening?"

"Oh, he's around here somewhere," Sheik said, trying to spot Link in the crowd, though he seemed to have been moved around since last time. "Everyone wants to be able to say that they've shook hands with the legendary Hero."

"Despite the fact that he's been walking around the camp and city for the past week or so," Ayla said.

"Yes, well, unless it's a formal occasion, very few people are interested in meeting…well, new people," Sheik said.

"How about you?" Myde asked. "Are _you_ getting any accolades?"

"Not really," Sheik said, shrugging. "Not that I particularly want them either. How about you?"

"Not a word," Ayla said sourly. "But we've gotten some weird looks from people when we've held hands."

"Better than nothing, right?" Myde said.

"I guess," the Gerudo said. "You'd think we'd get _some_ recognition for our services to the cause, at the very least. That artillery tower wasn't going to take itself down, you know."

Sheik shook his head, finally locating Link in the sea of faces, quite close to Zelda and Aveil, who seemed to be inseparable at the moment. He nodded to the Hero, who glared back at him for abandoning him to these people.

"Where's your sister?" Sheik asked, noticing that the energetic Thea was nowhere to be seen.

"Thea?" Myde asked. "Not entirely sure, to be honest. She said she didn't want to be stuck with a bunch of hoity-toity bores and went out to celebrate in the streets. She'll probably end up here later anyway, if only to laugh at my uniform."

"Well, let's just hope she's enjoying herself, then," Sheik said.

"Oh, she undoubtedly is."

"Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen, please quiet down!" the loud, brash voice of General Kato suddenly yelled. When the noise level did not lower at all, his face grew red and he took a deep breath. "Shut up and pay attention! Her Royal Highness the Princess Zelda of Hyrule is about to speak!"

The inn (and most of the streets outside) quieted down until it was possible to actually hear one's own thoughts. Zelda stepped forward, the crowds parting to give her space. She was smiling softly, Aveil hovering just behind her.

"Ladies and gentlemen, friends and allies, fellow Hyrulians," she said, her voice firm and confident. "For many years, we have all been exiles in our own lands. We have been hunted and killed by a man of unspeakable evil. We have all lost so much and so many loved ones have perished at the hands of the enemy.

"For so long, I had my doubts that we would ever see the day when peace once again reigned in Hyrule. I had almost lost hope when someone I thought I had lost seven years ago reappeared, stepping into his role as our saviour. Link, the Hero of Time, was once again among us."

A low cheer went through the crowd, and Link was suddenly pushed into the circle that had formed around Zelda. The princess smiled at him and curtsied. Link awkwardly bowed.

"Our Hero, ladies and gentlemen," Zelda said. "And what a Hero he is. Only he could have conquered all of the temples scattered throughout our lands. Only he could have utilised the legendary weapons left behind by the Goddesses. _Only he_ could have bested the Evil King Ganondorf in combat and vanquished him forever.

"We would have lasted a long time, but we would not have won without him. But we must not forget that he was not alone in his quest. No, our Hero has had many good helpers, many whom lost their lives along the way, and they too must be honoured. General Myde, Master Swordswoman Ayla, please step forward."

Sheik smiled at the suddenly _very_ flustered couple as they were pushed forward by the crowd, ending up next to Link and looking quite embarrassed.

"Hyrule thanks you for your service," Zelda said, curtsying again. Myde bowed deeply, and Ayla almost did the same before she remembered that she too was, technically, a lady and curtsied. "Your exemplary efforts in infiltrating the enemy lines and sabotaging vital equipment as well as in taking down the artillery tower that almost threatened to stop our advance have earned you a place in our history, and you will always be welcome as my guests."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Myde said.

"Your honour us," Ayla said.

"I am only giving credit where credit is due," Zelda said, smiling. She then looked through the crowd, seemingly scanning for someone.

Sheik gulped, knowing exactly who she was looking for and tried to get away, tried to blend in with the crowds. However, it was too late.

"There is one more person to whom we owe a great deal," Zelda said slowly, staring directly at Sheik. "Someone who has gone far beyond the call of duty, who has served Hyrule faithfully since the day he was born. He has gone mostly unnoticed by you all, though everyone knows who he is. Without this person, I would not have been alive to speak to you tonight. Without this person, the Remnant would most likely have been found and slaughtered long ago. Without this person, the Hero of Time might not have succeeded in his quest."

 _Oh, Goddesses,_ Sheik thought, noticing that more and more heads were turning to look at him. _Why must she pile it on so?_

"He is my protector," Zelda continued. "And my friend. And it is high time that he is recognised for everything he has done. Sheik, please stop trying to hide and come forward."

The celebrators chuckled slightly as Sheik was suddenly pushed forward and quickly found himself being stared at by everyone in the room. He had begun to sweat, his heart definitely running wild.

Zelda stood in front of him, smiling brightly. "Sheik of the Sheikah, I, and the rest of Hyrule, owe you our eternal gratitude. Words cannot describe how happy I am to have you as a friend. I know that the Sheikah tribe cannot be resurrected, but I would like to do something to cement their place as invaluable allies of the Royal Family."

 _Allies,_ Sheik thought, _not servants._

"From this day on," Zelda said, her voice loud and firm, "the Sheikah tribe is to be considered a noble house of Hyrule."

A gasp went through the crowd, and Sheik had stopped breathing completely. Zelda was making him a noble? What was she thinking? He tried to say something, but his words died halfway out of his mouth.

"I do not have a title prepared for you, Sheik," Zelda said, sounding regretful. "But it will be made, and you shall have every right such a title carries."

"Princess, I—"Sheik began.

"No, Sheik, I will not reconsider this," Zelda said. "For too long have you and your people's efforts been overlooked. But no more." She placed her hands on his shoulder, and leaned forward, placing gentle kiss on his forehead. "With this kiss, it is made official. With this kiss, you are now ascended. Congratulations, Sheik."

For a few seconds, the inn was completely silent. The princess had just made a Sheikah, someone who was once considered a lowly servant, a noble—completely unheard of. Some looked outraged, some looked neutral. The ones who were smiling, however, of whom there was a surprising majority, slowly began to clap. It increased in volume until everyone was cheering and clapping, celebrating the creation of a new house.

Sheik was still staring blankly at the smiling Zelda when Link tore across the circle and pulled him into a tight embrace, screaming his congratulations into his ear, almost jumping around with joy. Then he did something that shocked the entire room back into silence. He dipped Sheik backwards and kissed him full on the lips. At first, Sheik struggled against the Hero, but then realised that people probably wouldn't get much more outraged than they already were at his ennobling, and responded, kissing Link back until they were almost out of air.

Standing Sheik back up, Link kept an arm around his side and stared back at the gathered celebrants. The Gerudos were cheering and smiling, Zelda and Aveil looked pleasantly surprised and Myde and Ayla were trying to stop themselves from laughing.

"What?" Link asked. "Two guys can't fall in love now? Let it be known that I, Link, Hero of Time and your godsdamned saviour, love Sheik of the Sheikah—or is that Lord Sheik now?—and that I have no regrets! And if any of you have got a problem with that, you can go to hell!"

Sheik stared at Link, eyes wide, mouth opening and closing.

"We knew it all along!" someone at the back shouted, and a wave of laughter rolled over the crowed as they began to clap and cheer again. They…weren't screaming at them, they weren't cursing Link… Warmth blossomed in his chest and raced to fill all his extremities. Tears began to form and run down his cheek. It was like the world suddenly sped up and slowed down at the same time. He felt himself being hugged by Ayla and Zelda, saw only smiling faces in the crowd.

And then Link kissed him again—and he kissed back, not caring who saw them.

* * *

"Some night, huh?" Link asked, filling Sheik's cup with water.

They were sitting on the roof of the inn, having climbed out of the second floor windows and up with two cups and a flask of—of all things—water, wanting some time to themselves. They had remained downstairs for a few hours, once again being passed around between the crowds—both of them. Sheik had never been congratulated and apologised to so much as he had been that night, and while he knew that most of those apologies and congratulations were politically motivated, it felt…good.

"You're telling me," Sheik said, taking a sip. The water was cold as ice, just the way he liked it. "I still can't wrap my head around it all."

"Me neither," Link said. "I mean: you, a lord? I bet you don't know the first thing about hobnobbing with the nobs."

"Don't remind me," Sheik said.

No one could see them up here, the roof of the inn having a wavy design that created a small nest in the middle of four hill-like domes at each corner.

"So, here we are, then," Link said after a few minutes of silence. "The war is over, peace reigns over the land…and our adventure is over."

"Mhm," Sheik said.

"Nothing to do now but sit back and enjoy life and watch as Hyrule slowly gets back on its feet."

"Pretty much."

"…how utterly boring," Link said.

"Couldn't agree more."

Link sighed, lying down on the roof, probably staining the hell out of his clothes. "I can't help but feel jealous of Tao and the others. They're out there, travelling to Termina right now. It may not be much, but at least they're doing _something_ , and seeing new places."

Sheik looked at him. "Are you saying that you wish to leave Hyrule, Link?" he asked.

"Not _leave_ leave," Link said, sitting back up and drinking straight out of the flask. "I…I just want to travel for a while, you know? I'm not _made_ for sitting still, Sheik."

Sheik refilled his cup and stared up at the stars in the sky. "I…cannot say that the thought has not struck me as well," he said slowly. "Come to think of it, I believe I was actually going to ask you about it after the party."

"What, about wanting to travel?" Link asked, very interested.

"Well, yes," Sheik replied. "But with everything Zelda just did…"

"Yeah, she really sabotaged us, didn't she?"

"I would say so, yes."

Link stood up and paced around for a bit. "You know," he said slyly, "there are a _lot_ of people down there." He pointed at the roof under his feet, probably meaning the celebrants. "They're all busy sucking up to Zelda and milking for alliances with the Zora, Gorons and Gerudo…"

"Where are you going with this?" Sheik asked.

"I'm just saying that people probably wouldn't notice two guests slipping into the night on their way towards the stables…"

"So you wish to run away?" Sheik asked.

"Kinda, yeah," Link said. "Only for a little while—a couple of months. I just…I want to see the world, Sheik. There's so much I haven't done, so much I have heard about…don't you have that feeling?"

"Well, it _is_ a big world," Sheik said. "And I'd hate to be tied down by a title I never wanted in the first place—though I appreciate what she did, I really do."

"So…wanna do it?" Link asked.

"Zelda is going to be angry."

"She'll understand."

The answer came a bit too quick for Sheik's liking, and he looked at Link sharply. "She put you up to this, didn't she?" he asked.

"Kinda, yeah," Link said, grinning. "But it was _my_ idea originally. I just mentioned that I wished I could travel, and she basically _ordered_ me to do so and bring you with me. Our rewards for faithful service, she said."

"I thought _my_ reward was the title," Sheik said.

"She said that was just a bonus."

Sheik chuckled. "Sounds like her."

"So come on," Link said, pulling Sheik to his feet. "Let's go!"

"Now? Just like that?"

"Of course! I've already packed our stuff, we just need to pick it up, head outside and take the alleys down to the camp."

"You've really thought this whole thing through, haven't you?"

"Hey, I'm allowed to lay plans, aren't I?"

* * *

It was surprisingly easy to sneak out of the party. Link had changed back into his tunic, foregoing the chainmail this time, and they were slowly making their way through the partying crowds. No one seemed to recognise them.

Sheik had to admit that Link had really given this a lot of thought. Their packs were filled with supplies for several weeks on the road as well as enough rupees to last them Goddesses knew how long. All they needed was to figure out where to go, which Link had said that they would do _while_ going there. The last part hadn't made much sense to Sheik, but he liked the rest of the plan.

Before he knew it, they were sneaking through the camp, heading past the hospital where they had said goodbye to Kaura and the others just hours before. Sheik hoped Kira was okay, that she did not regret sending Tinn away. And then they were looking at the many horses spread out in the pen.

Epona and Maladict were already saddled up, and Sheik could see even more supplies in their saddlebags—two oil lamps burned brightly on specialised racks, which would light their way in the darkness.

Shun stood between her parents, pawing at the ground. The stable master was waving at them.

"You got _him_ in on it?" Sheik asked as they walked up to him.

"Yup," Link replied, grinning.

"Running away in the night, eh?" the stable master asked, chuckling. "Can't say I'm surprised. Anyway, there are enough supplies in the bags to last you _and_ the horses a long while, and they're all rested."

"What about Shun?" Link asked, looking at the foal. "Won't this upset her or something?"

"That little filly loves to run," the stable master said. "If anything, she will _love_ this. And don't worry; she is more than capable of keeping up with her parents. I told you, didn't I? There's magic in those horses. Now, off you go before Her Highness has a change of heart, eh? Good luck to the both of you."

With that, he strode off and disappeared in the direction of the party.

"Surprised?" Link asked as he walked over to the horses, patting first Epona, then Maladict and then Shun, who seemed to have her father's predisposition to headbutt people.

"A bit, yes," Sheik said, also patting the horses. "But then again, I should know how unpredictable you can be at times."

"Heh," Link said.

"I suppose we should get going before anyone notices we are gone," Sheik said, preparing to climb onto Maladict's saddle.

"I guess," Link said.

Shun was surprisingly calm as they slowly walked towards the edge of the camp, circling them in a gait that was slightly faster than a trot. The little foal didn't seem too interested in leaving her parents' side just yet.

For a while, it seemed that no one was going to notice that they were leaving, but when a familiar shape in a dress suddenly stepped out from behind a large tree at the very limits of the camp, they realised that they were caught.

"You really thought I was going to let you leave just like that?" Zelda said, her expression serious. "Sheik, you have a house to establish and a title to receive. Link, you are a symbol to the people, and are our very beacon of hope."

"But, but, I—"Link began. "You put me up to this!"

Zelda held her serious expression in the lamplight for a few seconds more before she smiled. "I _did_ put you up to it, and I'm telling you to get the hell out of here before it's too late." She walked up between Epona and Maladict, taking Sheik and Link's hands. "I can only hope that you will remember to come back and visit me every now and then."

"Of course we will," Link said. "This is only a small trip, after all."

"I would never dream of not returning," Sheik said.

"Good to know, good to know," Zelda said, smiling. Then she stepped away from the horses again, looking like she had just remembered something. "There is…one more friend I think you should bring along," she said.

"Who?" Link asked. Sheik already knew.

Zelda whistled loudly. The sound made a slight echo, and nothing happened. But then Kaiza swooped down, crying loudly and settling neatly on Zelda's shoulder. "I think you should bring Kaiza," the princess said. "You'll need a good scout, and you can use her to send letters to me—which you _will_ if you know what's good for you."

"Are you sure?" Sheik said.

"I'm sure," Zelda replied, holding out her arm so that Kaiza could climb onto Sheik's. "She's always been yours, Sheik. You were the only one who could put up with her antics. I'm sure she'll be happy."

"Thank you, Zelda," Sheik said, wincing slightly as he felt Kaiza's talons digging into his arm and shoulders as she headed for her preferred perch. "You have no idea what…how much this means to me."

"Right, right," she said, waving off his thanks. "I am only repaying you for the many sacrifices you have made over the years, Sheik. Now, I should probably return to the party before people realise that I am gone. I don't want to see either of you for at least half a year, understand? And don't worry; I'll give your best to your friends. Farewell, and have a pleasant trip."

Without another word, she began to head back towards the camp and the city, leaving Link and Sheik to wonder how she had been able to sneak out of the city before them.

"Right," Link said, staring after her. "We'd best get going, then."

"Yes, we should," Sheik said, also trying to stare after Zelda, but Kaiza had conveniently placed perched herself so that she was in the way.

As they began to trot over the plains, Sheik felt a stupid grin forming on his face. This was what life should be. Fun, exciting, _unfamiliar_. He looked over at Link and realised that the Hero had the same grin as he.

Suddenly, Shun whinnied and took off like an arrow, racing ahead of them. Link and Sheik shared a look before spurring Epona and Maladict on, chasing the foal towards the border.

"Hey, Link!" Sheik shouted.

"Yeah?!"

"Where are we going?!"

"Wherever we want!"

* * *

**The End**


End file.
